All efforts to sure up the driveway with gravel enough that we might push through in the van with loads of mulch were dashed by another 30mm of rainfall. So, we decided to reprioritise and look at the gulch shower II. I showed Tim where it was at, and helped him move down the new tank and the gas heater, and he set to work building a platform for the tank and sizing up all the pieces needed to do it right. The biggest decision to make is whether or not to spend the extra bucks on pipe to get the water from the top tank or from the barn tank. I think we are going to spend the bucks and get the longterm relief of gravity feed! Also, the fewer systems connected to the barn tank the less chance we have of running the pump dry again! Lovely to be able to show him what we need done and then just leave him to it...
Anyway, with Tim busy on that project, (and setting up a more useul rainwater catching barrel for the top A-Frame - alternatively known as the Litchie Hut or the Bambusa Lodge or...) I got on with the planting and mulching of Takako's food forest. At first I tried wheelbarrowing loads of mulch over from the other side, just to get the wet newspaper covered, but after about 5 loads I realised that this was going to kill me before I killed the grass on the slope. And it was raining so often that I figured that I should just go ahead and plant, plant, plant and just make sure that I get around to mulching it all properly later.
In what was really like a very delayed climax, I finally planted some fruit trees here! I mean, I have planted a few things here nad there before, but this was finally putting the "climax" species into their intentionally prepared (albeit only partially) microclimate. Anyway, I felt quite high about it. The abiu that Brad and Jason brought back from La'akea, the Rollinia that Josh from Laulima gave us, and an Eggfruit planted from seed... This just about filled in the spots already sheltered by the Pidgeon Peas from a couple of years ago, although of course there is room for more stuff to be packed in there. Cacao, maybe some coffee etc. I put in the understory stuff like the coco-yams and the monstera and some red gingers as well as the peanut. We need heaps more peanut and other ground covers still, to compliment the rest and shade out the grass. I suppose I'll work some more on that today.
Harvested some big old cassava roots when planting Sesbanias in the patch between the Ginger Terrace and Takako's food forest. I'm thinking that this little area will be the future home of a Black Sapote amongst others. Hopefully by the time the sesbania's are up, the Black Sapote's will have filled out the tubs they're in right now...
Lorinda and Lichen moved the dome chooks all by themselves, and have collected about 4 wheelbarrow loads of guavas for poultry fodder in the few days.