A few months ago, I joined the Summerville Art Guild to get to know other artists in my area. I figured it would be similar to the North Valley Art League that I was a member of in Redding, Ca. I'm not sure what the difference is between a league and a guild.
https://www.summervilleartistguild.org/artist-sites
After being accepted as an exhibiting artist with the Guild, I began musing at the word “guild” and it's homonym “gild.”
A guild is an association of people with similar interests or pursuits (not a bunch of people with a thin film of gold leaf “gilded”). My new Guild of artists encourage and mentor each other and also provide scholarships for young artists. Getting together with others who share your interests and help you become better is pretty cool.
Today while looking up effective strategies for permaculture around my new apple trees, I learned about the concept of an apple tree guild. I just found out that a guild can also be a group of organisms that use the same ecological resource in a similar way.
https://permaculturedlife.com/a-simple-apple-tree-guild-example-with-lots-of-edible-plants/
I just love this! Anyone who knows me well, knows I am just crazy about symbiotic relationships and the interconnectedness of God's perfectly planned creation. In a way, I think my old pear tree has a guild going on with my oak and chanterelles. Maybe that is why she has lasted so long.
I can't wait to form an apple guild to let nature do its glorious thing.