Keyhole Gardens

Check out this video about keyhole gardens, a garden designed to be maximally effective for people in low-water environments, particularly in Africa. And more info about Cowforce's African Gardens here.



Byrd House Market in Richmond, VA, has built a keyhole garden with students in their afterschool program.

Click here for .pdf instructions on how to build one.
This is awesome.
I want one!

General Convention news

The Episcopal Church's General Convention starts up this week in Anaheim, CA. For news coverage from inside the convention, here are some quick links to the Diocese of Virginia's Center Aisle newspaper and blog. Additionally, check out the Rev. Sue Eaves' blog here.

Adventures in Amman

My pal Amanda is on a summer-long intensive study of Arabic in Amman, Jordan. Her blog is here: Adventures in Amman.

Amanda is delightfully sarcastic and delights in pointing out the irony in the situations in which she finds herself. You should expect nothing less in the commentary on her blog.

Jerusalem Mile Project

Click here to listen to a short piece on NPR this morning about a Harvard-trained Palestinian medical doctor, a resident of Gaza, who has spent his career working on both sides of the divide in Jerusalem. Recently, three of his daughters were killed by direct shelling from an Israeli tank in front of their home. His response is a remarkable testimony to the strength of the human spirit.

All the more reason for the Diocese of Virginia's Jerusalem Mile Project : a group of 40 folks will travel to Jerusalem in the spring of 2010 to participate in a course held at St. George's College (an Anglican study center that hosts short-term courses on issues in ancient and contemporary Israel). The project website says,

In our time, a pilgrimage to Jerusalem is a chance to do three things: It is the chance to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. It is the chance to see the face of Christ in the current residents of Jesus’ homeland. And it is the chance to imagine how the Holy Spirit may use us to bring God’s peace and do God’s justice in that place.

Sub-Irrigated, Part Deux

Back in January, gearing up for a class on Sub-Irrigated planters (through Tricycle Gardens) I put up this post with basic information. Here on the right is one of the planters we made at that workshop.
You can't see what's going on inside the planter box, but it's not too complicated. Basically, there is a false bottom about six inches above the base of the green tupperware box. That false bottom creates a well at the base of the planter for water; the dirt stays above and wicks water upward as needed, or drains it downward if it's too saturated. A small drain hole in the side of the green tupperware, just below the level of the false bottom, lets excess water drain out. You pour water through that orange tube (yes, a cut-off plastic bat). Plastic on top of the dirt keeps the water from evaporating out from the heat of the sun. The Sub-Irrigated Planter (SIP) accomplishes two goals: one, it's a remarkably water-consistent environment for plants, so they grow like crazy. And two, these kinds of planters are remarkably water-efficient, which saves you time, money, and earns you some brownie points with the environment. All good things.
This photo above was taken on April 10, right after I planted two Roma tomatoes and a 'patio tomato,' a variety bred to stay smaller and more compact.

Now, two months later, the tomato planter looks like this (at left). It's a little hard to see in the photo that the roma have crept down and out over the side of the porch. I'm hoping that they continue to do this, to take advantage of the space granted by being on a second-story south-facing porch.


I've also got herbs growing in similar boxes. No starter photos here, just evidence (below) that they're very happy. Hanging above is a store-bought hanging subirrigated bowl, with roma inside. We'll see how well they do.


I water the big boxes about once a week, less if there's been a lot of rain. The hanging bowl is more tender and needs watering more often, but that makes sense (the water well inside is fairly small, and there's no good way to seal off the top from air/sun).
Also, I've been playing around with decorative uses for the SIP. I had this big ugly ceramic planter and loathed the idea of having to dump water into it and watch it all drain out as in past years. I plugged up the hole in the bottom, found a cheap plastic laundry bin (good air holes already included on the sides, but I drilled a lot of holes in the bottom to make sure it would drain) that fit inside, lined it with weedcloth to keep the dirt in, and covered the top with plastic from the bag of organic potting soil that went to fill it. And then put in some sedum dug up from the back yard, columbine, ivy, and another little decorative flowery thing. A cut-off soda bottle (the blue) allows me to direct water straight into the well at the bottom of the planter, but I'm hoping to score a piece of used garden hose to replace that and be less noticeable. It's a little clumsy looking with the plastic and weedcloth--but it's an experiment. And so far I think I've watered it three times in four months.

In Silence: Radiolab on The Sacrifice of Isaac

Oh, please listen to this. Robert Krulwich wrote a sermon for his synagogue on the Genesis text in which God orders Abraham to kill his son, Isaac. His words about this difficult text are thoughtful, full of integrity, and insightful. This is thirty minutes of biblical commentary that you will not regret.

"Can we face the terrible silence of the universe with just hope in God, in good?"

remarkable, powerful.

My family is becoming more and more keenly aware of the emotional work required of those who have aging parents. Thus, my sister sent me this site.
Don't start looking at this if you aren't in a place where it's alright to weep.

Days with My Father