Made In Macon Community Kitchen

Today we celebrate with this beautiful painting of George Washington Carver tending to some red and white amaryllis flowers. 🌺

Carver was the leading African American agricultural scientist of the 20th century. He brought a conservationist approach to his field.

He first encountered the blossoming conservation movement as a student at Iowa Agricultural College. His reverence of nature and appreciation for the “mutual relationship of the animal, mineral, and vegetable kingdoms” was also equally shaped by his deeply held Christian beliefs.

Carver led the Agricultural Department at Alabama’s Tuskegee Institute for forty-seven years, from 1896 to 1943. During his tenure, he emphasized the importance of sustainability, compost fertilizers, and crop rotation. He wrote, “Wherever the soil is wasted, the people are wasted. A poor soil produces only a poor people—poor economically, poor spiritually and intellectually, poor physically.”
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🖼️: “George Washington Carver” by Betsy Graves Reyneau, 1942. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; transfer from the Smithsonian American Art Museum; gift of the George Washington Carver Memorial Committee to the Smithsonian Institution, 1944. © Peter Edward Fayard

May's full Flower Moon will peak tomorrow on May Day, Friday, May 1! The name of this full Moon should be no surprise; flowers spring forth across North America in abundance this month! 🌸🌕️

The name “Flower Moon” has been attributed to Algonquin peoples, although there are many names for May's Moon. The Cree names Budding Moon and Leaf Budding Moon celebrate the awakening of local flora, which really begins to leaf out now in many areas. Similarly, Planting Moon (Dakota, Lakota) marks the time when seeds should be started for the farming season ahead.

The activities of animals marked spring’s arrival, too, which is highlighted by the Cree names Egg Laying Moon and Frog Moon, as well as the Oglala term Moon of the Shedding Ponies. All three names indicate that warmer weather is on the way! 🌸🌕️

Learn more about this May Day Moon at Almanac.com/full-moon-may