Posts Tagged "food security"

July 7th

July 28th

Days have been hot & dry (high 90’s or low 100’s). I had been hand watering like crazy! I have come home to find very wilted plants. I almost feel like I can’t be gone from home very long. I am lucky enough to have a friend who is going to install drip irrigation to these beds. I’ll be taking notes 🙂

A watermelon flower

A newly polinated watermelon

Isn’t this just the cutest thing ever? Now I sound like a new mom bragging about her babies….sorry. Can’t help it. 😉

As a novice gardener I realized I have underestimated these plants. I just found out that one watermelon can take up 100 sq ft! OH NO! I planted about 14 of them. It’s gonna be a scary jungle here soon.

Raspberries are growing. I never knew when raspberries were in season. I am guessing sometime in late summer.

Butternut Squash (volunteer)
OMG, I just LOVE butternut squash! It is one of my favorites. I love it as a soup, roasted, steamed, sauteed, you name it. I need to learn more raw recipes for this amazing food! If you know any post them in my comments box below.

Look what Alex discovered! I had a green preying mantis in my garden a couple months ago, but seeing this guy just threw me for a loop. I didn’t know there were different colors! However, he was hidden behind some rocks and he blended right in!

I think these guys (grasshoppers) are bad for a garden. Not sure. Anyone know? He was kickin’ it on my cherry tomato volunteers.

I have also been enjoying the abundance of bees! I would guess there are over 50 bees or so out in the morning. It feels so good, especially after Mehgan and I watched a program recently on the problem with bees. No bees = no food! Mehgan really wants to raise bees, but I am concerned since my property is rather small. I wouldn’t want neighbors to be trying to kill them. I dunno. Anyone know about this? My lot is just about 8000 sq ft.

Patty Pan on the Vine

I harvested this one. I think this was about the right size before harvesting for best flavor, etc. Again, not sure. Tasted fantastic though.

Yellow Squash (volunteer)

I ate this straight from the garden just minutes after picking. It was so sweet! I can get used to this! 😉

Zucchini
My first one of the season. It’s got a weird shape to it!

A new cantaloupe

Cantaloupe (volunteer) amongst cherry tomato volunteers
Almost ready! Again, I have like 14 of these plants. I am not a big fan of cantaloupe, but Mehgan is. She can easily eat 2 a day!

Lemon Cucumber
I recently trained this up at trellis after it had become a big mess. It sort of shocked the plant I think, but it is doing better. Here is a young cucumber.

I think this is when it is harvesting time. I was told that if it was creamy colored and no longer green then it was ready to go. These are so good. I went to a raw food potluck where there were raw pickled cucumbers with lemon juice, dill, and salt that marinated over a period of several days. Who knew you could enjoy raw pickles? I am always amazed.

Here is a little clip of my compost! I have always had troubles doing it right. I never had crumbly dark soil. Either it would get stinky and too wet at the bottom and attract flies or it would be too dry and never break down. I think in this video it is a bit dry, however it is the best it has ever been. I bet I’ll just keep getting better from here!

I have a long way to go before I have a fully running edible landscape. However, I am thankful for what I have so far. I am not an expert at gardening, but I am learning as I go. A great book that is helping me is called Desert Gardening since I live off the coast and closer towards Palm Springs. It seems that July & August just scorches my entire garden and Jan gets frost. So, it seems in Southern California I have a few short seasons to work with although I can grow year round. I have so much to learn.

I need to be diligent with watering since missing one day can wipe out all my hard work (which has happened a few times). I did get straw to mulch and that seems to be helping. However, it blows all over the place (as seen in the video). I still have more beds to mulch now that the plants are larger.

Here is a list of what I have so far:

Trees
fig (Black Mission), plum (Santa Rosa)

Bushes
2 blueberry varieties (O’neil & Misty)

Vine
grape (red flame) and kiwi (about dead by the sun)

Berries
blackberry, raspberry, boysenberry, strawberries (again near scorched)

Herbs
oregano, basil, chamomile, aloe

All raised beds have wire to keep underground gophers from getting into the goods. My dog, Hailee has been keeping all the birds from landing and mice, possums and gophers from having a party in my yard. The compost seems to draw in the critters. Which is why it is in a trash can with holes so I can put potting soil over the clippings and put a lid on it.

Annuals
corn- sweet, white, & bi color
Anaheim chili’s
tomato (a few varieties)
watermelon
cantaloupe
pumpkin
spaghetti squash
zucchini
patty pan
cucumber- 2 varieties
tomatillo

Volunteers
cantaloupe
yellow summer squash
butternut squash
cherry tomatoes
pumpkin (I think)
beets

To do
finish nylon netting for vertical growing
front yard flowerbed along the wall needs to be re planted (most everything there is a volunteer and I didn’t have the heart to rip them out.)
install an irrigation system
finish the side area of the front yard next to the small raised beds. BTW, I double dug under all those and amended soil about 1 foot down. I don’t have wire to block gophers though. I hope it isn’t a problem in the future, but from what everyone tells me it will be an issue.

After it cools a bit
I hope to plant trees in September like citrus and stone fruit. As well as putting all the plants that are still on pots in the ground. I need to be careful since the soil I have is clay and very tough to work with. I know it will be a while before I have awesome soil.

My dream has been to open a wellness center for over 7 years now. As I evolve and continue to learn I have decided I want to establsih a tropical, sustained Eco-Village/ Retreat. There are many places that offer similiar features that I would like to model my place after.

Location Model: Pangaia
Non-profit Educational Training Center Models: Ann Wigmore Institute in Puerto Rico, or Dr. Gabriel Cousens The Tree of Life in Patagonia, AZ)

Focus
Sustainable living
Health- raw food nutrition, physical fitness (yoga & outdoor recreation)
Spirituality & Self Expression/ Self Love/ Self Discovery/ Self Realization
Nature- connection to the land through food & living environment

Features
Off the Grid- solar power, passive cooling/heating, rain water collection & filtration, grey water system, composting system for toilets & garden clippings.
Sustainable food with Permaculture/Organic Edible landscaping (surplus sold: co-op, farmers market, organic produce delivery)

Accomodations
Tree house bungalows w/private outdoor garden showers
Communal Area: kitchen, dining, media library, gathering room, yoga/massage deck, indoor shower/bathroom, laundry

Daily Services
Raw meals provided
Yoga
Morning meditation/beach walks
Massage
Classes and Adventure Activites
Sunset fireside luau celebration w/ live musical talent

Classes, Workshops, Training courses
live food nutrition/purification & natural hygiene
yoga teacher training
spirituality / self empowerment
Homegrown food self reliance workshops
Feature guest speakers/ talent from around the world

Adventure Activities
Nature Hikes (medicinals, edibles, tropical fruit/botany, wildlife)
Surf, snorkle, kayak, swim
Bike rides
Zip line, paintball , skydive, parasail, rock climb
Horseback riding

The first steps are:
Intern at an established location to clarify vision and gain experience
Establish a non-profit team & obtain grant writers
Attract interested parties