The piggery is almost complete: only one pen left to fill.
The other pens could use a topping off since they have settled a bit due to decomposition. The IMO's are proliferating to the point where we hardly have to add them to the pens any more. We do add a small handful of IMO4 to the pigs' feed each day, to keep them healthy and with the added benefit that it makes their poops break down super fast. Hence, no bad smell!
You can see by the above photos that we added about a foot of wood chips to top off the sows' pens a while back. We wanted to make sure the pen was well-inoculated before birthing begins, so we did a one-time sprinkling of IMO4 and sprayed the surface with Soil Prep Solution. We also added LAB (lactic acid bacteria) to make sure there would be a proliferation of beneficial bacteria before the piglets are born.
Other than that, the daily pen maintenance consists of simply raking smooth the soil, and once in a while, picking up any extra coconut husks that didn't get shredded. Mostly, we just get to hang out with the girls and give them pets and attention, which they absolutely love!
We have hosted many groups who want to learn more about Korean Natural Farming, and want to see it in action here in Hawaii. Some of the officials we visited in South Korea returned the favor and visited us last October.
Several classes from UH-Hilo have come through, as well as individuals and smaller groups from all over the world. Many of our vacation rental guests have chosen to stay with us specifically because of their interest in Natural Farming, and the opportunity to see it first hand.
And some young friends opted to help us with planting 4 Samoan ulu (breadfruit) trees to increase our capacity to produce our own food, both for our animals and for ourselves. Mahalo nui to all who have helped us come this far!
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