Well it's 2012, a full year since we started managing this beautiful property in Hakalau. We were finally able to save up for some fence and construct a 6.5 acre paddock. The grasses are growing huge in our fertile soil, and hopefully we can now use grazing animals to help control them.
Big mahalos to our crew who helped put up our fence, Keahi, Jake, Dad, Uncle Timmy and Mom, Uncle kahela and aunty Terry, Ian and Lahela. Sorry if I was a slave driver, but I was excited. It couldn't have happened without everyone's help.
This area will be our first section of grazed orchard. I's kind of hard to visualize when your looking at 8ft. guinea grass, but with the correct species and management we'll get it done. The map below shows the fence in red which is about a quarter of the property.
It's been a while since our last update. The weeds have been growing robustly and I was not able to access a machine to mow as often as I wanted to. As a result we lost a large percentage of our Koaia. We have two rows clean and maintained, and hope to clear and maintain at least the other two main contour rows(about 400 trees total). These four main rows will establish root systems that will hold the soil in natural terraces until we are able to create swales(kind of hard to explain, come check um out!).
I originally bit of more than I could chew, planning to take care of 2000 trees on about 9 acres. I was relying on resources that weren't always available(tractor mower).
I beleive that 4 rows will be manageable and still do a lot for soil/water conservation. Our tallest trees are about 8 feet but spindly. Not bad for one year of growth. Trees that have died will have new ones in their place.
This year we will try to work with and around the pioneer(weed) species on our property and use their kino to support other forms of life that are beneficial to us.
"Weeds" serve a purpose and hold and build soil, So before we jump into using herbicide and diesel tractors to control them lets make sure we're not making work for work's sake.
It's all a learning process and a labor of love. May we continue to ulu this year and remember to put the 'aina first.
