The Art of Learning by Doing

Land before Chinampas

Permaculture in Practice - The Art of Learning by Doing 6th - 30th January 2014

Jiwa Damai encourages a combination of theory and hands on practice in a supportive environment as an important approach to learning and growing. Our internships offer the possibility to design and actualize a project, either as a group or on an individual basis. Our interns receive expert support and guidance while being given the chance to take responsibility for their own learning outcomes.

At this time we are offering places for up to 6 interns to take part in a one-off group permaculture, aquaculture design project, facilitated by our in-house permaculture design trainer Stephanie Garvin.  The project will involve designing and implementing an aquaculture project, including building a chinampa system, a technique used in Latin America by the Incas to successfully grow food in wetland areas.  We have several swamp areas at Jiwa Damai which lend themselves ideally for such a project. To our knowledge it is the first of its kind to be implemented in Bali. It is an exciting pilot project.

This project includes free theory sessions on permaculture design for chinampa systems.

Following this internship the we offer a Permaculture through the Heart course www.jiwadamai.net/education-activities/

Our offering The Art of Learning by Doing is open for people interested in permaculture, sustainable food production and environmental conservation. No previous permaculture knowledge or experience is needed. We also invite Permaculture Design Certificate holders desiring to expand their practical knowledge and design skills. Participants need to be in good health and physical condition since the project will involve manual work in a tropical environment.

Skills that participants will have the opportunity to learn and practice during this internship include:- Permaculture design methodologies Assessing needs and yields Building a stable, productive ecological system Nutrient recycling Using local and on site resources Water management Aquaculture systems Creating energy efficient systems Planning for diversity and habitat creation Using edge effects to increase yield Teamwork and task management Plant propagation techniques Soil building and composting

For more details or information, or to apply for a place on this internship programme, please contact us at info@jiwadamai.net or using the contact form attached.

Optional Extras We can provide on-site, basic accommodation and meals at Jiwa Damai Retreat Centre and Organic Garden at a discounted rate.

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Aligning with the Heart of the Earth

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Permaculture on Bali - Flowers and plants

Join us for a virtual tour through Jiwa Damai's huge permacultue organic garden. Check out the beautiful tropical flowers and plants we have:

Balinese water lilly

Black water lilly from karangasen provence

Hibiscus flower

Orange flower

Our own Jiwa Damai pineapples

In the permaculture garden we also grow pineapples. In this tropical weather they grow really well.Once harvested, the green leaves are cut of and replanted.

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single pinapple

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Caterpillar and Praying Mantis in the permaculture garden

This is a fantastic shot of a green caterpillar, crawling away in the permaculture garden. Cool spikes !

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Look at this beautiful praying Mantis. And she is actually praying - look at her 'hands'.

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Fruit from the organic garden

Cacao fruit

Here at Jiwa Damai we grow various fruit in the extensive permaculture garden.

And this is how the ripe cacao fruit looks inside.

Inside of ripe cacao fruit

We also have several papaya trees.

Homegrown, organic papaya

Creating Indigenous Microorganisms (IMOs)

At Jiwa Damai we practice biological organic gardening. We clearly do not use any type of chemicals to fertilize our lands. We use effective microorganisms for fertilization. Here we show you the Balinese way how to produce indiginous microorganisms. This is a fantastic technique !

Using cane sugar and cooked rice closed in a hollow bambu stick which is burried in the compost produces a flavourful yeast type fungus which is then mixed with the earth.

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Our Balinese Hand-Crafted Virgin Coconut Oil - How To: Step 1

To produce virgin Balinese coconut oil, the coconuts must first be totally ripe.

Tip: The young green coconut is full of delicious water. The dark brown one has ripened and is full of rich white coconut meat. From this meat the oil will be produced.

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The outer shell is opened and its small, tan colored fibers become visible. This shell can be used for many different purposes. For example, you could get crafty and make your own floor mat or use the shells simply as firewood.

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Once the outer shell has been opened, you'll find a smaller shell where the coconut meat is located.

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The inner harder shell needs to be split open with a large, heavy knife to reach the rich meat. This shell is very hard, so a sturdy knife is necessary.

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The meat can be used for coconut flakes, added to smoothies, dehydrated coconut chips, or oil production for a wonderful boost in essential vitamins and nutrients.

Be sure to read step 2 here and step 3 here!

Have you ever felt inspired to produce your own coconut oil? Have you tried this method? If so, how did it work out? If not, what other methods have you used?

Comment below and let us know!

Permaculture on Bali - Our plant nursery

My name is Ketut and I am the head gardener here at Jiwa Damai. I am responsible for the huge organic permaculture garden with all the variety of tropical flowers, plants and trees.

Today I want to show you my nursery, where we grow the small plants out of seeds.  Once the plants are well nurtured and big enough, we put them out in the open field.

The nursery

The nursery has a roof, to shelter the small plants from the heavy rains. Without a roof they would regularly be destroyed by the down-pouring rains.

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We organize guided tours through the extensive organic permaculture garden - stop by and have a look for yourself.

See you soon at Jiwa Damai !

Ketut

Potato Tower at Jiwa Damai

The potato tower is our latest invention in the permaculture garden.Since it proved impossible to grow potatoes in the wet soil here at Jiwa Damai, we had to think a bout a different way how to grow potatoes. We decided to create a tower that is filled with stones, sand and earth, so the water is able to flow through it and thus the potatoes are kept dry.

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Our gardeners , together with a volunteer took on the task to dig the whole in the ground, which was needed to place the potato tower. The tower itsself is made out of woven bamboo sticks.

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Now our experiment of growing potatoes is ready to start!

We will keep you updated on the progress :-)