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Make Your Bed! - by Jacob Sandoval, Garden Intern 2016

4/29/2016

Spring has sprung and by the end of the work day, the springs of my bed await the pressure of my body to sink into a much needed rest and regeneration. As I awake to make and prepare my bed for it's next resting session, various other beds out in the garden await to be made and prepared as well. Though the currently sleeping seeds will not be completely asleep when planted, they will be growing dreams of nature's consciousness, and manifest into the reality of our wakeful lives.

A big part of this week was preparing beds for planting and it was truly an awakening experience. We cleared out much of the weeds until it was all set and sure to be comfortable to take in new inhabitants. As we tucked in the seeds and the transplants, we gave them our best wishes. And seriously hoped that those bed bugs didn't bite! Or in our case, slugs! Which can be an absolute nightmare to the garden. Then we covered it all in a blanket of mulch, and now we'll let it rest until we see the growing results.

This is about my third week here at Songaia and already so many great memories and lessons have been imprinted on my heart on mind. This whole experience has been a dream come true, and I am refreshened, awake, and ready to take on another day!

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Life and Death in Gardening - by Levi Bilderback, Garden Intern 2016

4/25/2016

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Another week has passed, and I’ve been thinking a lot about life and death since I’m faced with it daily with the life cycles of plants. We pulled buttercups out of the beds we intended on planting. I killed a large amount of them, as I’m sure others there did too. We laid them on top of the soil as the soil’s “armor.” Soon, they will become dirt again, completely unrecognizable compared to what it used to be. And that is what will happen to all of us, to every living creature. We all become dirt eventually.

I look around the garden and see plants in various parts of their life cycles, and there is a lot of beauty. Flowers are my favorite part of a plants life cycle. I love to pass by the lilac trees and be overwhelmed with its perfume. There are dandelions everywhere, some with their parachute seeds and others that come out when the sun is out and shine bright and yellow.
Slugs are everywhere. They like to try and eat our lettuces, but we want to eat the lettuces too. We kill them because they will dine like royalty and leave nothing but poop and slime trails. I have yet to find any of these slug carcasses because they too become the soil again.

There is life in decay, as I look in compost and the dirt under my feet. What it used to be is irrelevant. What it is now is soil that is healthy. It will help feed the next generation of plants. There are worms and centipedes every time I turn up the soil. There must be vast colonies of beneficial bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi everywhere. The fungus is literally among us.

In the process of decaying and becoming the soil again, we put our carbon back in the ground for it to be used by the next generation. Our carbon is only being borrowed for the short amount of time we have on this small rock we call Earth. It can be refreshing to think of your own mortality, and probably healthy for your mind.

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Delicious But Ambitiously Vicious Vines..by Jacob Sandoval, Garden Intern 2016

4/22/2016

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A second week has swept past us and it has been a wind of various atrocious smells, but most of all the smell of success. The second week started at the same place the first week started; at the compost bins. Though this time we put them to good use with composting at it's fullest with a putrid spewing out of shredded food scraps out of the metal mouth of a shredding machine. This was the first step to layering a lively compost pile and it certainly is the worst smelling step of all. But now the process of it's transformation has began and I am excited for it's journey to becoming home to future plants!

This second week has flown by and I am definitely looking forward to whatever else the garden asks of us. I've learned a lot here so far and am learning more and more about permaculture. Part of what I learned is to have a sort of communication with the land and the plants. So that when were looking and listening, the earth and the plants will tell us what they need, and that's when we know what must be done next.

Another battle with the blackberry vines had been commenced and Patricia, Levi and I took them out like professionals this time around. Blackberry vines are delicious, but sometimes their vines can be ambitiously vicious!

On another day there was much mulching to be done, Laura, Levi, Patricia and I covered some good ground in the Life Song Commons area with a hefty fresh layer of mulch. It was very aromatic and the whole area was replenished, ready to promote good growth and comfort for the current plants that reside there.

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It Smelled Bad - by Levi Bilderback, Garden Intern 2016

4/20/2016

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Hello everyone!
I had another great week at Songaia. It smelled bad at times, but other than that I feel really accomplished this week. We had a lot of big tasks and made a lot of progress.

On Sunday we spread wood chips around the Life Song Commons landscape where Jacob and I live. The soil here used to be bad, but since Patricia has started working on it, it has started to look like healthy soil. After lunch, we learned how to make potting soil and transplanted tomatoes into larger pots. The varieties I remember are Momotaro, Black Prince and Peace vine. They all looked healthy and strong.

We did more transplanting on Monday, but it was into the ground this time. We planted three lettuce varieties which are Salmon, Fred’s Red Sail and a Butter or Butter Crunch. I also planted a row of Cilantro, and seeded two rows of Cilantro, three rows of Scallions, and three rows of Arugula. Jacob and I received the “go ahead” on operating the weed eaters and we mowed down the grass and weeds in the food forest, which was fun.

Friday came along and we did a lot of bed prep. We pulled out that pesky Buttercup and Bindweed, and then turned the soil from the pathways onto the beds. Then we planted corn in 4-5 plant clusters, with a little space between each cluster. Soon, we are going to plant a pole bean next to the corns so it will climb up the corn stalk. Also, we will be planting winter squash in between the corn and bean clusters.

The reason I say it smelled bad is because on Saturday, we ground up the compost material from food scraps from the kitchen into bits. It was nasty, but definitely worth it. But we didn’t just grind up food scraps, we also dug up some invasive blackberries. Jacob dug up the biggest blackberry root.

Overall it was a great week, and I learned so many things. I’m excited to see what becomes of our transplants! I’m ready to patrol the lettuces to guard them against those evil Slugs. Just give me a pair of scissors and I’ll get to work!

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Joining in on the fun....by Jacob Sandoval, 2016 Summer Intern

4/15/2016

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In a portion of the earth where peace, harmony, and community prevail, I have been granted the opportunity to join in on the fun and work that is involved in flourishing a garden, as well as a community. It has been about a week, and since the moment I've arrived, I've descended into a feeling of peace and welcomeness. So far I've met and/or worked with various wonderful and encouraging human beings that have made adjusting into my stay at Songaia a comfortable and easy experience.

One thing I didn't exactly know and learned was that blackberry vines can be invasive, painful, and monstrous. But with a good team, the vines were banished from the tree that they were strangling and fed to the goats. Also, I got to hands on another thing that I've been interested in, which is called hugelkultur. It is the ultimate compost row pile that lets nature takes it's course and eventually can grow whatever it is that is desired to plant.

Each day has been an amazing learning experience. I am looking forward to the growth of these plants that I'm getting aquainted with, along with the growth of my knowledge and friendships among the community, which have already been cultivated.

Already we got so much done and another week is on the rise. This fruitful journey will continue, and I am ready for whatever knowledge and experience that I shall harvest.

As the work week began, it started with where it all begins; compost. For sometime I have had an interest in making a compost bin, and my weeks introduction of work at Songaia brought me an amazing lesson towards the whole process of building one through rebuilding one. And that was just the first lesson among many others.

Another lesson I've learned and am learning is the importance of community. We've experienced multiple community dinners and it all is so extremely good and good for me. I am thankful for all the people and the meals they've made. Hopefully soon I will attempt to make one for everybody else as well.

Everyone is a delight and with the combination of the enjoyment of living and working among these determined kindred spirits and the knowledge gained through experiencing this natural occuring system of farming and community, great excitement fills me for the days ahead.

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Compost, Huglekultur and Potatoes By Levi Bilderback, 2016 Garden Intern

4/7/2016

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Hello friends, family and farmily!

My first week at Songaia has passed without a hitch! I feel comfortable and happy, and I haven’t stopped learning things since I got here. Trying to remember names has been the hardest, but I’m positive I’ll know everyone’s name here soon enough.

Within the first 24 hours, Jacob (an intern who got here a day after me) and I ate probably around 5 community meals! And it was really good food.

On our first day of work, Jacob and I teamed up with Tom and his daughter and we dismantled the Compost bins, which were starting to rot. Tom had designed them to be easy to take apart and put back together because he knew they would rot. But even though it was simple to dismantle and put back together, it doesn’t mean we didn’t have our work cut out for us. Overall, it took us 2 days to dismantle and rebuild the compost bins.

On our final day of the work week, we teamed up with Miguel and Laura, and we planted potatoes. Miguel and I cleared the bed of weeds, and we all amended the beds and planted the baby potatoes. I can’t wait to chow down on those!

On our third day, we took sod from a path that was being made and piled it on a row of lawn clippings and tree branches. This is called Hugelkultur, and it’s like compost that you don’t have to move to your beds, because it turns into a bed itself.

Overall, my first week feels like it has flown by, and that I’ve been here for a very long time. I feel welcome and happy, and my brain hasn’t ceased to be worked!

Thanks for a great first week!

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Make Your Bed! - by Jacob Sandoval, Garden Intern 2016

Life and Death in Gardening - by Levi Bilderback, Garden Intern 2016

Delicious But Ambitiously Vicious Vines..by Jacob Sandoval, Garden Intern 2016

It Smelled Bad - by Levi Bilderback, Garden Intern 2016

Joining in on the fun....by Jacob Sandoval, 2016 Summer Intern

Compost, Huglekultur and Potatoes By Levi Bilderback, 2016 Garden Intern

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