Spring Eggs, Birds, Flowers and More

It wouldn't be Easter weekend without colouring eggs even though there are no small children in the house to help me. I have wanted to try natural dyes for a long time and finally got around to doing it. The results were worth the effort. Here is the method for each colour.

Yellow- This was the fastest and easiest to do. Boil 2 tbsp of turmeric in 2 cups of water, let it cool and add 1 tbsp of white vinegar per cup of liquid. The eggs coloured up in less than 5 minutes. Be careful with this colour as turmeric stains everything it comes in contact with.

Blue- Boil one cup chopped purple cabbage in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes. Drain liquid, cool and add 1 tbsp of vinegar per cup of liquid. The eggs took at least 20 minutes to colour and apparently if you leave them overnight, they will turn a darker blue.

Orangey/brown- Boil one cup of yellow onion skins in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes. Drain, cool and add 1 tbsp of vinegar per cup of liquid. This worked quickly and coloured the eggs in 5-10 minutes. I liked this colour best. You can get a different colour with red onion skins.

Pink- Boil 1 large cut up beet in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes. Drain, cool and add 1 tbsp vinegar per cup of liquid. This took longer to work and the pink was quite pale.

I went for a walk in the woods today and came across an American Robin who was missing some colour. This leucistic bird was with a mate who had normal feathers.

I found many spring wildflowers blooming well ahead of their usual May appearances, particularily in protected areas with a southern exposure. The temperatures have been more seasonal lately but we have had no significant precipitation for weeks. 

Wild Ginger in bloom

The leaves on the forest floor are very dry and I noticed a lot of rustling as I walked along the trails. Numerous garter snakes were about doing their spring business which was the same business the birds and flowers were engaged in...reproduction.

 

I used to run when I saw a snake, but running is no longer something I do easily. So I have to stand my ground and take a deep breath to deal with my serpent-generated adrenaline rush. And they were kind of pretty in their own way too.