Dancing TreePeople Farm

Dancing TreePeople Publications

Tue, 22 Jul 2025 16:41:15 -0700

We launched Dancing TreePeople Publications--a publisher focused on inspiring stories.

Topics center on the farm, farm inhabitants and community, permaculture and related subjects. Stay tuned for announcements about upcoming publications.

The Linda Tree

Sun, 28 Jul 2024 22:35:01 -0700

In 2015, here at Dancing TreePeople Farm, I and my farm mates planted a tree--named for my sister Linda who passed away in January of that year.

The Linda Tree was planted in March 2015

It was a grafted plum and pluot—”a fruit salad” tree. I thought Linda would appreciate that.

Now, in 2024, a year of transition for all of us, our farm mates decided to recreate the moment. Here is the Linda Tree in 2015 and now:

Yes, even nine years is long enough to see something good come of one's efforts, but not nearly long enough to fully understand how to bring life back to the land.

For now, we plant and cultivate trees as a way to honor the land and those who have gone before. Perhaps the Linda Tree will witness the rebirth of this place long after we have moved on. Maybe one day, the redwoods we've planted here will capture the clouds.

Where We Live

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 16:46:39 -0700

The Cob Cottage

A structure made of strawbales and natural plasters, and cob (an adobe made of local clay, sand and straw)

Barn and Solar Panels

Farm Life

Orchard House

Farm House

Dancing TreePeople Farm Photos

Mon, 25 Mar 2024 19:23:44 -0700

Winter

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Making Nut Milk at Home

Sat, 12 Dec 2020 00:37:46 -0800

With a Humble Nut Milk Bag...

Here are a few common questions people ask about making nut milk:

What is Nut Milk?

Nut milk at its most basic is the liquid created from mashed nuts. You can also make milk from legumes like soybeans. You can add a flavors to it, but it is basically water and nut solids.

Nut milk can easily be made by soaking and blending nuts in a blender and then draining the liquid through a mesh bag like the one shown here: The fine mesh is specifically designed to keep unwanted solids out of the milk.

What is a Nut Milk Bag?

Making nut milk is accomplished by filling a cloth or nylon bag with ground nut solids and water. A typical nut milk bag is quart size and is specifically designed to hold tight to the mouth of a container as you spoon in the mixture. While we are focusing on nut milk here, keep in mind that you can filter other things with this bag too, such as filtered juices or coffee. An organic nut milk bag is particularly good for this because leaching fluids through a mesh will draw out any chemicals used in making the bag. So ORGANIC bag is critical unless you are okay with synthetic chemicals in your food.

How Do I make Almond Milk?

Almond milk is a particularly popular type of nut milk and can be costly to buy pre made. 1 cup of bulk almonds can create nearly a quart of creamy, tasty almond milk. Essentially, you will soak the nuts, blend them with filtered water, and then filter or strain the mixture, separating the solids from the creamy liquid. The liquid is almond milk! The nut solids are high in protein and flavor, and can be used in a variety of recipes.

Our favorite step-by step "how to" recipes are here:

Homemade almond-milk with step-by-step-photos

Walnuts Are Good For You!

Wed, 23 Jan 2019 00:57:05 -0800

... but we already knew that, right? Here's an article confirming how good they are:

https://www.consumerreports.org/nuts/are-nuts-good-for-you/

According to Consumer Reports, researchers found that "that those who ate one or more servings of walnuts per week had a 19 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease, a 21 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease, and a 17 percent lower risk of stroke. "

So yay! Good for your heart. Good for cardiovascular health. And tasty too.

How We Got the Name

Sun, 09 Dec 2018 00:55:02 -0800

The name "Dancing TreePeople" originated when we observed the trees in the orchard dance in the wind. The trees are a true presence in this place and thus are "people" or more specifically "tree-people"

We at Dancing TreePeople strive to cultivate a new way of being, live sustainably, grow our crops in a way that regenerates the health of the land and the community, and share these practices with others. We apply and demonstrate the principles of ecological design (permaculture): Care of the Earth, Care of the people and Return the Surplus.

The Ranch Fire

Sun, 26 Aug 2018 00:51:13 -0700

On Saturday July 28th, we evacuated from Dancing TreePeople Farm and had to leave the chickens behind. I set them up on automatic watering but on Sunday the power went out so I worried. That outage lasted five days. Animal Control assure me they would go in there to make sure the chickens had food and water. Some people fixate on the strangest things. I fixated on the chickens. Were they okay? what was happening to them? Would they be attacked by fleeing predators? Did they have water?

As it happens, the night of August 2nd, the fire burned toward our place and ashes and burning leaves must have rained down on the farm. Fire trucks were parked at each house on Pitney Lane defending our property--which was left relatively unscathed.

By day four, I asked our PG&E rep to let me know when the power would return. Power was back on the next day --I know this because I was able to remotely monitor our solar energy system. Seeing the data told me two things: our wifi router at home was intact (so we had a home) and the barn was okay--where the inverter and data collection took place.

When we returned after 12 days away, the chickens were fine. One of the silkies had started brooding--with a dozen unclaimed eggs underneath her. Today (August 26) four of this have hatched, with more to come.

Our losses were minor in the scheme of things: we lost a freezer and refrigerator of food due to 12 days evacuated, 5 without power and are extremely grateful. The fire was stopped across the street from us--fire trucks saved every house on Pitney Lane. If you don't look past the farm it is like nothing happened, except for the ever-present smoke and ash... and a burned leaves from trees up the hill from us. The forest and mountains all around us are burned and sometimes I am overcome with the loss of all those beings: trees and animals.

Friends of our could not get insurance, and lost their homes. They cannot rebuild.

Some days I just...Read More

Kiss the Ground

Mon, 13 Nov 2017 00:48:28 -0800

This is an awesome and hopeful video and also explains why we don't till the soil at Dancing TreePeople Farm. Watch:

More Solar!

Thu, 31 Aug 2017 00:44:04 -0700

We completed installation of 7.85 KW of Solar Energy replacing our old 3KW system. These new Sunpower panels will perform even when partially shaded. Carol is helping others go solar. Visit her at http://www.upstartenergy.com for more information.