Just a quick photo upload for people to have a look at the exciting growth and developments of PermaPai, especially for those who have no seen it for a while. A new firebreak, a new metal roof, drain and water tank for rainwater catchment, mulching the old roof, new adorable kittens (Pooh Bear and Mango),…
Lab Results
The results from the laboratory tests outlined in the previous blog post are now available. The land use types tested are as follows: ORT – Organic Rice Terrace CRT – Conventional Rice Terrace PF – Pioneer Forest FF – Food Forest NF – Natural Forest HR – Hillslope Rice The organic rice terrace,…
Laboratory Soil Analyses
Despite a long blogging silence, the land is still in good order. The trees are growing and cared for by our neighbors while I am at university. Currently, I am beginning my thesis research, using our land as the focus of my research. Soil samples were taken from the soil horizons at 6 key locations. 3 on…
Return after 10 months absence
After 10 months absence due to family and studies abroad, I returned to the land hardly recognizing the plants we planted just 1 year before! In the tropics, the rainy season can be an intense growing period. In our case, most plants doubled in size! Here’s just a quick look at how much things have…
The Bare Necessities: Electricity and Running Water
A bit old this post, but a year ago we finally got electricity and running water. This has been a consistent problem due to local bureaucracy. The stream bordering our property divides the districts. The village is on the other side of the stream, therefore in another district. For this reason, we can not connect to…
Ducks
Our newest addition to the PermaPai team! These little guys will grow to poop, fertilising our food forest and pond. The snails in their diet means this fertiliser will be rich in Calcium, a key component in many reactions in the soil. And most importantly, they are adorable to look at. Daily entertainment!
Bathroom
Our new bathroom, how exciting! The walls were made weaving muddy rice straw through bamboo. Rice straw was mixed with a mud mix, before being woven through the vertical bamboo poles. This technique is most applicable in tropical climates, since the thin walls provide little insulation. Here, in Thailand it is a quick, cheap…
Snake Soup Converts Vegetarians!
Our neighbor Sailomjoy, Shan musician and chef extraordinaire, kindly offered to cook us a meal. How could we resist? Especially when we had just caught and killed two edible snakes (nguu jing) on the property! The result: Tom Yum Ngoo. Tom Yum is the traditional, delicious Thai spicy soup, most commonly cooked with shrimp. Ngoo…
“The Hungry Bear Doesn’t Dance” – A Turkish Proverb
As luck might have it, our current volunteers are excellent chefs. We would like to pointedly thank Mother Marie and everyone else too for the delicious home-cooking we have been enjoying around here. Such as grilled fish.. Fresh salads Yummy curries Chilli Pastes and Condiments Millet and Greens Impromptu…
Chickens and Compost
Now with all the new chickens, they need a home; hence our bamboo chicken coop. They are quite comfy in there with nooks and roosts to sleep and lay eggs. The coop is also an excellent place to collect poop for fertilizer. And to add to this fertile atmosphere, we made a fairly large…
PermaPai Project 