Here’s the Winter update..in photos and video. So many plants to play around with!! Getting ready for Spring..by amending soil in current beds, creating more soil for future beds and selecting, starting and planting more seeds and seedlings!!! We’re also building swales on contour.. and putting in more nitrogen fixers.
oh..and.. I did a lady bug release last night..in the dome..go get em ladies!
Building my first swale in the front yard..FOOD FOREST! The rain..comes out of the gutter to the right..and hits the swale.
Instead of running straight down the hill..to the street..it fills the swale..especially the middle..then sinks in..keeping nutrients on the property and builds up a water “lens” underneath the fruit trees.
One of the many simple techniques of Permaculture. I love SWALES! SO much WATER SAVED. We will be planting fruiting/nitrogen fixing plants on top of the swale very soon..
Early in morning..7AM..still frozen
Later in the morning..10AM..venting the tunnels
Mixed heirloom romaine lettuces..Jericho, Paris Island, Freckles
The brassica bed, still growing..but frozen in the morning.
I love seeing the Kale’s freeze back..then warm up..greeting the sun!
Here’s the update..from our “growing dome” as of the beginning of August. There are so many ways to grow food…but these “growing domes” are SO much fun…and provide a TON of food year round! Instead of just posting a video of our dome this month…I’m posting videos of a few other dome growers showing their projects.
In the two videos above, Anthony Anderson..fromrawmodel.com..shows us his 22ft. growing dome and ”Eco Village” permaculture project in Minnesota. Anthony’s passion for growing foods and being self sustainable has inspired us from the very beginning. Without his amazing website and sharing his research with the world…we wouldn’t have even known anything about ”Growing Domes.”
If for some reason you found your way to this site…and haven’t seen Anthony’s site…check it out!! It will take you weeks to sift through all the content available there! We’d like.. someday soon…to care for bees and a more extensive garden and “Eco Village” on a few acres like Anthony’s..SO inspiring!!
In this video.. grower..Breigh Peterson from http://buckhorngardens.blogspot.com ..shows us a 52ft. Growing Dome in Colorado. Our dome is 18ft. in diameter..so you can see how big these things get in height as well!! Very beautiful! These domes are being used in altitudes/latitudes as far north… as Sweden and Alaska…with amazing results!
Last but not least..here’s the hub and beginning of it all.
Udgar and Puja Parsons from growingspaces.comexplain to us why they started growingspaces and show us a few domes and growers in the Rocky Mountains. They’ve been living this lifestyle and working with this technology most of their lives.
Check out their website for many photos and videos of growing domes around the world. We especially love what their doing with schools….and helping children.
Outside temps will reach almost 80F. today! It actually snowed..or rained a frozen mix a few days ago, temps were down around 33F….so hopefully that’s all behind us now….we’ll find out! Either way, we’re planting tomatoes and melons this week..outside in the grow boxes you’ll see at the end of this video. We’ll cover them with Agribon 19..just in case! The other boxes covered with Agribon in the beginning of the video were just planted with Blue Hopi Corn!
This is the the growth update since the last video in January. The major update other than growth, was the addition of the tomato bed in the middle. Also, lots of peppers and herbs like basil, lavender, fennel, dill, cilantro and of course the leafy greens and edible flowers and fruits!
The plants seem to be loving the “Sonic Bloom! Just found this great video on how Sonic Bloom works..worth checking out! We’re also foliar spraying with diluted ocean water…from growgreens.com, every couple weeks, in the morning, as the Sonic Bloom plays. There’s a whole chapter dedicated to Sonic Bloom, in “Secrets of the Soil.” This book contains amazing insights from farmers and growers… from many different cultures around the world!
Just wanted to mention the Growing Dome itself…which if you’ll notice in the video above…has amazing light that diffuses through the shapes of the Growing Dome. It creates an atmosphere that makes you feel like you’re swimming in light.
We purchased it as a kit, from growingspaces.com. We went with the 18ft. diameter kit, because it would fit perfectly in the space we had in our backyard. There are many different sizes though…all the way up to… I believe 52ft. in diameter and as small as 12 ft. The Tree of Life has a Growing Dome also… Courtney Pool posted a cool picture on her blog…here. Then there’s Anthony Anderson’sGrowing Dome over at rawmodel.com, who was our original inspiration to get a Growing Dome…he’s completely amazing us with his, “model for living permaculture project”…which we’re following very closely. Worth checking out for sure, he has a 22 ft. diameter Growing Dome!
The plants are starting to grow quickly now as temperatures are increasing outside….we just planted cucumbers and melons which will be in the next video. Having lots of fun!
The “purple asparagus” we planted last week has started to sprout! This is all so new to us! All these new signs of life are very exciting! This variety of asparagus is just eaten raw, off the stalk! We’re growing it this first year until it goes to seed, then letting it grow again next year and will harvest at the end of the next growing season. Guess that’s the way of the Asparagus. Ahhhh the genesis of life……!
(click on pictures for larger view)
One of the goals we’ve envisioned…..is to be able to walk around the dome eating as you walk…eating a plant leaf here….or a flower there…or maybe just eat a whole tomato and add some fresh herbs like basil or cilantro for flavor combo fun! By the time you get around the dome….you might be too full to keep eating….sounds nice to me!
There couldn’t be a more peaceful place to enjoy a fine meal off the vine!
Here’s a quick tour as of this morning, outside temp is around 32F. Inside temp at 78F and 60 percent humidity.
East side of the Dome, capturing early morning sunlight
Little tomato plants – “Early Girl” hybrids. We’re seeing if we can produce a bunch of fruit early…then transplant with heirloom varieties in a couple months…..we’ll see!
Close up of tomato plant
I think I’ve found a new love in tomatoes….they’re awesome plants….a lot to learn about! I’ll be doing a post very soon on local tomato growers. Including soil and hydroponics! Not wanting to re-invent the wheel, we’re asking around about local methods and varieties used in growing these amazing plants….more to come!
Splash of color for the beneficial insects and ME!
"Parrot Feather" floating pond plant
Little LemmonsViolas! Love the color. Hopefully the good bugs will also! Spinach is growing behind them.
This is a little tour of the Dome. We put it up in November of 08′ and have been working on the garden beds and planting a few things…..more to come! It’s from growingspaces.com ….this company was great to work with and definitely know’s their stuff! We love the Dome!
