Sacred Garden Sanctuary Newsletter June 2010

In this Issue

• Dome building update
• Community Garden Update
  
• Other News
  

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Progress on Michael's Dome

We have started the plastering, as you can see to the left. Our plaster mix is 2 parts soil, 2 parts sand from our gulleys and one part cement. We will be finishing the first exterior coat in the next week or two. Then we will coat it with asphalt emulsion. Then we will put on a finish coat of plaster that has sand more finely strained. If we get  leaks during the rainy seasons, we will probably coat it with elastomeric roof coating to seal it better.

Community Garden Update

The pumpkins, squash and melons that Michael planted on the lower terrace are thriving. This year we've had very few leaf hoppers and grasshoppers so far, so we are avoiding last year's carnage. We are also protected from cattle, but not rabbits and other rodents which have not caused any damage yet.

Michael has also planted an herb garden, with herbs that made it through last summer and winter: catnip, spearmint, sage, dill, and rosemary.

The pomegranite bush is producing fruit, thanks to Edwin the Matchmaker. I found some male blossoms in town and rubbed them on the female flowers, and some of them got fertilized. We have another pomegranite grown from seed that is too small to flower yet -- we are hoping it's a male.

The apricots are almost ripe! We have two trees and both are pretty heavy with fruit, although the one shown to the right is a much larger tree. We have actually tried them but they are still hard and green, in spite of their lovely orange color. We also have a few plums coming on, and a few bunches of Thompson seedless and red flame grapes. Our Cabernet and Merlot grape vines are thriving this year for the first time, but no fruit yet. Perhaps next year...

Other News

• More garden news:
  • We succeeded in locating a source of horse manure from our neighbor just 1/2 mile away. She was appreciative of us cleaning out her corral for her. We will be going back periodically.
  • We had a visitor, Tom, who helped us with the dome plastering and is arranging to get us a truckload of sliding glass doors from a remodeler that we can turn into cold frames or a greenhouse for this winter.
  • We decided to try plastic tubing for the Agribon and shade cloth supports. It seems to be working well.
• On the community garden agenda
  • Watering, weeding and plant protection. Watering is taking a lot of our time, but the monsoon rains should be here in another 3 weeks or so. We are using the manure as a top dressing to help retain the water in the soil and keep the soil surface cooler.
  • We are using the Agribon and shade cloth to protect plants from the intense sun, when temperatures soar.
• Edwin visited Marcia G.'s dome open house yesterday and got a few more tips on dome building and other sustainable practices.

Please Spread the Word

If you know of anyone who has a pioneer spirit and is interested in community, ecology, organic gardening,  living simply, and personal growth, please pass the word by directing them to http://sacredsanctuary.org and encourage them to subscribe to this newsletter.

With peace and love -

Edwin Basye, Steward