Clay Plager-Unger

Clay Plager-Unger is the former director of Planet Drum Foundation's Eco-Ecuador project.

The New Year marked the beginning of the rainy season

By Clay Plager-Unger | January 11, 2008

December 17, 2007– January 11, 2008 A New Year brings a new Rainy Season… In the week before Christmas we were watering and keeping the greenhouse house operating at full tilt. All of the revegetation sites received their weekly dosage of water, 1/3 of a gallon per tree.  In the greenhouse, fresh batches of soil were prepared with river sand, compost, dark dirt, and a […]

SF muralist Fred Alvaro paints mural with local kids.

By Clay Plager-Unger | January 10, 2008

January 10, 2008 Letter Hi Everyone, Things have been moving so quickly around here lately with the rains and the holiday season. I can’t believe how far behind I’ve fallen with my reports already. Everyday I say I’m going to do one and then a dozen things come up and the day is gone. (Rewiring the electricity in the house, getting kicked out of the […]

Removing the non-native species from the greenhouse.

By Clay Plager-Unger | December 14, 2007

December 10-14, 2007    Summary: I damaged my Meniscus while surfing in Canoa over the weekend and had to spend the week resigned to the house with a leg brace preventing me from bending my leg. Fortunately the volunteers kept up with all the work and more of them showed up this week, so now the house is full. On Monday the La Cruz vegetation site was […]

Reforestation at Cerro Blanco reserve is proof that large-scale dry tropical forest reforestation is possible.

By Clay Plager-Unger | December 7, 2007

December 3-7, 2007    Summary: The sole two volunteers this week, Caroline and Nadine, held down the fort with Revegetation Foreman Jaime for the first few days while I attended a seminar at Cerro Blanco, near Guayaquil, with Bioregional Education Teacher Ramon and Marcelo Luque. Ramon came and helped out on Friday to bolster our numbers. On Monday I took off for Guayaquil in the morning and […]

Greenhouse inventory.

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 30, 2007

November 26-30, 2007  This week it was time to say goodbye to the November crew and hello to the new December volunteers.  On Monday Dewey left, and on Tuesday Lilian, Michele and Matt departed.  Thanks for all of the help! Monday, with a somewhat reduced workforce due to volunteer traveling, we were only able to knock out watering the Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas and La […]

Another new site ‘El Nuevo Globo.’

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 23, 2007

November 19-23, 2007 We began the week by welcoming a new volunteer Matt from Iowa and kicked things off with a much needed house cleanup. Then set out for the hills to water the Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas and La Cruz revegetation sites.  On Tuesday a traveler, Max, joined up for the day, and we showed him how to do things at Planet Drum […]

Fencing and trail work continues in preparation for planting season.

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 16, 2007

November 11-16, 2007 Monday the La Cruz and Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas sites were watered. We collected bottles in Bahia and Leonidas Plaza. The bottles were taken to the greenhouse and those plants were also watered. Bosque Encantato  On Tuesday some of us went to Bosque Encantado. The 2007 revegetation site was watered and trail work was continued on the prospective 2008 site.   […]

Transplanting a seedbed of nearly two hundred baby Ceibos to 3-liter bottles

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 9, 2007

November 5 – November 9, 2007 On Monday morning, bottles were collected around town and the Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas and La Cruz sites were watered.  At the greenhouse bottles were prepared and compost was dumped off and turned.  Trees were moved about to create more room for seed beds and the plants were watered.  Lilian and Michelle, two new volunteers arrived. On Tuesday half the […]

Work began on a new revegetation site for next year.

By Clay Plager-Unger | November 2, 2007

October 29 – November 2, 2007   On Monday morning the Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas and La Cruz revegetation sites were watered. In the afternoon we got an invitation to help repaint some Eco-city murals that were in danger of being painted over because they were starting to fade. While some of the volunteers went to help Marcelo Luque with the murals, I went […]

School children to visit from the Eloy Alfaro School.

By Clay Plager-Unger | October 26, 2007

October 22 – October 26, 2007          On Monday the Bosque en Medio de las Ruinas site was watered. The plants and seedbeds at the greenhouse were watered as well and the house compost was dumped off. I stayed home in the office, finishing up the translation of the Bioregionalism Education booklet. Tuesday the La Cruz and Bosque Encantado sites were watered. While at Ricardito’s farm […]