The Garden

The gardeners hut is barely seen on the L of picture

How the garden looked after the first weeks of "gardening"

I think if I had time exposure on the garden we would be able to literally "see" the garden growing! It is looking so beautiful and expanding so quickly! A beautiful miracle from God in deed.

The garden at the end of January

There are actually two parts to the garden right now. One garden is on the South side of the school and the other, larger garden is to the North-NE. It is this second garden that is growing so quickly and that is only because it is in a location that there is space to expand....well, let me explain. 

We have outgrown the 6 acre piece that Paul and Lena bought with the last of their retirement money over a year ago now. It has been a spot where they have been able to build the girls and boys dorms, bathrooms, learning center, teacher and staff housing and where the chapel building was already located; in and among the lime trees in the orchard. Not an ideal situation, but it has worked and allowed the children to have a home where it is fairly safe, much safer than where they were, for sure. 

Looking at the Gardeners hut across part of the garden

As they have outgrown their space, they needed somewhere to start the gardens and to place some of the volunteer housing. They talked with a man from the forest service and found out that if they paid a fee, they would be allowed to use some of the forest service land. Kind of like a lease, but I am unsure if there was any time limit established during this transaction. So in order to begin the gardens that is needed to help, not only to feed the children, but also to give the children a good way to have healthy practical physical recreation, land or space was needed. 

Laren and the Gardener

Watering with watering cans

Before we arrived the gardener, a quiet older man, began making beds 

and planting the garden in this mentioned location. Once we came, Laren met with those at the school that are especially interested in gardening made some plans on expanding, composting, mulching and what seeds to start planting. Then the garden really took 

off! Every morning from 7:00am - 8:00am and then from 3:00pm-4:00pm, (There is also a watering team that goes out from 

Some of the little boys doing their part with the watering!

12:00-1:00pm to water again as we are in the dry season right now). The children are out there clearing land, watering with watering cans, hoeing, harvesting and composting the garden.  It goes so quickly with so many willing and eager hands helping to make it happen. If you were to walk along the creek from the Adams house to the foot bridge, you would hear laughing, singing, talking and hoes or rakes in all different degrees of volume. 

Water gourd w/plants benefitting underneath

Some of the things that have been planted are: water gourd (they eat the gourd when it is mature plus the greens now), morning glory, several kinds of water melon, several kinds of musk melon and banana melon, tomatoes, yard long beans, radish, mustard greens, pumpkin (but we would call it winter squash), eggplant and basil. They are also preparing a place for papaya trees and a banana grove. To bad we couldn't be here until each of these will be harvested. But some plant and some harvest; guess we are the planters in more than one sense.

The new water lines

After the "fee" had been paid, it was found out that this "fee" probably was nothing more than a bribe. It makes our stomach sink, just thinking about it. So we are using this land that a forest service man said we could use, but really the three little huts that have been built on it should not have been built there. Despite all the land issues, the garden in this area is growing wonderfully!

There are water lines being laid to bring water from farther up the mountain down to the garden for easier watering ability and better pressure. The compost has been brought in by the 50# sized bags by the hundreds with the willing muscles of the big boys, who collect it, bag it, and then haul it to the truck and from the truck to the garden, Miles, Laren and some of the teachers of the school. It is a 

Cleaning the picked greens for the cook

Water buffalo compost waiting to be added to the garden

dirty job, but to build up the soil it must be done. Trellis's have been built for the gourds and tomato garden areas. Bamboo poles have been placed for the beans and taking advantage of the shade that the 

water gourd relies provides plants have been planted underneath the canopy it provides. Good honest work that makes a healthy, beautiful garden, but it isn't land we can use like we would like, but such a blessing as we wait for God's 

timing on the property across the road from where the gardens are located currently.

Many hands make lighter work!

We are looking forward to doing all this again on Sunshine Orchard's legally owned land that needs to be purchased as soon as possible. Please keep this specific prayer request in mind as you bring your praises and burdens to the Lord. I recently updated a previous blog about 

the property that the down payment has been put on. Please refer to it for more info and to see the pictures that speak much better than my words. 

Our school cook Mu Dah is using these greens daily now!

Proverbs 22:9 “Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor.” There are poor people all over this planet, and these are some of them that are not only poor in this world's goods but do not even have a safe place to live without fear of stepping on a land mine or 

being destroyed by those that hate them. Please 

pass on any of these blogs to anyone you think would like to have a part in purchasing this land and praying about it. Thank you and may the Lord bless you as you serve Him.