permaculture projects
masonry heater
We built a 2500 kg masonry heater (aka tile stove or finoven). In wintertime we burn 10-15 kg of wood in the morning. It heats the whole upper floor of the house. It is a very effective way of burning wood and the radiation heat is very comfortable.
reed bed filter
We are not connected to any sewage. A reed bed filter is ideal to treat grey and black water (unfortunately, we can't separate them).
After being cleaned by the plants, the water can be re-used. Read more on our Water Management page.
swales
In the South of Spain water is scarce. In Mijas, where we live we get a little over 600 mm of water per square meter per year, which is not too bad. Nevertheless, in order not to be independent of irrigation, we try to catch the water and save it in the soil by swales on contour. Read more on our Water Management page.
hügelkultur
An ancient growing technique was reintoduced as Hügelkultur ("Hill-culture"). Wood is burried under a layer of soil and starts to decompose. It adds nutrients, water and heath to the soil and improves growing condition of plants.
An extensive report about the construction can be found here.
swimming pond
Chlorinated swimming water is not clean but dead. Natural living water is full of micro-organisms and waterinsects that live in symbiosis with the water plants keep it clean. It gives lovely soft swimming water.
Read more on our Water Management page.
chicken tractor
Chicken are useful in many ways. One of them is the clearance of unwanted weeds. In combination with a movable coop they will happily remove the ground cover and fertilize the land in one spot and a week later in another.
nursery
We grow plants ourselves, especially local, native plants that we encounter on our walks in the "campo". We take small branches for cuttings on to our site. Local plants are important, they increase the biodiversity in the garden, also because they attract local insects that again attract birds, etc.
compost toilet
The sewage system as we know it in the western world is not efficient, very expensive and actually morally reprehensible. A toilet without flushing 7 liters of drinking water at a time can easily be integrated into our way of life. See on our water page how we have solved that through a reed bed filter and a compost toilet. Read more on our Water Management page.
compost
Composting is the breaking down of organic material (from plants and animals) by microorganisms. The result, the compost, is an earth-like product full of life. For us, composting must comply with 3 basic rules: Man-made or controlled, internal biological heat is produced during the process and oxygen is constantly present. If these conditions are not met, then it isn't composting and the end product shouldn't be called compost.
vermicompost
Vermicomposting, or worm composting, turns kitchen scraps and other green waste into a rich, dark soil that smells like earth and feels like magic. Made of almost pure worm castings, it’s a sort of super compost. Not only is it rich in nutrients but it’s also loaded with the microorganisms that create and maintain healthy soil.
insect hotel
Vermicomposting, or worm composting, turns kitchen scraps and other green waste into a rich, dark soil that smells like earth and feels like magic. Made of almost pure worm castings, it’s a sort of super compost. Not only is it rich in nutrients but it’s also loaded with the microorganisms that create and maintain healthy soil.
An insect hotel gives shelter to various insects such as solitary bee and wasps, especially for the winter. Butterflies and ladybugs also like to use it. The aim is to provide shelter for as varied a quantity of insects as possible in order to increase biodiversity. this also increases the chance of pollination
