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Gardening and Eating for Living
Gardening and Eating for Living is an essential guide for anyone looking to improve their health and well-being for life. It contains simple, step-by-step instructions, tips and suggestions to help you learn and apply the benefits of organic produce, natural remedies and sensible lifestyle modifications, either through growing ingredients yourself or sourcing them from suppliers.
Teacher and mother-of-two, Caralyn battled cancer and other chronic illnesses for several years before discovering that many of the solutions to these health problems could be found in her own backyard through organic gardening. She also looked to nature to better fulfil her daily cooking, cleaning, personal care and other lifestyle requirements.
What began as a personal quest to restore her health and vitality soon became a life’s passion for Caralyn, who now runs a busy organic farm in Bedfordale. For the past few years she has used “Shambhala Place” to help thousands of others transform their lives through sharing her knowledge and expertise with educational tours, workshops and farm-stays.
Gardening and Eating for Living will change the way you think about your health and well-being, and will provide you with hundreds of useful ideas to improve your life today.
The inspiration behind the book:
I'm a country girl at heart, but for a long period of time, I have been enchanted by the convenience of city living. I lost touch with my connection to the environment, and my food. I became caught up with constant commitments, and demands on my time. I used fast foods, and highly processed convenience ingredients. I exposed myself to chemicals and undesirable additives. Inadvertently, and unknowingly, I was also exposed to extremely high levels of the pesticide heptachlor. I completely forgot how to relax and take time out.
Not surprisingly, I developed a range of health problems, including chemical sensitivity, allergies, and food intolerance, culminating in a diagnosis of breast cancer. What a wake-up call breast cancer was!
Cancer changes your perspective on everything. I did not want to die, I wanted to recover. I remembered that the seeds of my life were planted in my childhood. I started to regain my connection with the environment. I planted some seeds, tended them, and watched them flourish. First I grew a few herbs, then some salad greens, quickly followed by fruit and vegetables. I began to incorporate more and more freshly picked organically grown produce in my diet. At the same time, I actively avoided foods that I was intolerant to. I minimised my exposure to synthesised chemicals and undesirable additives. Once my food intolerance and sensitivities were under control, I recovered from my digestive difficulties. I also regained my overall health and vitality. I was now Gardening and Eating for Living.
Cancer has taught me to treasure the moment. I am now back in control of my life, gardening and eating for living!
Associate Professor in Health and the Environment
Murdoch University
Gardening and Eating for Living workshops.
A Garden Path - The theme of A Garden Path focuses on Gardening for Living.
The Kitchen Pantry - The theme of The Kitchen Pantry focuses on Eating for Living
Photographs © Caralyn Lagrange 2004