MULCH AND COMPANIONSHIP

When you are fortunate to have good friends willing to help and some found palm leaves for mulch, it is a good day indeed. We tied the trash palm leaves in bundles so we could drag them to the property and avoid the serious thorns on the stems, and went to work cutting the fronds. They are now spread out on an area of dry, compacted clay where the tractor can help degrade them.

Kawtar waiting for the water delivery to arrive.

Manu giving the palm a good haircut. We are saving the stems and sheared tops for other projects down the road.

 A shared language is not necessarily needed in order to enjoy some light hearted banter and some great companionship. 

WATER HARVESTING CONUNDRUMS

Trying to design a water harvesting system that will incorporate greywater, rainwater and the infrequent access to irrigation from the oued (river) is proving to be challenging. Traditionally, the irrigation channel that runs along the outside of one of the perimeter walls has been managed by constructing temporary damns made of mud, stone, plastic and other trash items. These small constructions divert the water so each property owner has equal access to the river water, 

when it exists.  Yesterday, we finished installing this grate and wood apparatus that will allow the flow by lifting the top piece of wood with its attached wire so the water can enter. It remains to be seen whether this device will win the approval of the neighbors. In these traditional cultures, thinking outside of the box is not always an option.

The best part of the day was watching our resident tortoise Frankie enjoying his breakfast!

FUNGI!

 The appearance of a mushroom in one of the small garden beds we planted with cover crops was a big surprise-and a very hopeful sign. I believe this means that we have mycelium in the soil, which is a big boost to my confidence-maybe I am really doing things the right way.

Kawtar and I went straight to the local weekly souk yesterday, and 

left there in a couchie (horse drawn taxi) with a small tree saw, 

some rope to assist the bamboo in growing straight up, and a 

few buckets to help ease the watering burden. The treasures of 

the shopping were eight unglazed clay pots to use as ollas and 

three large bags of wood chips-and the ride in the couchie.

Breaking apart the larger pieces of bark.

I am not positive that I know what any of these plants are-we threw such a huge mixture of seeds and beans in these beds. The purpose of this fall planting was to cover the soil in the garden beds with "cover crops," whose purposes are to shade the ground, help break up the heavy clay soil with their roots, and to provide fertilizer.

These old clay pots are so beautiful, it is too bad that they are 

destined to be underground...

BAMBOO!

 Today was a big day. We had 25 bamboos, each between 3 and 4 meters tall, delivered and planted along the north and west walls of the property. I saw that there was some soil improvement from the work I did last spring when I prepped the holes, so that was gratifying. We inserted 6 trees along the bamboo rows for a bit of diversity, but the primary purposes of the bamboo are privacy and shade. This is the first-and will be the last-of garden expansion until the structures are built. There is still work to be done in the olive garden, and we will continue to concentrate on that area over the fall and winter.

Aziz watering the newly planted bamboo.

Kawtar and Omar watering the olive trees.

THREE GARDENS

There are three garden areas planned on the property. The west side that receives the most brutal sun exposure will have several shade trees planted first. Succulents and perhaps a cactus or two will be initially positioned along a rock wall that will terrace a small slope at the entrance to the property. As the shade trees mature, other desert hardy plants will be added. The south side of the property is currently planted with olive trees, and a Mediterranean garden will fill the spaces between the trees and along the pathway. This garden path already supplies shade in shifting locations, and camp chairs and a small table follow the shade over the course of the workday, providing a cool breeze for coffee breaks and lunch. The remaining garden area on the east side of the property will hold a courtyard garden that will eventually be a lush oasis in the middle of property. It will feature more shade trees, a few fruit trees, shrubs, vines and ground cover plantings. A water feature is planned, as well as an outdoor shower, a fire pit and several areas to just sit and watch the wildlife and insects that I hope to attract to the garden. 

This is elephant bush, portulacaria afra. It came to me a decade ago from a riad that was being redone, and it thrived through two moves and ten years of irregular watering. The original mother plant was destroyed in the September 2023 Morocco earthquake, but I have propagated it numerous times and have many pots to transplant in the Mediterranean garden.

 The lids to small tajines are placed along rocks that line the pathway. They are temporarily stored there until I find a use for them in the gardens. In the background, various plants including a lot of grocery store bean sprouts are filling the garden beds that the ants did not disseminate in their rampage a few weeks ago.