Guardian Updates
Around March 10, 2017, we began working on converting all the waste the monastery produces into building and growing materials via vermicomposting. In 2020, it was dubbed a failure, as the red wrigglers required a lot of space and a lot of waste to maintain. In 2019, we switched to Ivory Head Roaches, and in 2020, we added mealworms. This fall of 2022 we added dermestids as well. The dermestids appeared to be dying off after a few months so integrated them with the roach colony. This year we incorporated Mule Ducks (Muscovy x Duck) and chickens into the mix with the goal of producing eggs and using duck fertilizer for growing plants. It turns out poultry is very good at breaking down cardboard. More experimentation is needed.
Current Cage build:
- Hardware Cloth and accessories,
- Mutt Duckling (Muscovy mixes)
Harvesting duck and chicken poop requires some planning. Harvesting clean eggs has been a challenge and finding the best bedding material in a rainy environment has added to the issue. The chickens and ducks free range the garden. In the future we will stick with chickens as opposed to ducks. The ducks are both noisy and messy, but have been a pleasure. Males are up for adoption in pairs and trios. We have ruled out outsourcing to a local butcher known for humane kills, as the sterile ducks have become part of our family. In the future, to make the males worth the cost of feeding them, we would have to accept them as pets (or) harvest their poop and find a use for it. They are very good bug patrol but then so are my egg layers. None of the males are fertile.
Guardian Philosophy
Guardians have a philosophy called “Kashal” which is a precept Guardians follow but not layman. We can’t eat food whose ingredients we don’t recognize, there can’t be more than 5 whole ingredients in a single product, and any animal we eat has to be an animal we have raised ourselves in compassionate conditions or know beyond doubt have been raised in compassionate conditions. They have to be killed swiftly, without fear or pain, either by hand or by the hands of someone we have witnessed do it. It must be done in a way that does not traumatize the animal or their companions.
We can separate animals into male and female groups, but we cannot separate them from companions in a way which would not have occurred in the wild. Bonded pairs must remain together always except through natural means (such as death). No part of the animal can be wasted, if it rots it has to be used for compost or to feed another animals capable of eating rotten food. We cannot eat bioengineered food that we can’t produce ourselves. And we have to give thanks to the animal for nourishing our bodies. Killing our own food has been harder than expected.
Wagon Inspirations
The Gustafon family who travel by donkey and wagon and also keeps pigeons and chickens. The family utilizes multiple wagons.
In addition Aaron Fletcher who travels with his sheep and guerilla grazes, has also been an inspiration.
An unknown yurt design - appears lightweight
More possible designs
Some ideas would be a combination of: Bell tent, yurts with reciprocal roofing, and tipis would be used for portable housing, but for stationary housing round houses made of mycelium bricks, straw, mud, tires, and/or earthbags would be used with reciprocal roofing.