Hello Permaculturalists, I am in the second year of converting a 35 Hectare abandoned farm in Costa Rica. Unfortunately I am still not here full time. However, the movement in Costa Rica seems to be growing in two directions. One of those directions which I am looking to foster is the socially inclusive variety, with the intention of growing the local as well as the international community of good land stewards in Costa Rica. My motivation at this stage is to create a network here. Costa Rica is in some ways an underdeveloped country in which information is difficult to obtain even more so if one wants credible information. Some supplies are also hard to obtain. (I cant find alfalfa, or clover seeds for example.) In general I find permaculture information for the wet tropics to be sparse as compered to that of arid, or temperate information. (It could be just that I have not found that fountain yet.) So I hope to collect Costa Rica specific information for sharing. The second part of the network I hope to create is to have permaculturalists interested in a stay in Costa Rica to visit our network of farms most of us with minimal means to help with technical suggestions as most of us are new to the field. So far Finca Las Koalas in La Linda de Preez Zeledon, and Ciielo Verde in San Ignacio de Acosta are part of this group. The biggest issue we have is managing water. Too much in rainy season and too little in dry season. I am in the process of starting the water management earthworks at the top of the farm. Appreciate any inputs from this community.
Hello CostaRicaPermanet and welcome! Have you seen Christopher Nesbitt's work in Belize at the Maya Mountain Research Farm? Permaculture in the wet tropics since 1988. https://numundo.org/center/belize/maya-mountain-research-farm https://starhawk.org/maya-mountain-research-farm-my-permaculture-adventure-in-belize/ I remember Darren Doherty showing photos of some large swales he installed in Viet Nam to sink seasonal rains and prevent run-off water erosion into the nearby river. Are you planning something similar?
Hello Bill and thank you for your reply. No I have not see Nesbitt's work and will check it out, thanks. Yes, I have planned an orchard in the highest part of the farm, except for the wild forest part that will be swales to control the water from the forest above and direct it slowly down the hill. Not so sure about the execution of them though. Will start to build the idea with pictures. I also believe that I have vascular streak die back in the the cacao!
