Avocado Trees

It’s raining daily in this region of Haiti. We’d like to start planting these trees so they don’t miss the rainy season.

The village is excited to receive them but this time around we will only give them to farmers who can guarantee that goats and cows aren’t in the area.

With our new motorcycle, we can visit farmers requesting trees, evaluate their preparedness for the trees ahead of time, and give to the most prepared/best land to ensure the tree's survival.

New Solar Panel System

Thanks to the generosity of a few new donors this month, we were able to install a solar panel system.

Post-earthquake we lost our ability to communicate effectively. But now, we can charge phones and laptops, and keep our team and the community in Lasikri connected with their friends and family.

New Watershed Project

The mountain above the La Sous spring will be fenced in with living posts called Bwa Panyol. They can be cut down from one location and easily replanted in another. The roots will grow quickly and make a strong post.

The landowner and leaders decided barbed wire was best to run between them.

This project is getting a lot of support from the community because they understand the affect deforestation and animal waste contamination has on their water supply.

A Pilot Forest: Keeping Animals Away

This mountainside is the watershed above the main water spring of LaSikri. As you can see, it is deforested and animals usually graze here. We've tried planting trees before but unfortunately, goats keep eating the seedlings.

The local community has tried to keep grazing animals away, but they don't have time to dedicate. But we've decided to invest in workers to grow a living fence around the four-acre watershed area.
This mountain will become a pilot forest to demonstrate what all the lands can look like if we keep animals away from tree seedlings.

In the bottom images, you can see our always ready and willing Agronomist, Remy. He went out with Jean Marie, the landowner of the watershed area, to measure and mark where they will put the fencing.

The whole community is very supportive of a natural boundary to protect their watershed and will pitch in to help find the posts that will become the living fence.

Agroforestry and Eating Locally go Hand in Hand

Agronomist Nerva, our pastor and long-time friend shared this video with us. It's about the importance of eating foods local to your community.

Labapen

We have 2,000 avocado seeds sprouting. In December, they'll be ready to deliver to local communities or for pick-up in our nursery.

We also take have a patch of labapen which is similar to breadfruit, except they have a nutritious nut. The nut is edible and is usually boiled in salty water and eaten as is. It can also be added to meat.

Mango Trees

These mangos were started in the middle of the summer and now with the rainy season they will have a good chance of survival. The October rainy season is short but followed by cooler months. Trees do quite well when planted this time of year.

Kenep Fruit Seeds

This is Kenep/Genips fruit (Milicocus bijigatus) a very popular and nutrtious food in Haiti this time of year. We're excited to start planting from the seeds pictured here.

Kenep trees can grow up to 85 feet tall, and sturdy enough that storms won't easily knock them over. Their leaves also grow fast, so even after a storm, if leaves fall off, they'll grow and return shade to the area.

For agroforestry, they are great for honey making from bees. Many locals produce and sell wine with kenep fruit as well.

Breadfruit Roots

The breadfruit roots are growing sprouts under all this mulch. Training from Trees that Feed has taught us to keep the roots constantly moist.

Growing Veritab

Our initial experience growing veritab has been quite successful! We've decided to continue growing more trees and will monitor their growth, like all our trees. Later, we'll use the breadfruit in flour production.