May 23-29, 2005
This week we prepared and maintained seedbeds in the greenhouse, and kept up the regular activities of watering, transplanting, cutting bottles to make insect guards, and composting. The BEP (Bioregional Education Project) class also helped us out one afternoon, and sowed laurel, compoyo and guasmo seeds. We have an arrangement with the Dept. de Hygiene now to collect the city’s plastic bottles from them.
Also quite exciting was finding a coiled up matacaballo snake under the tarp that covers the compost. Carley found it just after telling us about a dream she had had a few nights before about a snake attacking her, which looked exactly like the snake at the greenhouse! It was injured and part of its tail was missing and bloody.
Here is the greenhouse inventory taken on May 23rd:
Guayacan 64
Cedro 178
Algarrobo 12
Colorado 243
Ceibo 97
Seca 1
Papaya 22
Ebono 71
Jaboncillo 8
Mamey 16
Samango 150
Guachapeli 144
The Civil Defense Captain said that they are not ready for the trees yet to plant along the highway since they haven’t organized anything. So it looks like it may not happen this rainy season.
I’ve talked to the property owners at the Jorge Lomas/Fernando site about fencing and they are fine with it. I bought a hole digger and am in the process of looking around for stakes. We can start off using the barbed wire we already have in the bodega.
We maintained trails in the Bosque, mostly weeding, and I took the mayor and his assistant, Teddy, there on Friday afternoon. He said he had no idea it was up there and seemed pleased with the visit. We walked all the way over to the bamboo house that is at the top of the park and met the people that live there.
I’m trying to get some new sites for next year and have a lead on one behind Interamericano School. It belongs to the Mayor’s wife, Maria Piedad.
We maintained the three sites in Ciudadela Maria Dolores (km 8), i.e. Endara, Cherry Tree and Dairy Farm. The trees at the Endara site look superb and have grown much more than at the other sites. I think it’s because the water level is near the surface.
That’s all for now! Happy World Environment Week! (We had a meeting at our house last week to plan the activities that will take place in observance of Environment Week.) Heather
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