time to dig - the soil team

soil searching

feeling the soil - being one with the soil

the "buttery" soil sticks

they came, they dug, they...left a treasure?

tiempo de vacas flacas

Es evidente que el territorio ya se está secando. Las áreas abiertas de pastos ofrecen cada vez menos al ganado, pero este sigue encontrando refugio y alimento en las zonas boscosas. Prácticamente cualquier planta que esté un poco verde y/o tierna es alimento potencial, incluso aquellas que me imagino son menos palatables.

It's evident now that the territory is becomming dryer. Open pastures have less to offer to cattle, but cows keep finding refuge and feed in forested areas. Practically any plant that's a bit green and/or tender is potential food, even those that I imagine are less palatable.

el ganado al bosque - cows to the forest

Muhlenbergia sp. ("sacavasto") - first time I've seen it grazed - primera vez que lo veo pastado

las cuatro vacas - the four cows

flor de candelaria

Flowering right on time for "Día de la Candelaria" (Candlemas) on 2nd February, and hence taking its name, Guarianthe skinneri (Orchidaceae) was in full color on our last visit to La Sepultura. This is a native orchid to Chiapas that also extends throughout Central America. It's actually Costa Rica's national flower ;)

A pleasure finding these orchids flowering in the mountain, and of course also in people's backyards.

taller silvopastoril en RFM

En Ricardo Flores Magón están echándole muchas ganas para desarrollar una ganadería basada en un buen manejo del pastizal y del ganado, así como integrar sistemas silvopastoriles. Asistimos a un taller (6-8 diciembre) que trató estos temas, y de paso conocimos al grupo y platicamos algunas ideas de colaboración. Hay motivación, curiosidad y ganas de trabajar.

Algunos momentos del evento...

cosechando un metro cuadrado de pasto

pasto cubano de corte

preparando un silaje de pasto cubano con matarratón (Gliricidia sepium)

pastando agusto

buen uso de mesas y sillas

no faltó la barbacoa y una cerveza (con holandés!)

la lechería - quesería avanzando

in the field

he got by with a little help from local friends

Kieran's been bussy in the field. Putting in long days and plenty of hikes to find the sample locations he had randomly assigned in the mountains. His circular plots are 1000 square meters and the measurements plenty; that feels like quite a big area when you're out in the field (and even more when the slope is over 100%). These sample units will provide valuable information on forest structure and composition, and lots of data for him to work with. All the best.

paddock fence hikes

There was collective interest in these potreros, fenced paddocks where cattle grazing and other farming activities take place. We had mapped just a couple of them and so the next task at hand was to do more, that is, to follow the fence and map the boundaries of these fields (baptized as 'Land Management Units').

Walking some parts of these paddocks were pretty straightforward (literally), others took us through bushy canyons, winding ridges and steep mountaintops. Long and rewarding hikes, last week we got fifteen done.

Looking for the next paddock in good company

Kieran and Marcelo going for it

the hiking routes - paddock fences

One morning was also spent tagging along the weekly tree-scratching route, which ensures that pine resin keeps flowing.

pine trees, resin tappers and tarantula

forefront meeting @ Sepultura

30 October to 2 November, 2016

And they came to visit!, (almost) the whole Forefront team spent some days up and down La Sepultura, hiking, chatting, digging soils, gorging on barbacoa, comparing leaves, acorn-whistling tunes and discussing all things considered.

This is indeed a magnificent team...
and a small sample of pictures from all the things that happened during these four days.

me and my supervisor -said Ale.

John shows us how it's done

Los Laureles

the crew

platicando pues

the fellowship of the resin

it's about nature after all