Updates Galore, May Edition: Part Three (May 25)

Saturday, May 25!

Phew! Time flies!! the amazing and crazy thing is how the garden looks after 13 days! 

It looked like a hot mess. the rain came in at the right time and those weeds crept through overnight. Saturday we spent eight (8) hours in the garden!

First we went to Wabash, they are awesome there for one! Mil gracias a Monica, a friend who recommended it to Dee! FYI I called trying to get information and got the shaft, but once we arrived it was easier to dialogue with the specialists on hand about problems we were facing and what were some natural solutions to that. After speaking to our new Wabash friend, Karl, we were able to understand some of the moving parts of what was going on. 

Things we learned/went for: we need nutrients!

• Corn needs more natural forms of nitrogen to grow, signs of this can be the yellowing of the crop, it will still grow, however you must be careful because the taller it gets the more nutrients are taken from the base/root to the top. 
• Corn needs more support at the base, we really need soil! We got some quotes on some locations at soil fills out in Katy and Conroe, but we have to 1) find a truck and 2) haul it into town.. we hope to have that done by next week! Updates soon!
• Through research and speaking to someone at Wabash the culprit eating the amaranth is most likely a Caterpillar of some kind. Ways to prevent this is putting a ring of cardboard at the base of the crop and use a product we got from Wabash. I will provide the name soon. Either way, its applied in the morning, after dew but before it heats up. More details soon!
• Cotton Mill can be used to as a natural additive to provide nitrogen to the soil to promote health and growth for corn. It should be applied about every four (4) weeks. Don't inhale this stuff, it can hurt your respiratory system... hints the photo with gloves and masks... hehe 
• Molasses can be a great thing! it can be used to fight pests and to help promote health compost! the main thing about molasses is that it heats up the area. A good way to get rid of ants is to pour some on an ant pile and for compost make a large hole and pour it right in to make sure your compost stays hot and breaks down the other components.
• Compost can be added to the soil once we have harvested our crops. Karl also mentioned that you can "rent-a-chicken". Its not a service but you can purchase and return the chicken to Wabash. This helps because once you have cleared your crop you can lay down compost and mix it in your soil, add two chickens and have them work the ground to mix it for you! Who would have known?! Also contrary to house pets, their droppings can help your soil.
  

We learned a lot on Saturday and cleared a hell of a lot of weeds. It was hard work, but we paid ourselves in two forms 1) knowing we are working towards sustainability and 2) RASPAS! Support local businesses! :D Limon and or Strawberry-n-Banana are my recommendations!

Until next week with an update on soil, Peace!

-Gritona

A special shout-out/ Thank You to Dee's Mom: Estela! Mil gracias a ti tambien! For the water, putting up with us coming in covered in dirt and supporting us both financially and in morale. Ometeotl

Updates Galore, May Edition: Part Two (May 21)

May 21: nine days later! 

Randomness: I work out three days a week next door to the garden, so I try my best to spend that time alone there between work and work-out. One afternoon I was inside the house and I heard a faint sound of singing and looked out the window to find Deniz singing a song in Nahuatl to our crops! As I went out to meet her, there was a quick update with the crops! I had been out of town so I was especially excited that afternoon to see the Jardin! a week is a long time to be separated! Please read captions :)

Updates Galore, May Edition: Part One (May 12)

We have been steadily working towards our garden through maintenance, research and giving and taking love from it.

Over the past month we have gone in together and apart to give it the TLC it needed. From afternoon giggles and visitors to long hard days at work. I have been working on getting some slideshows up and running so we can document what is happening every time we go in, sorry for the wait, I had to breakdown and use a generator because the HTML was making me blind.. hehe  

May 12: Clean-up & Pest Control

Our first big day in the Jardin this month we were mainly doing some re-planting, clean-up of weeds and such as well as laying down our pest mixture. A storm came through and knocked over some of our corn, so we were picking up stalks and making mini mounds around them on top of the rows.

Through the photos you can see an update on what is happening to our crops from Amaranth, to Sunflowers, to Corn, to Tomato, to the Onion.  Beautiful aren't they, they have grown so fast its amazing. 

This day we really discussed what was happening at this time. One of the problems we faced were the birds eating our seeds and as devastating as that sounded it has given us the opportunity to see the corn what seems like three stages: the beginning, fertilization and continued growth. You can see that with the variations of tassels in the slideshow. 

The Amaranth is thriving on its own! We did notice that something is feeding off the amaranth and went through some heavy duty research, which I will get to in a bit. 

Onion is growing, since its a root crop (underground) its hard to tell what is really going on. at this point what we know is the bulb is getting its nutrients from the ground, so we water and must see what is going to happen.

Tomato: growing, looks good, we are excited because we have tried tomato before and weren't too successful. However this time around all looks well, we need to work on getting cages.

Sunflower: it's growing! AHHHHHh! I am especially excited because I think these are such beautiful flowers, not to mention the seeds are tasty! The heads are looking large and in charge. It's our tallest plant and pretty firm.

Until Next time! Please see Parts Two and Three of the Updates Galore, May Edition!

-Gritona

Jardin Log: Ambiance, Weeds, Pest Control, y Mas

 3/19/2013- In wanting to create an inviting atmosphere in the garden, we decided to paint a sign with the name of our Jardin. We felt the brightness &  Love put into it would translate to whomever might come into our little piece of Land.

Our Welcome Sign

4/21/2013

• Front garden cleared
  - weeds around cacti aloe, misc
  - trimmed Lemon Tree "Simon"
  - Moved chile plants to porch due to ants
• Back garden work
  - Moved owl from West point -> last week was in center/back
  - Removed bird net that has been on for 1 wk & 1 day
  - Checked on overall health of plants

4/28/2013

Thunderstorms and hail for most of yesterday- So, this morning some stalks & 1tomato plant were pushed sideways-yet, no extreme destruction

• One tiny white/brown/black speckled butterfly visiting 
• Went in and built dirt around each stalk back up.tomate
• Amaranth was not affected as it is low to the ground & has a sturdy stalk
• Raked & moved weekds from edges and entrance of Jardin
• Bird chirping right above me
• Put down pepper mix to ward off predators of amarath- as some leaves are eaten through
• Sunny/ 70 degree perfect weather baking me golden
• Relaxed winds giving breeze
• Put down grits/coffee grounds
• Got the owl head to work again  moved it E in the garden
• 
  

Homework:
- tomato cags
- next steps with Sunflowers
- research when this type of Amaranth is ready to consume

5/12/2013

• repaired stalks knocked over 5/17/2013 AM
• weeded/ cleanup around all plants
• laid organic pest repellant

sensual string

taught tassel

onion & tomate coming up!

surrounded by maize & amaranth got your back!

Amaranth flowering at the tops ~ Absolutely Breathtaking

We discussed things we need for the garden. Things to invest in are bamboo sticks & organic dirt/compost to rebuild around stalks, in a large rectangular plastic bin to start a controlled compost, and trimming shears for along the neighbors South fence.
Our sign needs to be varnished & hung.

/These weeks have been busy and involved in and away from the garden. I strive to spend as much time as I can there & know there are mental/physical things I must do to create this time. Every time I go into the garden, everything transforms around me. It's another world through our little gate just past the Pecan tree. Just to see the maize and amaranth close by creates genetic memories that lighten my Spirit.

Seeds

This post is long overdue... Life has taken over us! Both in the garden and in our homes.

With what seems like ages ago my sister and I were able to get out in the garden. After our rows got some well needed rest we went out to the garden and began giving our rows some TLC. Among the multiple things we discussed the main topics surrounded: tilling vs. not tilling, the real culprits in the Jardin, and where/what we were going to plant.

After we tilled, we spent some more time looking at the seed packets courtesy of Native Seed SEARCH!

Here is what we found: The amaranth could be planted in mounds/basins, but can also be raked in, so we broke down two of our small rows to make a patch.

The onion doesn't like beans, so we had to keep it away from the corn, since we want to stay with the three sisters (corn, squash, and bean). The tomato needed full sun as did the three sisters, and sunflowers, so we decided to use the tomato as a barrier. Our garden lays out as so:

Takin it OLD SCHOOL with Paint.... ahahaha pics to come soon :D

The onions were planted in one corner, tomatoes to separate it from where we will lay beans, a sunflower on each end of a row with corn, corn, and in the far corner Amaranth.

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Pests! Rascals!! *shakes fist* so last time we thought it was Possum (neighborhood stray), then we suspected the cat that looks like my sister's indoor cat (Cheto's twin), and finally realized after only half of our seeds sprouted it was B-I-R-D-S!
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As I mentioned since we had different things happen since we planted here are the updates we have:

• Row Therapy, we are continually weeding! As the weather shifts and rain comes there is natural vegetation that grows
• Pests
• Large Pests
• A fence! My sister and I invested in some plastic fencing that gives our little garden some nice dimension to it.
• We are continuing to use our coffee grounds to have the few ants we've seen retract.
• Small Pests
• We purchased a bird net that we put over the crops after we re-planted.
• A "natural enemy" owl. This is pretty neat, because it sits on the ground (or flat surface) and the head spins.
• Infant Crops
• Out of the seeds that survived the invasion (haha) we have continually been watching them making sure they were in the proper spaces. Some re-planted themselves in the trenches! haha, so we transferred them back into the mounds.
• Seedling!- Since about half of our corn was eaten, we went ahead and replanted the corn and some sunflowers to be able to have a full harvest
• Amaranth-about half of the amaranth was eaten up. However, since we have done some dialogue with other folk, we did find out that Amaranth is truly the miraculous crop. Not only can you eat this crop in its entirety, but it is sustaining and will grow wildly on its own. Since it will manifest itself so to speak, we decided to leave it as is, and focus on our other crops for the time being.
• Tomatoes- we have a few sprouts which are cute, but not many, they two were attached so we are waiting to plant and watching for more growth
• Onion, we also had a few sprouts but decided to put another set down. This way we can have a better quantity of crops
• Sign


• We painted a beautiful sign!! It's awesome. At this point we haven't found a place to place it in the garden and also finish.

Mound Therapy & Update

Planning and Coordinating a task to be done can always be tricky. After reviewing the Farmer's Almanac, the local weather, and the condition the mounds were in, we decided 1) we needed to spend some one on one time with the mounds, 2) figure out what we were going to do with the critters and 3) go back to the calendar and find a new day to plant. This past Saturday was predicted to be cold, followed by some rain and more cold weather. Although March just started, it seemed to be slipping from our fingers already.

MOUND THERAPY
Saturday we went out to the garden. The morning was cool and breezy, but we began the one on one time with our milpa (plot of land). We tilled, reshaped and pulled any lingering roots out. We laughed, caught up with each other and observed what was happening to our space, Mother Earth. As we moved the initial layer of the mound we found that the earth was moist and for me, it was much easier to shift the ground and re-sculpt what the wind, light rain and cold air has done. I started with gloves, then decided that I needed to touch the ground, feel for roots and work with what was in front of me. Using my handy mini-claw I was able to re-work the area. The sun felt so warm, and the shade cold. I realized that despite the Texas weather, Winter was soon-to-be over. Spring is set to start on March 21st, so it was interesting to see that majority of the roots I pulled were dry, and dead. I didn't see too many Grub worms and no ants, which was good!

CRITTERS!
As suspected, the culprits who have been invading the garden are some of the neighborhood strays: Possum (the dog that belongs to no one, but got nicknamed because someone thought s/he was a possum); this cute toy-sized dog, and a cat that looks like the beloved indoor cat, Cheto. Mainly, I think Possum has been relieving her/his self near the garden, plus there were some dog-like paw prints around the mounds, not to mention some unpleasant surprises in the path along the fence on the side of the house. (Yuck!) Either way, as we worked we discussed a mixture Dee heard about using cayenne, mustard and black pepper to minimize pests, little and big. In addition to that, we tried using this wire that was around the yard to create a make-shift gate and revive Panchito, the scarecrow we named the first year we did the garden.


THE PROGRESS:
Gate- The wire didn't seem too easy to work with it, and was bound by more wire. With no wire cutters, we were forced to re-think that strategy and get some other materials we could work with soon to get the gate working.
Critters- Dee was able to spend some one on one time with the mixture to keep pest away Sunday. Hopefully that will work in the mean time. We also stopped by the store and pick up some more supplies to make a large batch we can just pull from when we need to reapply the mixture over time.
Scarecrow- Panchito Jr. hehe, As I spent some time with managing the waterhose, and feeding the mounds some water after a morning/afternoon of being cared for, Dee moved around finding materials to build him.

THINGS TO DO:
- Work on a fence
- Prepare to plant! We lay seeds down in a few weeks!!
- Lay Seeds! I am excited because it turns out, while everyone is celebrating Mexika New Year, we will be laying our seeds. After thinking about that for a while tears came to my eyes. It is a beautiful thing, and I am happy to pay reverence to la madre tierra this way.

YO:

There is this phrase, that came to me that expresses how I feel with the garden:

In Lak Ech: 

Tú eres mi otro yo. Si te hago daño a ti, Me hago daño a mí mismo. 

You are my other me. If I do harm to you, I do harm to myself. 

Sí te amo y respeto, Me amo y respeto yo. 

If I love and respect you, I love and respect myself. 

Its taking care of the Earth, but taking care of myself. There is this liberating feeling that feels me when I work with the land, seeing the change, feeling connected and understanding the beginning of the cycle. I joked and said, this is what it feels like to be an original person, a Mexika, the strength and patience that is demanded from you to do what was necessary is no joke. Yet, its so amazing to experience, I found stretching helped with some of the aches and pain, but it was great. I love community, and talk about it, and being in the garden is community to me. There might not be too many people putting in the work right now, but its something that can be used as a platform to unite people.

Take a break from mainstream society and take a walk in the wilderness, tend to a plant and touch the earth. It will change you. I have had a long weekend, but definitely productive.

Peace hermano/as,
Gritona

prepping & pests

it's getting close to the time to plant our first seeds in the jardin. since clearing land, we have kept up with the yard by making observations and continuing to weed where necessary. despite wanting to have planted seeds already, we have been waiting out the chill here in Houston so seeds will go down in a good way.

the newly designated/available day for putting seed down will be March 16th, 2013. Good timing- after all...

March 12th 2013, will be the Year Ce Calli. One House / Uno Casa- Mexica New Year

Ce/Cen/Cem: Is the 1st number in the count of destinies and signifies the beginning, the origin. It also represents a unity, Ce, or a conjunction, conformed by various elements constructing a whole, like: Cemanahuac, the conception of the original universe. Cenyeliztli, the family like a life generating unit; and people ourselves are a set composed of several elements.

Calli: It is generally translated as house, in the sense of a building or construction, unlike the place where you live or serves as a dwelling that is called "chantli" in the Mexica language, Nahuatl.

Calli is what contains, protects or guards something. for example:

Acalli: act of boarding a boat
Huacalli: latticed box that contains something
Teocalli: where the knowledge is stored
Xicalli: Jícara, container that is used to hold something in their center.

In the indigenous thinking, calli is where each one should try to know oneself inwardly, ourselves are the containers of our own essence, which we are solely responsible for.

The Cincalco is another name of Tamoachan or Temoanchan, it is the place of the original house, the great womb of Mother Earth, that with the water (the sacred and vital liquid) gives birth to all beings and gives them livelihood.

-Translated from Calendario Mexicano, Maestro Arturo Meza Gutierrez





So, with that energy we will be set for March 16th to put seed down. A little copal, sweet grass, lavanda, y sage will move all things accordingly and it will be a good day!

My sister and I are looking for ways to make the jardin more 'open', inviting, and nice to inhabit even when we are not working in the jardin. have a few ideas i'll share more about later.

In other news:

/looks like the biggest pest this year will be .......drum roll please:
.......................
..............
..........
..............

stray dogs

i researched natural ways to get rid of the strays and decided to implement 3:
- investing in a gate/partition from my sisters yard next door
- a new scarecrow - Panchito Revisited
- a dry mix of cayanne pepper, black ground pepper, dry mustard powder, and coffee grounds (which ants also hate). i mixed these ingredients today and waited for the Sun to be high to go out and spread this blend around. after placing it around where the dogs get through, along side the house, and other places i've seen them hanging out, i hid when i saw one dog in my sisters yard and watched to see if my blend would work. interestingly, the dog trotted over to the gate opening- sniffed around- and then ran back to the front of the house, not passing the lines where i had laid down my mix.
of course the only down side to this is that when it rains or is particularly windy, the mix will have to be reapplied where necessary. it's good though- that there are NO ANTS in the garden space- our biggest pest of the past. i still threw down some dry grits alongside some spots of grounds for the ants that might pop up.


please advise

We bought tomato seeds and are debating on whether to grow them in pots or to designate a part of the garden and set up poles. thoughts?