Sunday, November 14, 2010
Quick Disclaimer
I'm working on getting all of my notes from past days into actual blog posts, so that everyone can share the experience we're having getting the homestead and farm back off the ground, but it's a long process, especially with everything else that needs to be done around here. When I get them written, I'll post them for their appropriate dates, so if you've been keeping up with it so far, you might notice that all of a sudden there are "old" entries that you don't remember reading. Once I get caught up, I'll try to post the day's events each evening before I head to bed.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
State of the Farm - Week 2
We've made a little headway getting things done around here, so things aren't as dire as they were looking originally. At the very least, I've almost learned how to drive a stick shift, so I'm not stranded anymore!
Plants - Still haven't heard from the CGA (Citrus Growers' Association). A lot of area around the house has been cleared by the 8 men we've hired while our tractor is being repaired, and we should have the tractor back tomorrow. The lemon tree has survived, and we've been able to gather some limes from our lime trees to have fresh limeade daily, as well as coconuts whenever we can get one of our men to climb the trees to get them down for us. The nice grove area where we're going to do our medicinal garden has been cleared, and the fourth side filled in with saplings, so once it dries a bit we'll start mulching and preparing to plant.
Roads - Still no change in the main road, but we managed to get several loads of river rock and sand in to fill in our own roadway up to the house. We'll have to wait on the orchard road until after the tractor comes in. Baby coconut trees have been planted up one side of the driveway, and will be done down the other as well.
Buildings - We've got power to all of the house now, though lights aren't working in some of the rooms and we'll have to replace the fixtures with some that take non-fluorescent bulbs. Most of the house has been cleaned, thanks to a local woman who we hired to help with that. A good amount of paint has been purchased as well, and we'll start painting the exterior of the house on Monday. The floor will be torn up and re-cemented, but not tiled just yet; a rough estimate put the cost on tiling at B$3000! Also, rough estimate on the deck showed at more than B$2000 just for a small portion outside the breezeway, so we'll have to wait on that, too. We went ahead and trimmed those trees out front, if only so we can have a clear view of the gate from the house. We'll pull up the stairs and rebuild them around the same time that the floor gets redone. And finally, it'll definitely cost upwards of B$2000 to repair the palapa, so we're going to plant the trees that the thatching comes from, in order to cut some costs that way. We have a water-heater to install so that we can get hot showers, and the dryer and refrigerator have been repaired. We finally got the satellite up and running last night, which gets us connected to the rest of the world again.
Animals - Only one of the six pups remain, as we had our last caretakers go ahead and take them in order to find them homes. We only kept the male puppy that I got attached to, who I've now named Sergei. From out of nowhere a seventh adult dog showed up, and while one of our females had her litter, all three puppies died. We briefly had a kitten, but as we've decided to poison the rats, we've given the kitten back in order to avoid him eating the same poison.
Yard - Almost all of the yard has been cleared now, and the larger discarded items gathered up, but there's still a lot of little trash and branches that need to be gathered.
Plans - Lots of painting, lots of pruning. We're putting off the higher priced projects until later. We're going to start painting the kitchen today, B and I, which should be interesting. Painting of the outside of the house will wait until Monday.
Plants - Still haven't heard from the CGA (Citrus Growers' Association). A lot of area around the house has been cleared by the 8 men we've hired while our tractor is being repaired, and we should have the tractor back tomorrow. The lemon tree has survived, and we've been able to gather some limes from our lime trees to have fresh limeade daily, as well as coconuts whenever we can get one of our men to climb the trees to get them down for us. The nice grove area where we're going to do our medicinal garden has been cleared, and the fourth side filled in with saplings, so once it dries a bit we'll start mulching and preparing to plant.
Roads - Still no change in the main road, but we managed to get several loads of river rock and sand in to fill in our own roadway up to the house. We'll have to wait on the orchard road until after the tractor comes in. Baby coconut trees have been planted up one side of the driveway, and will be done down the other as well.
Buildings - We've got power to all of the house now, though lights aren't working in some of the rooms and we'll have to replace the fixtures with some that take non-fluorescent bulbs. Most of the house has been cleaned, thanks to a local woman who we hired to help with that. A good amount of paint has been purchased as well, and we'll start painting the exterior of the house on Monday. The floor will be torn up and re-cemented, but not tiled just yet; a rough estimate put the cost on tiling at B$3000! Also, rough estimate on the deck showed at more than B$2000 just for a small portion outside the breezeway, so we'll have to wait on that, too. We went ahead and trimmed those trees out front, if only so we can have a clear view of the gate from the house. We'll pull up the stairs and rebuild them around the same time that the floor gets redone. And finally, it'll definitely cost upwards of B$2000 to repair the palapa, so we're going to plant the trees that the thatching comes from, in order to cut some costs that way. We have a water-heater to install so that we can get hot showers, and the dryer and refrigerator have been repaired. We finally got the satellite up and running last night, which gets us connected to the rest of the world again.
Animals - Only one of the six pups remain, as we had our last caretakers go ahead and take them in order to find them homes. We only kept the male puppy that I got attached to, who I've now named Sergei. From out of nowhere a seventh adult dog showed up, and while one of our females had her litter, all three puppies died. We briefly had a kitten, but as we've decided to poison the rats, we've given the kitten back in order to avoid him eating the same poison.
Yard - Almost all of the yard has been cleared now, and the larger discarded items gathered up, but there's still a lot of little trash and branches that need to be gathered.
Plans - Lots of painting, lots of pruning. We're putting off the higher priced projects until later. We're going to start painting the kitchen today, B and I, which should be interesting. Painting of the outside of the house will wait until Monday.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
State of the Farm
To be completely honest, the farm is a shambles. It's so overgrown out in the orchards that neither B nor myself can travel through to get a good look at how much damage was done by the hurricane. We attempted to on Tuesday morning, but as B doesn't have a pair of non-open shoes with her, we didn't get far, and in the distance we did manage, she tore her legs up pretty good. A few things have thrived, such as the dogs, the noni tree next to the back stairs, the trees over the septic tank, and the edge grove around the area that's going to be the herb garden. Of course, all the weeds and undergrowth out in the orchards have thrived, too.
Plants - We haven't had anyone from CGA out yet to let us know what state our citrus trees are in. From what I can tell, the orange trees definitely look sickly, but that could be due to the fact that they haven't been properly fertilized in almost a decade. As it isn't orange season, there's no way to get an idea of how much, if anything, the trees are producing fruit-wise. Further back, where the grapefruit are and where we just barely managed to make it to, there's no sign of fruit either, despite it being in season. However, most of the trees around here dropped everything when the hurricane came through, so it's completely possible that everything they had dropped into the undergrowth; either way, we can't tell production there, either. We haven't been able to see the areas that we've been told our trees are down in; apparently a twister came through during the hurricane and took out a large section. We haven't been able to make it out to the other trees either, so we have no idea if our lone lemon tree has survived, or the state of the others.
Roads - The main road leading through Frank's Eddy Village is in serious need of filling, which will require us to get a community effort going if we're going to get it done, as our funds are so short that we'll have a time just focusing on our own inner roads. The dirt road from the gate up to the house has several deep ditches in it, and one of the previous caretakers had left a burn pile where it continues up to the gate of the orchards. The undergrowth is so dense after the gate that we can't tell what state those sections are in.
Buildings - When we first arrived, somehow the house had lost part of its power, including that which went to the waterpump, so we were only half lit, and we had no water. By Tuesday night, we finally had water. Almost everything that had been left here has been taken or damaged, and the house itself is in serious need of a wash and a new coat of paint. The internal stairs leading to the second floor are akward even for a young person to maneuver, and will have to be redone before we can move B's parents in. The plaster floor on the first story is cracked and warped, and either will have to be redone, or we'll put tile down instead. We'd still like to build a deck encircling the house, but a lot of work will have to be done on the house itself first, and we're debating whether we're going to cut down the trees at the front of the house in order to encircle the entire thing, or if we'll leave them be and simply end the deck at that point. We haven't been to the caretaker's cottage yet, so we don't know what state that is in; we do know that we want to paint it the same color as the main house. The palapa, or little thatched hut, behind the house was damaged in the hurricane, so that will have to be repaired as well. Unfortunately in this area the thatching is hard to get a hold of, so that will be expensive.
Animals - There are now five adult dogs and six puppies. Apparently the three female adults have been popping out litters, and the previous caretakers have had to give a lot of puppies away, so we're planning on spaying all of the females. We haven't decided yet how many of the dogs we'll be keeping, though I've gotten rather attached to one of the male puppies. The cat who once lived here and took care of the rat population had run off shortly after B's husband passed away, so we're currently in need of a new ratter. A few turtles remain in the turtle pond, though it's unclear as to whether the ones no longer there simply died, or became somebody's dinner. The horses we had sold are apparently still at the location down the road, instead of having been moved out to Banana Bay like we had thought, so it's possible that at some point, when we have more funds, we can repurchase them.
Yard - In addition to the burn pile, there's a dumping place to the opposite side of the house, as well as general debris littered around. What was once neatly trimmed and almost lawn-looking is ankle deep with greenery, making it difficult to see how much trash is really out there, and giving the entire place an abandoned appearance when you first approach. The dogs have also taken to doing their business wherever the mood strikes them, so we've got to watch where we step, lest we discover a fragrant mound of last night's supper. We'll have to be careful when we start mowing it down also, as B has seen a lot of broken glass scattered about.
Plans - We're definitely cleaning and repainting the house, as there's no way we can move B's parents in here in the state it's currently in. We'll also have to redo those odd stairs inside. Once we have the tractor and bush hog back, we can start mowing out the yard, the road into the orchard, and the area inside the hedge grove where we'd like to put the herb garden. Of course we'll need the deck, both to shade the first story and to provide extra "chill" space. As part of making it self-providing, we'd love to build a henhouse and get some chickens for their eggs, and possibly a cow or a goat for milk. Horses are a definite need as well.
Plants - We haven't had anyone from CGA out yet to let us know what state our citrus trees are in. From what I can tell, the orange trees definitely look sickly, but that could be due to the fact that they haven't been properly fertilized in almost a decade. As it isn't orange season, there's no way to get an idea of how much, if anything, the trees are producing fruit-wise. Further back, where the grapefruit are and where we just barely managed to make it to, there's no sign of fruit either, despite it being in season. However, most of the trees around here dropped everything when the hurricane came through, so it's completely possible that everything they had dropped into the undergrowth; either way, we can't tell production there, either. We haven't been able to see the areas that we've been told our trees are down in; apparently a twister came through during the hurricane and took out a large section. We haven't been able to make it out to the other trees either, so we have no idea if our lone lemon tree has survived, or the state of the others.
Roads - The main road leading through Frank's Eddy Village is in serious need of filling, which will require us to get a community effort going if we're going to get it done, as our funds are so short that we'll have a time just focusing on our own inner roads. The dirt road from the gate up to the house has several deep ditches in it, and one of the previous caretakers had left a burn pile where it continues up to the gate of the orchards. The undergrowth is so dense after the gate that we can't tell what state those sections are in.
Buildings - When we first arrived, somehow the house had lost part of its power, including that which went to the waterpump, so we were only half lit, and we had no water. By Tuesday night, we finally had water. Almost everything that had been left here has been taken or damaged, and the house itself is in serious need of a wash and a new coat of paint. The internal stairs leading to the second floor are akward even for a young person to maneuver, and will have to be redone before we can move B's parents in. The plaster floor on the first story is cracked and warped, and either will have to be redone, or we'll put tile down instead. We'd still like to build a deck encircling the house, but a lot of work will have to be done on the house itself first, and we're debating whether we're going to cut down the trees at the front of the house in order to encircle the entire thing, or if we'll leave them be and simply end the deck at that point. We haven't been to the caretaker's cottage yet, so we don't know what state that is in; we do know that we want to paint it the same color as the main house. The palapa, or little thatched hut, behind the house was damaged in the hurricane, so that will have to be repaired as well. Unfortunately in this area the thatching is hard to get a hold of, so that will be expensive.
Animals - There are now five adult dogs and six puppies. Apparently the three female adults have been popping out litters, and the previous caretakers have had to give a lot of puppies away, so we're planning on spaying all of the females. We haven't decided yet how many of the dogs we'll be keeping, though I've gotten rather attached to one of the male puppies. The cat who once lived here and took care of the rat population had run off shortly after B's husband passed away, so we're currently in need of a new ratter. A few turtles remain in the turtle pond, though it's unclear as to whether the ones no longer there simply died, or became somebody's dinner. The horses we had sold are apparently still at the location down the road, instead of having been moved out to Banana Bay like we had thought, so it's possible that at some point, when we have more funds, we can repurchase them.
Yard - In addition to the burn pile, there's a dumping place to the opposite side of the house, as well as general debris littered around. What was once neatly trimmed and almost lawn-looking is ankle deep with greenery, making it difficult to see how much trash is really out there, and giving the entire place an abandoned appearance when you first approach. The dogs have also taken to doing their business wherever the mood strikes them, so we've got to watch where we step, lest we discover a fragrant mound of last night's supper. We'll have to be careful when we start mowing it down also, as B has seen a lot of broken glass scattered about.
Plans - We're definitely cleaning and repainting the house, as there's no way we can move B's parents in here in the state it's currently in. We'll also have to redo those odd stairs inside. Once we have the tractor and bush hog back, we can start mowing out the yard, the road into the orchard, and the area inside the hedge grove where we'd like to put the herb garden. Of course we'll need the deck, both to shade the first story and to provide extra "chill" space. As part of making it self-providing, we'd love to build a henhouse and get some chickens for their eggs, and possibly a cow or a goat for milk. Horses are a definite need as well.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Mission Statement for Garden of God Ministries
The Mission of Garden of God Ministries is to holistically enhance the lives of those in need in underserved areas around the world. We seek to balance the spirit, mind, body, and emotions. We build and operate schools, clinics, birthing assistance, healing centers, spiritual retreats, and community centers, as well as design and operate holistic gardens and organic farms.
Holism (from ὅλος holos, a Greek word meaning all, entire, total) is the idea that all the properties of a given system (physical, biological, chemical, social, economic, mental, linguistic, etc.) cannot be determined or explained by its component parts alone. Instead, the system as a whole determines in an important way how the parts behave. (from Wikipedia.org)
Our initial mission at Garden of God Belize Healing Center is located in Belize Central America. We are based on a 68 acre organic farm, near Franks Eddy Village, a couple miles off the Western Highway, at the 37 mile marker. We are approximately a 35 minutes drive from Belize City and the Philip Goldstein International Airport and are approximately 15 minutes from the nations capitol of Belmopan.
We are presently headquartered in a two story farm house, with our own well and emergency electrical backup. The farm house is set well back from the road to the Jaguar Paw resort and stands in its own cleared area of about 3 acres, bordering the groves on the west side and with lawn and gardens on the east.
Adjacent to the ¼ acre vegetable garden, bordered by over 200 young ficus trees is the pump and generator house which sits over the farms 500’ clear freshwater well.
The gardens are planted with a wealth of trees and shrubs too numerous to list in total but including; a 1/2 mile hibiscus hedge, frangipani, gardenia, abutillon, mahogany, jobea, argaves, dwarf palms, heliconia, calla lily and standard drachanae. These in turn are home to a bewildering variety of birds and butterflies from the aptly named vermilion flycatcher to the double saucer sized blue morpho butterfly. Other regular creatures on the farm include coati mundis, armadillos, grey fox, deer, peccary and some jaguar.
The citrus groves were professionally laid out with due consultation as to type of rootstock and spacing and consist of orange and grapefruit trees which constitute the major juicing crop ( harvested from January to March annually). In addition the farm supports Tangerine, Mango and assorted Banana and Plantain trees together with good examples of Cashew, Coconut, Golden Plum, Crabou, Allspice, Custard Apple, Papaya and assorted Pineapple as well as Tahiti limes. Local ‘farm gate’ sales have been introduced with lime, coconut , mango crabou and cashew being popular sellers.
The preceding is the original mission statement and description of the farm in Belize. When B and I get down there next week, we'll be able to find out how much of it is still viable. It's been over three years since B and her family were there, and even longer since the farm has received any basic care (like fertilizing), so bringing the farm up to functionality, whether to support the Healing Center or to actually turn a profit by selling to the nearby juicers, may take a while.
- S
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
And So It Begins!
Intros of the players will have to come later, first the good stuff! B and m'self finally booked tickets to get down to Belize in order to check out how the land looks. Our 68 acres are sorely in need of some attention, I'm sure. We'll be leaving from Cedar Rapids on October 30th, and coming back on November 20th, which should leave plenty of time to see family for Thanksgiving. Between now and then we'll have our hands full keeping B's parents, B&V, from worrying too much about us leaving, and getting everything in order before we go. I'll also try to use that time to get used to blogging again, and to post some updates on what we're all about.
Given that this is the very first post for this blog, I'm hoping that what I've heard about adequate Internet connections in Belize is true, as I'd hate to be stuck not able to keep everyone up to date just because I can't log in.
- S
Given that this is the very first post for this blog, I'm hoping that what I've heard about adequate Internet connections in Belize is true, as I'd hate to be stuck not able to keep everyone up to date just because I can't log in.
- S
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