While I was out donating trees in downtown Bahía with Nicolas via triciclo we met one of the city parks’ caretakers who was cleaning the street. We gave him a tree and started to chat. He said he really liked plants, and was interested in receiving more trees in his neighborhood. He offered to help distribute and plant them with other local residents. I decided to […]
Padre Jorge Ugalde Paladines Colegio, a school in nearby San Vicente, that participated in Planet Drum revegetation workshops at the greenhouse in the past, recently was in touch with us again. They expressed interest in receiving more trees for the students and teachers to take home and plant. They are also interested in receiving a portable seedbed to begin producing their own trees in the […]
Planet Drum’s greenhouse operation enters a new era. Due to earthquake damages at the Catholic University, we are relocating the greenhouse to the other side of the soccer field. The new site is located in the middle of an old revegetation site which was planted by Planet Drum field manager Heather Crawford and volunteers in 2005. We will use the natural shade of a grove […]
Planet Drum Field Research Intern Nicolas from France has recently completed a three month erosion study on the hills near Bahía de Caráquez. Nicolas selected five areas to study (Bellavista, La Cruz, Km. 8, and behind the greenhouse at the Catholic University). Each area has two sites (measuring 8m by 8m), one with vegetation and one without vegetation. At each site, a concrete bollard was poured, […]
Nicola, Orlando’s daughter, is now a senior at the Eloy Alfaro High School. She told her teacher about the work that she has done with Planet Drum, including revegetation and gardening workshops, while she was a student at the Montúfar School. Her teacher liked the ideas, and decided to bring the eco-club students to the Planet Drum greenhouse to see first-hand the work that we […]
As residents slowly stabilize their lives after the earthquake, they have more time and energy to think about tree planting again. Urban tree donation campaigns using a triciclo is a great way to meet with local residents, offer them trees for planting at their houses, and discuss the Bahía rebuilding process. Many locals are interested in stabilizing damaged hillsides by planting trees, and/or want a […]
I recently met with the Catholic University administration. One half of the university will be demolished; the other half will be reconstructed. Since the greenhouse is currently located directly behind part of the building that will be demolished, it will be impossible for it to stay there. So after thirteen years, Planet Drum will need to move the greenhouse. Thankfully, the university is still enthusiastic […]
At the greenhouse, it has been difficult to determine exactly where to dedicate energy. The University itself was heavily damaged and there is a combination of demolition and reconstruction taking place through the buildings. Most of the greenhouse infrastructure was also damaged, and eventually will need to be replaced. In the meantime, there are a lot of trees to care for until they are donated, as […]
One of the main goals of the revegetation done by Planet Drum is to control soil erosion. But exactly how much erosion can be avoided as a result of revegetation efforts? To provide a quantifiable answer to this question, Field Research Intern, Nicolas, is doing a study of the rate of erosion in areas where Planet Drum planted native trees compared with areas that are […]
It’s been nearly three months since a 7.8 earthquake rocked the coast of Ecuador. In less than one minute (approximately 50 seconds), Bahía de Caráquez, and many other coastal cities (Pedernales, Manta, Portoviejo) and towns (Jama, Canoa, Mompiche) were hit with a wave of destruction that continues to reverberate to the present in the form of aftershocks, demolition, and rattled nerves. As of last night […]