Day 3: hello, dirty fingernails...

So when my alarm went off this morning at 5:30, I was ready to go – what up morning celebration?! Let's stretch! It was a cloudy day, so not too hot. Great gardening weather, which was exactly what today was all about :)

I spent my morning working in the garden, fighting an invasive vine that was getting a little too close to other gardens and hoarding the water from the other plants and trees. Nasty little fellow, this vine – roots itself deep in the ground, creating quite a challenge to get ride of. Lucky for us, it was all over the mint and basil. Mojitos and pizza anyone?

Invasive plants can wreck havoc on your garden, especially if you don't catch them in time. Invasive plants compete with other species for water, nutrients, sunlight, and space. As a result, invasive species can:

• Displace native species
• Reduce plant diversity
• Alter ecosystem processes
• Hybridize with native plants, changing their genetic makeup
• Destroy the habitats that support native animals, insects, and micro-organisms
• Create ecosystems that support aggressive, non-native plants, animals, and pathogens
  

(www.mortonarb.com)
Not only was this monster in the basil and mint, we also discovered it by chard, amaranth, and fig trees. FIG TREES?! I almost cried when I was told they're not ready till about June or July. How delicious would a fresh picked fig be? Gah.

Also, whose ever seen amaranth growing? It's absolutely gorgeous, resembling a purple version of a blue bonnet.

Purple loveliness!

 So after we battled the bad guy, we moved onto cleaning up a spiral garden that once was the home to tomatoes. This garden was different than your stereotypical spiral garden – instead winding its way from the base into the center upwards, the entire garden was on the ground, in a spiral shape. It was also constructed on raised beds, which, according to good 'ole wikipedia, produce a variety of benefits: they extend the planting season, they reduce the need to use poor native soil, and they can reduce weeds if designed properly. Also, walking on the raised beds should be avoided, because it allows the soil to breathe and the roots have an easier time growing. We re-packed the soil (which was actually manure...smelled great), creating an indention through the middle in order for the drip irrigation to adequately reach everything. We then covered it with dying plants/vegetables, which keeps the soil moist and healthy. The next step is planting the tomato seeds! According to Yotam, our garden guru, the best way to plant tomatoes are to squeeze the seeds right into the beds. When it's not tomato season though, you squeeze the seeds into a jar or cup and let them sit for just a few days, then rinse them out with water and dry them overnight. Viola! Ready to go tomato seeds!
The weeding and re-spiraling took all morning, and we were all pretty exhausted once lunch time rolled around. The meals here are pretty standard for Israel, zatar and hummus being the staples. The kibbutz also does “meatless mondays” and actually only serve meat for lunch, which is not only ecologically friendly, it's also economically friendly.
So I'm pretty exhausted and am loving the fact that it's not even 10 o'clock and I'm heading to bed soon. Sleep here is definitely well earned, and such a great reward at the end of the day :)