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.

We have now found 3 deer that choose this very spot to pass on.

...and water at the end of the faucet

working and playing in the rain

no description needed

Hugel Culture or more properly... Hügelkultur... is a permaculture technique for gardening. A mound is constructed from decaying wood debris and other compostable biomass plant materials and planted as a raised bed.

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

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.

Mason is happy to start building his soil. He dumps organic culled produce from a local grocer, plus oak leaves he gathered, plus some free coffee grounds from our local Johnson City Coffee Company

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

Now that we have been here over a year and have the 1800s rock room up and running... and are starting to actually work on building things, it is fun to look back at our initial first boho campout: living in a tent and the stealth van (not so stealth here) and having the outdoor kitchen, etc.

As we peel back the layers on the property we find treasures, like the paint remnants of a place where a lot of folks had fun - the Mermaid Club.

Lots of critters here to get to know, including the Texas Brown Snake and the Texas Toad

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!

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 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

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

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.

Using natural scents as a deterrent to keep animals away from our freshly planted trees.

Garry Conner of Conner Concrete tells us of coming to the land to get cold sodas after a day of picking peaches in Stonewall, Texas.

We go to a fireplace store where there are literally piles and piles of free wood palettes. Many you have to pick through, but there are solid 2x4s and even 2x6s in the mix, perfect for our many projects we have in mind.

When we first landed on on the Land we broke out a version of Bing Crosby singing Deep in the Heart of Texas. Just sharing a silly moment of sheer joy!

Watch as a Chicken Snake or Rat Snake - this friendly large non-venomous snake slides easily up a tree. The other sound you here is not a rattler, but insects in the trees.