808, 2013
July’s newsletter
This is July’s edition of our monthly newsletter. Make sure to subscribe to not miss out on the next editions!
308, 2013
2807, 2013
Armadillos
Among the wildlife we see daily at RDS are monkeys, toucans, iguanas, pizotes, scarlet macaws… just to name a few. But a few days ago we spotted Armadillos for the first time as they were foraging along the road. Armadillo means “little armored one” in Spanish.
“Little armored one”.
2707, 2013
Thunder in his pasture
Thunder in his pasture.
2507, 2013
What’s for breakfast?
Here’s what we typically eat for breakfast:
- A huge fresh fruit salad made up of some delicious combination of local fruits – bananas, pineapples, papayas, mangoes, passion fruits, and more
- Kefir (which is made here daily from fresh raw milk) or yogurt
- Chai tea and Costa Rican coffee
- Raw honey, cocoa from a nearby chocolate farm, and other delicacies
- Oatmeal has somehow become a Saturday tradition – soaked overnight of course!
Best of all, here’s the view while eating and conversing in the mornings:
View from the table at the main house.
The food tastes incredible and every morning marks a memorable experience among these vibrant natural surroundings. Of course hunger from the early morning’s martial art practice and pre-breakfast farm chores make the best spice!
2507, 2013
Anna, Ari, and Lela
The family behind RDS taking a walk after a rain shower along the nearby road.
2407, 2013
Sprouted corn
To supplement their daily diet, we give some sprouted corn to our chickens and turkeys. Sprouting the corn increases the grains’ digestibility and nutrient availability. And they’re particularly fond of it!
Ari and Lela getting ready to feed our sprouted corn to the chickens.
1807, 2013
Mama chicken
One of our best mama chickens with her babies right after they hatched
Gallery
1207, 2013
Real pigs
Just like the chickens living here at RDS, our pigs are truly free ranging in a natural habitat where they can live a fulfilling life, find most of their own food, and “display their natural behavior”. We currently have 3 growing pigs digging around in an area covered with secondary-growth forest where we intend to expand the farm’s crops. They’re happy and it shows! They’re also our best workers when it comes to preparing the soil for planting. In addition to fertilizing it, they’re working the soil and plowing like no man or machine could ever do.
707, 2013
Monkeys, fruit trees, and biodiversity
Our private wildlife refuge is home to incredible wildlife and amazing diversity. Amongst the many wild animals roaming around in the forest, and all the way to our doorsteps, are white faced monkeys. They feast on the abundant fruits that are high up in the trees all around us – mangoes, oranges, mountain apples, palm fruits, and many more.
Here are a few pictures taken a couple of days ago:
Usually, organic orchards are managed to get the maximum yield with the minimum effort. Trees are planted nice and organized with paths made. If needed fencing is added to protect the orchard from wildlife. Trees are pruned so that they grow wide rather than tall (to make the fruits easier to harvest), etc.
Our approach to growing fruit trees is different. First of all we don’t do any of the conventional orchard maintenance stuff. For example we don’t prune trees that much – by letting trees grow more freely we actively foster bio-diversity. The tallest branches provide lots of food for many bird species. A little lower you’ll find monkeys and other mammals. Everything plays a role. And there’s plenty for us too.
That’s one of the many reasons why we see so much wildlife every day here at RDS, including many rare species which thrive here. For example we often see wild turkeys and even wild pigs (which are extremely rare in the region).
We’re blessed with so many mature fruit trees around us it seems our continuous supply of fresh fruit is endless. And I attribute the trees’ rich production and strong health partly to the lack of conventional “maintenance” and “care”.
This year we planted many new fruit trees, including about a hundred banana trees of different varieties (sweet banana, red banana, plantain, and a bunch more local varieties), mango trees, avocado trees, papaya trees, serinum cherry trees, and more.
When planting fruit trees and planing orchards we take many aspects into consideration such as the overall flow of life at the farm, topography, accessibility, soil properties, sun and water exposure, etc… That’s more or less expected. But what’s unusual is that we accept to “share” the fruits with the wildlife around and even take active steps to promote bio-diversity. We’re not looking for the highest “yield” in the conventional sense.