Seed of Life ~ Texas Hill Country

This was the manifold setup I designed in Las Vegas, NV to capture rainwater. 55 gallon drums were chained together and could be individually shut off for repairs. the water came off a shed roof - there was no pre-dirt-debris "first flush." The output was only used to water the garden during dryer times. Normally this kind of setup would need to have a cover against sunlight to prevent algae build-up. but in the desert, the water was used up fairly quickly and thus, was not an issue. I will be building something like this on a much larger scale at the Seed of Life in Texas! And yes, it will include a first flush element.

Having the right tool makes all the difference in the world. In this case, if you are ever trying to bend rebar, having this tool with a funny name helps. we love it. smooch!

We are using all sorts of techniques in this project including "lasagna" cardboard layering to keep down weeds and five or more inches of mulch for weed suppression and water retention. Also, we found a toad.

Some tips about dealing with rebar and schedule 40 pipe. And always paint your PVC so it does not scald in the sun!

We spend hours and hours sifting through the former trash pile left to rot on the land. THINK TWICE before you throw ANYTHING out! And please think about where you throw it.

Ever had fresh concrete and had the desire to write in it? Here's a couple of tips on how to make a successful imprint.

Being good Beatles fans... We could not help ourselves

By sprinkling hay on the dirt mixed with water, you can reduce erosion control and make an adobe like surface on your ground.

installing the cedar fence line

geothermal tubes are covered up and we will be ready to build soon.

Sometimes you need to spare the shovel and get the big tools out. In this case about a half hour of paying for an heavy equipment operator was more affordable and less physically demanding than a few days of day labor.

We were put in the tough position of having to take out a few teenager trees to allow a vehicle to get from the higher part of the land to the lower part. Luckily, we got a great connection nearby who sold us a few indiscriminant varieties of Paw Paw which we had planned to plant as understory plants in the forested area. So as the old trees go, new ones will come along.

After spending hours digging through the trash pile, we were able to separate out some salvageable dirt as well as some trash metal we were able to recycle... for CASH!

We were quoted an exorbitant among to haul away our concrete. Our solution use everything on site to some other advantage. Rip Rap has many many uses: including creating retaining walls and especially for fill

Our ongoing saga to effectively deal with the critters eating away at our newly planted fruit trees in our "Gentleman's Orchard." We have used garlic oil, neem oil, netting and fencing and so far everything is hanging in there.

a play by play video of what we did to prepare the soil, the hole, and taking the plant out of the pot