Pizza!

I've figured out what I'll be doing for the rest of my courses. Here are the details:

For most of March, I'll be taking a Community Design Certificate Course. We will be learning all the essentials of how to design, build and manage various human settlements. After that is a two day advanced design skills workshop. I think this will help sharpen my design skills. It will also cover lanscape design. I have no previous experience with this, so it should be informative.

I received an invitation to help start a native plants garden at a private residence in Sydney. So, I extended my visa to stay in Australia until April 18th. Spending time in the city sounds exciting from this very rural place. The country-side is definately beautiful, but I think the city will offer some different experiences before I leave.

We have been very productive lately at the gardens. Last night we cooked homemade pizzas in the cob oven. They were delicious! Today we crafted some soap. It was good to finally learn the chemistry of all those cleaning products.

-Matt

First Greenhouse plans up!

Today I finalized some of the sketches for the new Harmony greenhouse. I posted them in a blog for easy access. There is a companion text for the numbered views. Click the plan sketch to get to the blog. Email me for any questions.
-Matt

Classes Again

Classes have started again. Old students are getting to know new students. We spent the first few days on course and site logistics. There was also a garden tool workshop. I never knew there were so many differences among garden tools. Next week the eco-village design course starts. I will be learning how to plan sustainable community and housing settlements. Soon after an advanced design skills workshop will take place.

-Matt

Sheet Mulching

We started planting the lettuce beds today. We used a sheet mulching technique for existing beds. Spring is just around the corner for the northern hemsiphere and this is a great way to give your seedlings a fighting chance. It is accomplished as follows:
HOW TO REGENERATE AN EXISTING BED VIA SHEET MULCH
1. Weed out unwanted species, the topsoil should be mostly exposed before you begin
2. Sprinkle beds with blood-bone and gypsum for subsoil regeneration
3. Cover with a light layer of compost mix. Using a garden or pitch fork, poke deep holes through the copost layer and into the subsoil. Gently wedge the fork to and fro, then pull it out. This will aerate the subsoil and allow some compost to penetrate it. Do not turn the soil! This turns the soil structure (that took the soil years to accomplish) upside down.
4. Water well
5. Soak sheets of old newspaper* in water and spread several layers thick across the beds (and around existing plants), tucking in the edges and corners
6. Cover well with a mulch (hay works well and is cheaper than conventional woodchips)
7. Mark out where you want your seedlings to go
8. Using an old knife, cut a small X shape through the mulch and newspaper
9. Tuck the seedling's roots into the compost (under the newspaper X flaps)
10. Fold the newspaper X flaps back around the base of the plant.
11. Reform the mulch around the seedling to cover the paper, but still expose the plant leaves
12. Water well (in the morning and evening, midday will fry the foliage)
*The wet newspaper discourages new weed growth. After a time, it will bio-degrade int the top soil. Most newspaper agencies are printing using lead free inks these days, but it is still safe to check if you are unsure. Don't use magazine or glossy paper.

p.s. old cardboard makes a great foundation for garden paths. Mow, cut down or pull out any vegetation in the way (low as possible if you mow). Put down thick layers of cardboard wherever you want your paths to be, cover with a thin layer of mulch (hay, straw) and top with a thck layer of woodchips or gravel. The mulch will help the top layer to settle in and not get kicked around so much. Forming edges with rocks or bricks will help keep things in place.

-Matt

So, I've been introducing the students to American/ Indiana cuisine. I've showed them how to make things like corn bread, fried mush and banana muffins so far. Apparently muffins never really existed here until the coffee shop culture came to this area. It was very difficult explaining what an American biscuit was. I ended up saying it was like a scone, a very bland scone. They seemed a little turned off about biscuits and gravy. I guess everyone has their limits.
Today is Valentine's Day so I made an appropriate giant banana muffin. Lucky for us our only cake pan is in the shape of a heart.

-Matt

Even though I've been here for more than a month, I am still surprised just about all the time. The other morning I sleepily made my way to the sink to brush my teeth. I thought for a second, "Who put that hose there". Then of course, I realized it was no hose. I had just met a local carpet snake. Harmless of course, they typically live off rats. They like slithering up into the rafters to stay warm.

-Matt

Summer Cleaning

The past two weeks have flown by! There are many new faces at the gardens now that classes are starting up again. An Aussie from England, a fellow American (Hawaii) and a guy from Portugal are all settling in. We have been clearing the planting beds for the winter crops. Here in the sub-tropics they don't really have an Autumn. The weather turns a bit cooler as it reaches Winter, but that's about it. The Winter planting is also the most productive here. It is known as European Summer because many of the popular cool temperate vegetables and fruits can be grown. Many new projects are underway (bamboo gates, nursery construction) including the maintenance of existing ones.

Today a group of us hitched to the Channon Market in the mountains. Hitching is extremely safe (in groups of course) and is considered the norm here for rural traveling. The market was tucked in a valley on the far side of the mountains. When I arrived, I was overwhelmed with a medley of aromas and colors. We had some good food and took in some local music. The weather was fine until about 3:00, when it started to rain. Instead of seeking shelter most of the locals gathered around a stage to dance in the rain. It is obvious that the people in the valleys love the rain and realize that it keeps everything an electric green. Anyone with an umbrella (like me) stands out a bit. That's about it for now. More pictures to come soon!

-Matt