Dreaming of A Green Christmas & An Even Greener New Year!

Houston weather has been cold and rainy these past few weeks. It's made it hard for me to even want to step outside, preferring the warm glow of the Sun to the harsh stabs of the cold- at times freezing temperatures.
Yet, this past weekend, I peered out of my back windows at home and looked out to the plot of land that we used to plant the corn just a few months back and it took me to that sunny and growing time. More importantly, it got me thinking about the things that will grow out of the land once the weather is better and we can all gather together again to make growth happen- all in the spirit of self-sustainability & green goodness!

Also, came across this article about staying Green during the Holidays! Enjoy!

http://www.39online.com/lifestyle/green/sns-health-holiday-eco-friendly-green,0,5057134.story

Dreaming of a Green Holiday?

If so, try these 10 eco-friendly suggestions brought to you

by Mother Nature.
Jim Williams HealthKey.com contributor

December 2009-

"Ring, ring...Mother Nature calling, can you cut me some slack this holiday season?"

Certainly, the holidays are celebration of family and friends, a festive time filled with gift giving, decorating, tree trimming and sparkling lights. But not so much fun for the environment.

Trashing the Holidays

Americans generate 25 percent more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day than any other time of the year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The food waste, the ribbons and bows, the paper, boxes and shopping bags, all add up to an extra million tons of waste each week for five weeks.

Strange as it might sound, the holiday season is the perfect time to reduce, reuse and recycle. Here are 10 ways to be celebrate a 'green' holiday season:

1. Start a "living tradition" in your family and purchase a live Christmas tree, which you can replant after the holidays. Your local nursery will be able to suggest which kind of tree is best for replanting, as well as how to acclimate your tree from outdoors to indoors.

2. If you by a pre-cut tree, be sure to recycle it after the holidays. Call the maintenance department in your city or local recycling center for instructions.

3. Cut up and use your old holiday greetings cards for gift tags next year, or kids' craft projects. If you don't choose to reuse them, be sure to recycle the cards with mixed paper and magazines.

4. Consider not sending greeting cards at all and let your fingers do the "talking." There are great many Web sites that offer free e-cards. Oh, the trees we would save!

5. Save energy by using LED lights. LED are 90 percent more efficient than traditional lights. If people replaced their normal Christmas lights with LEDs, we'd save at least two billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a month. That's enough energy to power 200,000 homes for a year. If everyone switched, it would amount to an incredible amount of energy savings. Also, there are many different lighting options that are more environment-friendly, including solar powered lights.

6. Use rechargeable batteries. There's a USBCELL available that recharges by plugging into your computer. Standard rechargeable batteries are also a good choice.

7. Use newspaper, old gift bags, comics and magazines for wrapping paper. They also work for padding more delicate items and recycle paper at the same time.

8. If you have your mind set on using holiday-themed wrapping paper, try to use post-consumer and chlorine-free recycled paper.

9. Buy handmade items with less packaging such as a sweaters, stuffed toys, wooden toys, puzzles, furniture, etc.

10. Consider gifts of time such as volunteering, gift certificates for favors such as helping a friend with childcare. Or make your own gift certificates that give someone a free hour of babysitting, a free dinner, house cleaning, etc.

Green Fest Videos

 

 

Community Green Fest this Saturday!

The Emile St. Community Garden/ The Last Organic Outpost was one of the first inspirations for the Original Jardin and they are doing it really big this weekend. If you have the time (or can make the time) come out and enjoy the amazing Houston weather we are having and learn about where you belong/exist in this Green World.

Details:
Last Organic Outpost & KPFT will be hosting an event on Saturday, Oct. 24th at Emile Garden in the 5th ward. This festival is focused on to promoting green living throughout the city of Houston. We will be having demonstrations, presentations, and speakers focused on how live a more sustainable lifestyle. Music- 144 Elite, Cabo, Tom Tranchilla and Buddy Allen, DJ Sunonwater, Jerome Vielman, and many more.

We will have a Raffle and Silent Auction hosted by Houston Green Scene. There will be three stages for entertainment and educational activities! There will also be lots of family fun including free petting zoo, face painting, scavenger hunt, children’s fashion show by Sama Baby, interactive puppet show with Super Happy Funland, storytelling, NIA for tots and other small children, Sack races, art stations, balloon art, gardening activities and many more!

Green Organization and Business Participating: Houston Green scene, Houston Electric Cars, Green Cleaning products, Houston Urban Farm Belt Coalition, The Young and the Restless (Children’s resale), Massage in the garden sponsored by Dentist- Houston’s Premier Green Dental Office, Joe and Pat Greer

This event will also be promoting the efforts of 350.org INTERNATIONAL DAY OF CLIMATE ACTION. Check out the www.350.org for more information.

Food Provided by Radical Eats and Ruggles Green.
Yoga by Jennyoga and Devanand,
Recycling made possible by Not Trash.Houston
Featured local artist, Charles Washington will be demonstrating making art out of Recycled Material along with other works of Garden Art.
AND MUCH MUCH MORE!!!

Here are some of the demonstrations and presentations. (A schedule will be posted shortly):
• How to build a Composting Bin demonstration by Brittani Flowers of NotTrash.Houston
• How to make your own Natural, non-toxic cleaning products demonstration by Mona Metzger of Urban Green Clean
• Electric Car Showcase by Houston Electric Cars
• Environmental Art Workshop by Artist Charles Washington
• Balloon animals for kids with bio-degradable balloons by The Bug Man
• Featuring Garden Art by Recycle Artist Phil Waldrop
• Recycled Structures proudly constructed by Green Construction Company, Bright Side Construction
• Special performance by poet, performance artist and author of /Haiku2u:101 select poems on love, trial, triumph and trust /Jerome Vielman
• Special Appearance by Amanda Tullos (unsure of spelling) of Phoenix Connection Recycled Home Builder Dan Phillips
• Interactive garden games provided by United Wellness Center and Last Organic Outpost

Remember to pick-up your Holiday Green Guide featuring farm fresh recipes from the Last Organic Outpost compliments of Houston Green Scene

Impromptu Meeting

Hello helllloooooooooooooooooo>>>

If anyone is out there, we are still here! As Fall began to set in (this past tuesday September 22nd @ 4:22 pm to be exact) we began thinking of some of the goals/concerns/comments that we had for our Jardin. Last Friday 9/18, as we sat at shared some of our personal goals for the fall, and we began dialogue about the Jardin. Here are some of the notes that we took, along with a diagram of how we would like to expand our Jardin:

General Plans

• -Create beds on concrete slabs, clear around large slab to create planting space
• small beds for herbs on top of the concrete slabs (tbd)
• around concrete slabs we plan on putting larger plants, and herbs. (tbd)

Corn Space

• Take down the stalks
• re-mulch the area (to keep soil healthy for the winter/spring)

Comments on planting the 7 warriors Spring of '10:

• plant the three sisters together
• get the tree branches trimmed, in order to provide the maiz with better sunlight.
• create a timeline/schedule to be set for the Jardin, this can help us stay focused and have the ability to provide the Jardin with the maintenance required for the Jardin
• get a small fence lining for the yard

Ok, I also created a diagram of the space we have been granted permission to work in, If you can see it is color coded:

• Red- areas that are untouchable, the Casita, Driveway, A/C area, y el arbol.
• Green- Space for the Maiz: this is where we will continue to plant the maiz, and the rest of the seven sisters.
• Grey- Concrete areas, the concrete is NOT going to be removed, we are instead going to have to build on and around from those areas.
• Yellow- this is the area that we plan on building on top of concrete. we discussed some ideas on how we will go about this, more details to come once finalized.
• Blue- the are around the concrete area. we need to do TWO big things to this area. 1) Get rid of the wild vegetation growing there and 2) mulch the entire area.
• Lilac- areas that need just general cleaning

Well, there is more to come we planned a meeting/work day Saturday, OCTOBER 10th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2009 Please you have two weeks, to clear the schedule and make it happen. Please feel free to come out and join us as we begin to make further plans for this Jardin.

Peace

What the the garden brings...

From my last post, I haven't been fortunate enough to take part in much bonding with the maize due to many factors. Tonight I was offered that opportunity.

Merely walking by the maize compels the my natural urge to enter the world of our maize and enter it's beautiful rows to simply admire the stalks in a strong and green state as well some stalk's weak and fragile condition. This garden has been staring at me through the window and calling out to me. Seeing the maize grow from afar has been an interesting experience, but having the offer of entering it, and creating a bond with it is phenomenal.

This evening we went in to release the freshly de-refrigerated lady bugs to help control the maize pest problems we have been experiencing. My job for the evening was to take an inventory of the maize and take note of the condition each stalk is in, particularly looking out for which stalks we lost due to the children. At first it was overwhelming. Seeing the corn in such fragile conditions weakened my heart. I counted and looked at each stalk to get a better map and update on our stalks.

As I went row by row counting and examining each stalk, the discussions I have been involved in about building a relationship with the maize became so obvious and strong to me. As the groupo finished up our mini session we watered the maize and drenches and called it an evening. A very significant evening I believe because it showed us clearly that when unfortunate things happen, we must continue to work towards our goal and that we did.

Pictures coming soon... hopefully from someone who had a camera this evening :)
Mexica Tiahui

Sky is falling Aint no need to panick.

I'm writing on the blog, because we cant all be enlightened or informed by deecolonize all the time.

When I heard the news on Monday morning concerning the garden, I was enraged. Not the bad type where you think of revenge on the other party, the type that makes you think of all the hard work you did to get them there. All of the seeding, weeding, cleaning, watering and now ever so carefully putting every stalk that cried for help back together. Does that make sense? I thought about all of the hours they had laid on the ground unrooted and needing water. Sigh... We tried to save all of the stalks that had babies like we would with pregnant mothers, attending to them first.

It was best to work in pairs because of the delicacy that was needed to sustain every stalk. I guess you could say it was like operating on a real person. It pained me so much to see them fallen that every time I saw one I wanted to run to it and help it.

But we did as much as we could, talking and giving them love.

This was a lesson that was needed to learn along the way of our jardin. Like in life whenever we think we got shit going sometimes you get these setbacks. Its scary. However we must continue with our purpose as our jarding is to continue its purpose. And that is to live. We must continue to live and spread our seeds.

I've been thinking of a name for our garden. But I guess when we agree and decide we'll keep you posted.

peace out.

Mendings & Manifestations

Yes. All things happen for a reason. / Si. Todo tiene razon.

I likened the 3 sisters in the jardin to children recently- expressing how I felt like a parent who's child had a traumatic experience, and having that weight of just wishing there was a way to turn back time, and make it all go away. Reflecting on how many situations and ordeals i've faced where I have felt this way. Having to learn acceptance, peace, and the light and lesson to move forward.

So, as we wait out the week (ending later today) to see what stalks were able to survive the storm, I've been shifting my energies to concentrating on creating new projects and thinking about how to make the entire space into a community-friendly and open environment.

So, as of today, I'm including a small series of stalks that will not be what they ever were again & a some that are fighting the good fight...and maybe a hint of a project idea. Tlazokamati for all the good thoughts and prayers. It perks the maize in the jardin... it really does.




the fight for land and life continues - and sometimes great warriors must fall. just a part of the cycle.










still lovely











learning about loss - learning about value











........?...... :)

Loss & Gain

I don't know how to write this- but a blog that is supposed to be about keeping you up to date on the jardin has to be truthful- has to maintain the reality of what is happening- to the food and to the people that plant it..and today, we suffered together.
Over the weekend, kids that were next door to the garden for a party, apparently went unsupervised and destroyed a portion of the jardin while no one watched them.


I'd spent Sunday indoors painting, and Monday morning when I went to look out into the jardin, something was wrong and I looked at the floor space and saw a few stalks lying about. I took my keys and went out and found about 40% of the garden was damaged or knocked over..and I was at a loss.
My emotions turned me backwards as I looked on to something that had taken months in the making- to maintain- to build- to grow- and with a quick snap, it was hurting & I had to go to work in Gringolandia*..
Well, I sent out the text and let people know & within the hour that I was suffering from leaving the garden for 'work', comrades & familia were @ the spot with reinforcements- like bamboo sticks, garden tape, and care.
When I got out of work and to the garden, they were steady working at lifting tassels and stalks back towards the Sun to take in it's goodness.
We have a few more stalks to go, bamboo has been bought, and the jardin will be okay.
I felt loss today..and it weighed heavy. In my sadness & confusion, I reached for logic, strategy, and towards the energies that sustain us all - and said 'Mujer, everything happens for a reason.' All loss, all change, all pain..all growth.. it leads to paths that have to be walked and situations that need addressing.


So, we will be keeping a close close eye on the recovery of the maiz, and for those that will not recover- the land is still rich for more planting and planning..
We never forget to stop and remember why we planted the first seeds- because of our love and respect for the tierra y la gente de este mundo and our replenishing.

The garden is still peace.

*what I call the Galleria area - coined by Frida Khalo, when she visited America while Diego Rivera painted the Rockefeller Building walls.

what's the buzz?

So, this past week- Friday, June 5th- I went out to water and weed the garden and realized that there were quite a large number of honey bees stopping in. Since the tassels and silk are appearing on more and more of the stalks, I assumed that bees help pollinate corn and just observed as they moved from tassel to tassel quickly working.

Yet, upon some research, i've found that corn is like a grass or grain crop, which only needs the wind to pollinate and that "many wind pollinated flowers such as maple, oak, hickory, corn, and ragweed are visited by bees collecting pollen."
So, although they are not vital to the pollination of the corn, they can assist. I also learned that we should feel good about bees visiting our 3-sister rows because honey bees are disappearing off the face of this Earth more rapidly than ever before- a phenomenon that really took effect in 2006 that has been dubbed colony collapse disorder .

A Cosmos Magazine article from 2007 reads:

"In hives hit by CCD, adult workers simply fly away and disappear, leaving a small cluster of workers and the hive's young to fend for themselves. Adding to the mystery, nearby predators, such as the wax moth, are refraining from moving in to pilfer honey and other hive contents from the abandoned hives; in CCD-affected hives the honey remains untouched.

The symptoms are baffling, but one of the emerging hypotheses is that the scourge is underpinned by a collapse of the bees' immune systems. Stressed out by cross-country truck journeys and drought, attacked by viruses and introduced parasites, or whacked out by harmful new pesticides, some researchers believe the bees' natural defences may have simply given way. This opens the door to a host of problems that the bees can normally suppress."

So, lucky and welcoming is how we feel toward the honey bees. Visitors like this remind me why we've chosen to stay organic in our garden. So that natural friends- that need us just as much as we need them- can co-exist and try to reach a balance in the crazy world around them - and have a safe space to explore that possibility.

Centeotl - Mexica (Aztec) God of Maize

Visit Pollinator.org for more info on pollination and what is being done to save pollinators!

bean sprouts

andalente gente- don't you see
all they need is you and me
to plant the original seed
far away from moneys greed
a peaceful plot to center self
make sure you have food on your shelf
see your connect with all around
through those seeds we will be found
~ dee!colonize

Food for thought ... Che (Black Bean Soup) by Brazilain artist Vik Muniz.

We planted beans on Saturday and they decided to break through today. Little green sprouts poked their way through the dirt and started to show themselves. Yesterday, they were nowhere to be found, but today, they were already almost an index finger tall. I heard they grow fast & they are breathtaking.
I like the way they sprout up from my observation, they are slightly coiled and only as they develop do they extend their bean faces to the full Sun.. and from their work in growth, other sprouts will grow from their shoulders. Absolutely breathtaking.
More silk & tassels are making appearances and it seems that we have taken care of our ant problem altogether also. So, my advice is that if you are having ant issues, the best remedy I could recommend would be a mixture of coffee grounds and raw instant grits. One detracts and the other destroys, in respective order :)

Frijol Pinto

May 30, 2009- Pinto beans (Espanol- 'frijol pinto' literally 'painted bean') were planted in 2-3 seed holes on either side of each maize stalk in the jardin. The third sister has finally arrived!

As we were out there adding this element to our space, I began to have small musings and epiphanies under the cool shade of the maize leaves. I realized that this project is absolutely no small feat- it hadn't been up to there- yet, the realization that frijol is now in the picture made it that much more real for me. These are living things that are reacting to the care we can afford them and the care their environment provides them when we cannot afford them.
But, it's a funny word 'afford'. And I push myself out there because I look at these seeds and sprouts that we have planted thus far and see how incredibly valuable they really are. What a commodity the organic seed and environment has become. How much of my ignorance toward all of this, I know now, was staunching a part of my brain and self-realization.
Epiphanies.. didn't I warn you?

Oh and the maize stalks have started to show their male & female characteristics. The male flower, called the 'tassel' sit at the tip top of the corn stalk waiting on the wind to carry their pollen to the female part of the stalk called the silk. The silk sits a little higher than midway on the stalks in the jardin and are blushing with yellow-white & red silk. Each silk may become pollinated to produce one kernel of maize, and we are keeping up with the 3 - 4 day watering sessions to keep them health and productive.

Back to the beans, though. So the last sister has brought with her nutrients for the soil around the corn & will create an even richer place for more squash to be added on- along with chile plants we plant to also incorporate. The beans will grow in vines that will wrap around the stalks and leaves of the corn and from what i hear, this happens fast. The watering may have to become more frequent and the sowing of the beans will go on every 2 - 3 weeks until mid-Summer, for continuous harvest throughout the Summer.

In the meantime, we have been discussing ways to make the jardin more efficient and easy to keep up with. We need to come up with a system that allows us to account for every plant in the garden in every row- give them attention and acknowledge them for what they are- alive.

So, as that has begun, so has my research of uses for corn & frijol and on the different varieties of squash that can make an appearance if we so choose. I want to make sure that all the work we have put in does not go to waste in any way. And this can best come about by utilizing every piece of the maize that comes to harvest and paying attention to the bean sister making her way up the stalks to hold it all together.

Nontoxic

In keeping with the goals of the jardin, we use only organic, non-toxic items to achieve the things we want in the garden. I've mentioned a few times that the ants were one of our biggest obstacles and how a non-toxic pesticide that I used seemed to work on most of the maize. I will pass on the info here and really, it's open for you to measure out which one you want to try and what will work best for what you are trying to grow, etc.

How to Make Your Own Nontoxic Pesticides

Unwanted insects live in every garden. Combat destructive pests by using all-purpose, nontoxic sprays readily made from everyday household ingredients. Here are five options to try in your garden.

Steps:

1. Mix a few drops of liquid detergent, a couple of hot peppers or pepper sauce, and one chopped garlic clove with water in a handheld spray bottle and take aim at the insects.

2. In a blender, puree three hot peppers, three white onions and one garlic bulb. (No need to peel anything.) Add 3 c. water to the mixture and soak overnight in a covered bowl. Strain with a cheesecloth and add enough water to the liquid solution to make 1 gallon of spray, for use in either a spray bottle or a 1-gallon garden sprayer for the whole garden.

3. Mix 1 c. vegetable oil with 1 tbsp. liquid dishwashing soap. Add 1 1/2 tsp. for every cup of warm water to a handheld spray bottle, or add entire mixture to a 1-gallon garden sprayer and fill with water. Spray entire plant, including the undersides of leaves.

4. Chop 10 to 15 garlic cloves into small pieces to soak in 1 pint mineral oil overnight. Strain and spray oil mixture directly on infestations.

5. Capture and crush 1/2 c. of a single kind of insect. Add 2 c. water and strain. Mix 1/4 c. of the solution and a few drops of liquid soap to water in a spray bottle and target the insect's friends and relatives. Sounds gross, but this is a very effective species-specific control.

Unlike conventional pesticides, these home remedies biodegrade quickly, so for best results, hit infestations directly and reapply after wet weather and as needed.

Warnings:

Some plants may be sensitive to the soapy or acidic ingredients. To guard against burning the foliage, test the spray on a small, inconspicuous area of leaves before spraying the entire plant.

Strong Roots, Shade, & Ant Threats

The maize and the squash have really taken to the ground. Sunday's mini-storm w/hail proved that we needed to make sure that all of the stalks were secure in the ground and we spent the first half of Monday making sure the beautiful intricate roots were covered with dirt and strongly set.
We'd also been having a bit of an issue with the gorgeous Pecan Tree that is in close proximity to the Jardin-- It's limbs have sprouted out and some of the branches had caused more shade for the maize than any of us really cared for. So, the limbs we could reach were also trimmed to allow for the Sun.
The maize stocks are higher than me now and i can duck into the trench and find hidden places under the long green leaves. I look down at the dirt and see how 3 seeds to a hole turned into these massive roots that look like thick green spaghetti pasta strings. They are beautiful.
Now, we are just waiting for the right (wo)manpower to plant the beans and see where they take us.
The ant problem that we had has diminished and is under control thanks to the nontoxic concoction and coffee grounds that are spread as they are collected around the bases of the maize stocks. Ants are supposed to hate coffee grounds and to that we say - AWESOME! There do seem to be a hill of defiant ants, and there, I stood over and sprayed and threatened 'if you don't get lost, I'ma put out the grits!" I think they heard me...
My kid sis keeps telling me that she thinks it's beautiful outside to see the corn growing, but says she's scared to go back there at night because there might be children..she's silly.
It's peace.

A few pics...

Here are a few pictures from Saturday...

The late morning:

Panchito viewing the ones he protects.


Our Maize

Flat Mounds... and weeds... EEeeekkkkk

Mid-Afternoon:

A full view

Gazing at the work done at hand...

Up close and personal with the freshly molded drenches

...more coming soon.

Gritona

From afar....

This past weekend, our communidad got together to shed some sweat, work, and most importantly love in our Huerto (Vegetable Garden). Seeing how much the maize has grown since the heavy rain fell is absolutely breathtaking, I haven't been able to leave my home so I hadn't seen the Huerto since shortly after my last post. My fellow comrades came together to do some "Jardin-cleaning," where we accomplished many things. First we rid our plants from weeds, then we reformed the mounds, while inspecting each plant for any aphids or unwanted insects. There was a lot of work being done, and many observations that were taken in for consideration/planning. It was a very productive day, the amount of work three people can do, with an extra mujer watching from afar.

The maize is stretching towards the sun, and a part of me feels like I too am growing with it. Seeing the maize struggle in the overabundance of water and later an attack of ants and aphids, made me see that like people, plant's face trials, situations and relations, some good, some bad. All it took was some tender loving care and the plants continued (and continue) to shine with life, and like this great struggle, some are having a harder time than others, and some of our baby squash have, moved on to create mulch instead of squash. But alas, the great phrase "que sera, sera" because at the end of the day, "I guess what is meant to be, no one can stop." (-my friend)

Until fingers meet the keys once more.

Paz
Gritona

Panchito...

Our Jardin looks more beautiful as the maize continues to grow, yet there are some things we need to collectively work on such as reforming the mounds as Conspi mentioned. Panchito, our homemade scarecrow is becoming out grown! The maize is almost taller than he is! The rain continues to fall, and where there is rain there are weeds. I am very concerned about the spacing in Jardin, as the maize grows, and the breathing room that we have created.


Ah, summer time is rolling around, meaning longer days, hinting more time. I have been reading some things, but I definitely think that we should step up on our game. Here are a few more sites, if anyone is interested:

• http://www.humeseeds.com/ehndx.htm
• http://www.organicgardeninfo.com/
• www.organicgardening.com

I hope to see you all soon at the Jardin. I am down to do some man hours... or supervise at least :)


Until then,
Gritona

Reform Mounds

conspi said...

I saw the garden on saturday, our maiz mounds need to be re done because they are starting to flatten out. I think that sometime this week this needs to be our primary foucus. Perhaps one of our hermanos can help out soon. I also think our ant problem is solved for now but they will be back especially around this May Showers season. Ants are everywhere I have even found a small mound near my window.

Till another post:
ometeotl

All This Rain

4.28.09- I checked on the garden after all the rain that happened yesterday and after coming to know we have a ant/aphid problem in the jardin. Spent some time pulling weeds & checking on the plants that were marked as having ants. They all seemed to have either washed away with the rain or the nontoxic solution we used on it on Monday. It's a bit hard to tell at this point. However, another plant in a completely different row was discovered to have ants and the same solution was used on it.
Also, due to the rains, a few of the corn stalks were knocked over slightly and we went in and reinforced them with dirt around.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today it is whirling around in my head. Will we have to quarantine part of our work? How much did the rain affect the dynamics of the maize? We'll take a look today, as there has been no rain- and i'm going to look around a bit more at solutions to kill ants and get rid of these aphids! I've heard cotton balls in clove oil, instant grits, coffee grounds..etc..
Peace.

The Ants Go Marching

got out to weed today & realized ants are creating a situation that is dangerous and hurtful to a few of the plants in the garden, even without much to their knowledge. just had to reflect on that & connect how that is what happens when you growing your self. always make sure to take time to step back & reflect on what you are growing and figure out what needs to be weeded & what pests need to be controlled. all part of what you strive for in yourself, and in your plant, for that matter- balance.
so, back to the ant matter: i asked some friends, did some research, and from what i can gather, the ant is not considered a 'pest' in a garden. they have the ability to recycle in the garden by picking up debris and by controlling other insects, but they have a symbiotic relationship with aphids that can do serious harm by sucking nutrients away from the plant, thus causing its growth to be postponed, causing it sickness, or death.
aphids are, however, not terribly difficult to get rid of and we feel as though this has been found out in enough time to be handled. We decided to go with a homemade nontoxic spray (mostly because the items were readily available), but there are several remedies- including promoting ladybugs in your garden to eat the aphids, so we will see how it goes.
*we did also get quite a bit of rain after the spraying, so later, we'll be out there seeing what that has done to the problem!

Up To Now In Fotos

Jardin-date....

Our small Jardin is making big waves! After some hard work of preparation and planning, we got to plant our Maize a few weeks ago.


Since then, they have been growing and enjoying the company of our small homemade scarecrow. After surviving the long-needed heavy rain, our Maize got a wonderful surprise! Some compadres generously gave us some squash who were in need of a home and space to grow. Although they were left to weather the storm and were drenched with water, our adopted squash underwent some quick greenhouse treatment in the back of Dante Piquin (the trunk of a suv).


Continuing on it's small adventure to the Original Jardin, our baby squash had to be planted quickly in hopes of salvaging it from it's small container. A few people came out to help tend to our Jardin, through giggles and competing against one another to see who found the biggest weed, or "imposter" Maize plants, our small intimate grooming session manifested into laughter and the celebration of life as we created spaces for our squash. With the wind blowing in our hair and the earthly sounds of a spring evening in East End simmering down, we were able to create a new home for our squash to grow. With gentle coos, oohs, and ahhs our Squash was graciously welcomed at the Original Jardin, and blended well with our Maize, I must say.


Feeling the cool dirt in my toes and hands as I helped de-weed and create hoyos (holes) for the squash was an amazing experience. As I watched my brotha's and sista's work sideline with me, I was overcome with a tranquil state of mind. Watching this Jardin grow, and seeing the communal efforts to strive for a better living inspires me in ways I can't describe.

After our Squash was planted we discussed some ideas for other areas, and plans we hope to make happen in the near future. So stay tuned and don't be afraid to drop some knowledge for us, whether it's suggestions, comments, tips, or even a few links!

pAz,
la Gritona