Preparation of this soil has been pretty hellish. I don’t think I’ve ever been as hot as I was two days ago, trying to form beds in 95 degree heat with the sun directly overhead. To be honest I was pretty useless in that heat, had to keep retreating to the shade and drenching myself and my clothing with the garden hose. Even the locals were complaining about the difficulty of getting anything done in weather like that.

 

Thanks to the work of many volunteers, and additional labor over the course of three days by four hired hands, the garden beds are finally ready for planting. I’m very happy with the results. The design we settled on uses a pergola to join two oblique ovals, each surrounding a perennial herb bed with a network of pathways and vegetables. We’ve mixed five cubic meters of good compost into roughly 1000 square feet of curved raised beds. The planting soil is level and finely raked. We’ve laid the groundwork for a beautiful garden.

 

Incredibly, we have enough money left to buy half the wood needed for the pergola, donated at cost by a local merchant. We’re looking for matching funds to buy the rest today. As people rally around this project the pace of construction has accelerated. At the start I would have been content to leave here with the garden laid out and soil turned, and planting and construction plans drafted to guide work after my departure. But now it looks like we can finish nearly everything before I leave next week. Designs completed, beds prepared, compost spread, seeds and plants in the ground, pergola constructed (or nearly...). What more could I hope for?!

 

Nothing inspires me quite like bringing waste ground back to life.