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  • Home: Earth Sanctuaries
  • Pilgrimage Stories
  • Garden Sanctuaries
  • Seasonal Celebrations
  • Natural CommunitiesThis section honors our native plants and animals and the diverse and beautiful habitats in which they live. It includes an article on Drawing the Natural Gardens of North Carolina and selected illustrations of mountain, piedmont, and coastal plain habitats. I hope these drawings of the sacred natural communities where I live will inspire you to savor the wild lands where you live and help to conserve them.
  • About BL
    Contact Me
  • Home: Earth Sanctuaries
  • Pilgrimage Stories
  • Garden Sanctuaries
  • Seasonal Celebrations
  • Natural CommunitiesThis section honors our native plants and animals and the diverse and beautiful habitats in which they live. It includes an article on Drawing the Natural Gardens of North Carolina and selected illustrations of mountain, piedmont, and coastal plain habitats. I hope these drawings of the sacred natural communities where I live will inspire you to savor the wild lands where you live and help to conserve them.
  • About BL
    Contact Me

Garden Sanctuaries

Garden Sanctuaries posts are dedicated to the process of making creative garden spaces in which to commune with nature, in which to experience the intertwining of nature and spirit. Our goals are to restore and enhance wildlife habitat while providing places for healing through sitting, walking, meditating, singing, dancing, and celebrating. There is a story about the creation of our Pollinator Garden and a photo gallery of the butterflies and skippers who have come to visit. There is a description of our Moss Garden Sanctuary and a gallery of images of this favorite contemplative space. In this section you will also find an Inventory of the native flora and fauna of our Forest Garden, which contains a lot of information about the plants and their pollinators. Our gardens are certified as wildlife habitat by the National Wildlife Federation, as native plant conservation gardens by the North Carolina Native Plant Society, and as Platinum Level Bird Friendly Habitat by Audubon. We host gatherings here in the garden sanctuaries to celebrate the changing seasons. The gardens are open, by appointment, for learning about native plants and enjoying the wildlife of the two small ponds.

Ancestor Ritual in the Moss Garden Sanctuary
2 Apr 2018

Ancestor Ritual in the Moss Garden Sanctuary

by Betty Lou Chaika | posted in: Garden Sanctuaries | 26

It has been a year since our beloved friend Mary Barakha died, and the beautiful garden sprite she had created that hung in the little spirit-house we made for it in the Moss Garden, had gotten weathered. It seemed a … Continued

Moss Garden Gallery
3 Jan 2018

Moss Garden Gallery

by Betty Lou Chaika | posted in: Garden Sanctuaries | 10

Here are photos of our Moss Garden in Spring, Summer, and Winter including the Earth Shrine, Quartz Spiral, Puzzle Stones, Radiating Steps, Mandala-Making Area, and Spirit House.

Moss Garden Sanctuary
1 Jan 2018

Moss Garden Sanctuary

by Betty Lou Chaika | posted in: Garden Sanctuaries | 0

The moss garden is a place of healing. If I’m tired and do some moss-weeding I feel rejuvenated. I call it “bending to the green” and feel like I’m bathing in green endorphins. Lying on the soft bed of moss … Continued

Gallery of Butterflies and Skippers
5 Aug 2017

Gallery of Butterflies and Skippers

by Betty Lou Chaika | posted in: Garden Sanctuaries | 0

We are excited that all these butterflies and skippers have been visiting the flowers in our newly created Pollinator Garden in Chapel Hill, North Carolina!

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Recent Posts

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EarthSanctuaries content © Betty Lou Chaika unless otherwise noted.