ShangriLao
....The " Eastern" version of our Canadian " Wildernear",..ShangriLao will embody the same values of Ecosophy, Nature, Appreciation and Independence ...and is our retirement Plan / Infrastructure...
with an entirely different climate & building environment. The country of Lao has a refreshing energy of appreciation and optimism, reminiscent of the " Americas'"
of the late 40's....I am so grateful to be able to participate in the evolution of this fabulous time capsule...truly a paradise for a "Progress Refugee".
...not surprisingly,.Toum's farm was already essentially ShangriLao....evolution towards more gardens, and less fields,.plus construction of more facilities for visitors is our
main focus in the next several years....
...to a Canadian Lad, the climate of Lao is astonishing,..not tropical, but possessing a 365 day per year growing season,..and with Toum's two amazing green thumbs,
the proliference is truly stunning..
...coffee tree!...
...lol,.yes, these are coffee beans.....always nice to have growing in your backyard !
...when you live in a land with 8 months of winter, Lao does seem to border on " Tropical Paradise"
...our amazing Toum has chosen to leverage her extensive knowledge, talents, and experience to form a service & consulting company in her home area,..as her talents extend
into Eco-Architecture andLinguistics, her company will be handling the construction process of ShangriLao in my absence ...
In addition to the enormous tasks of Earthwork and Plantwork ,.Toum already has her eye on our second TinyHouse!
...all of our content is now being loaded " Blog Style ", so newest entries will be " on top"..
OCTOBER 2021
...This week,.Oct 31-Nov 6..the harvesting, planting, growing, and living in paradise continues!...
...another, standard sunrise at ShangriLao....
...an average garden path...
...a new crop of Okra...
...at ShangriLao,.many vegetables are as delicious for the eyes as the taste buds!...
...and we like to grow our beans at least 6 feet ( 2 metres ) long!...
...more " double delicious " vegetables...
...at ShangriLao, a lot of things like to grow from trees...
...even some rather large things!...
...the Grapes are looking healthy...
...time to harvest some sweet potatoes...
...they look much more impressive when they are washed...
...the President's Helper is a professional when it comes to digging in the mud!...
...a scrumptious basket of supper...
...sweet potatoes steaming in a woven bowl...
...mid-morning ShangriLao field...
...Floral Sculpture...
...early morning ShangriLao...
...time to check in on the flower department!...
... WOW,.I love Dr. Toum's backyard!,.so glad it will be my backyard one day...
...this little fellow is named "Thongurai"...
...the amazing Soil Orchid...
...leaves of the Soil Orchid...
...the Champa Lao is starting to bloom...
...Champa Lao - close up...
...always have to check in on the Lotus pond...
...up & coming Shangri-Lao field,.hard to believe it was terraformed less than two years ago!...
...This week,.Oct 17-23,.some rice is ready to thresh,.and some Okra has arrived!...
...This is " Old Boab ",.he is like Zucchini ,.but he grows in a tree!...
...this is young Okra...
...this is younger Okra!...
...this is a wild vegetable...
...this is another wild vegetable...
...and this is yet another wild vegetable,.the variety of plants at ShangriLao is truly astonishing...
...this is some wild rice that has been " tamed "by our amazing GardenAngel...ready for threshing...
...just a normal sub-tropical sunrise over the ShangriLao chicken house!...
...This week,.Oct 10-16,..sees business as usual at ShangriLao,..the Eggplants and the Passionfruits are getting fatter, the Papaya trees are flowering...
and beyond the constant harvesting and planting...Toum is still enlarging the Lotus ponds,and trimming the vines on ShangriLao's long fences!...
...the Eggplants are getting fat!...
...Eggplant flowers are a good sign of delicious things to come!...
...Grape vines are healthy & happy...
. ..flowers on the Papaya trees foster yummy anticipation!...
...glorious, healthy, Passionfruit...( no chemicals are used at ShangriLao )...
...a now burgeoning Lotus pond...
...trimming the vines along ShangriLao's fences...
...This week,.Oct3-9,.garden harvest in Manitoba is down to the "tough guys", like potatoes&carrots...although unseasonably warm weather sees some holdouts...
(Jim's tomatoes are still growing),.but will be picked this week to prevent freezing,..meanwhile, the endless planting & harvesting continues at ShangriLao...
...this is a young Okra tree...
...this is another!...
...delicious baby sugarcane...
...sugarcane flowers...
...flowers on a Sesame tree...
...fruits on a Sesame tree!...
...this is Passionfruit...
...this is ripened rice...
...this is more ripened rice...
...Toum's amazing rice grows over 7 ft ( 3metres ) tall!...
...delicious tomatoes...
...another gorgeous sunrise at ShangriLao, the trees are growing heartily...
...Toum is enlarging her Lotus ponds ...
...some Lotus are starting to bloom...
...Lotus go from stunning...
...to extra-stunning!...
. ..this is aPassionFruit power...
...being born!...
...a Floral offerring!...
...this is a tree vegetable,..similar to Zukini...
...this is a foot-long bean!...
SEPTEMBER 2021
...this week,.Sept 12 -18,.Toum is sharing more of the seemingly endless bounty of ShangriLao,..including some vegetables nearly too pretty to eat!...
...these gorgeous little guys are Pomegranates being born!...
...these are the sweet little flowers of the round purple Eggplant...
...this is a baby round Purple Eggplant...
...this is the flower of the Sesame tree...
...these ,.believe it or not...are vegetables!...
...MORE tantalizing veggies...
...even the corn at ShangriLao is sweet & adorable!...
...some Okra,.ready for planting...
AUGUST 2021
...this week Toum is harvesting some of the amazing sweet potatoes called "Tapioca"...
...the amazing potato is actually a small shrub, of which one can eat the leaves as a vegetable,...
...the potato itself is quite sweet, and generally prepared as a desert!...
...Toum is also adding 4 more fruit trees this week,...
...these 4 will join the hundreds ( thousands? ) already enjoying their lives of endless summer...
...this week Toum is picking and enjoying some tasty sugarcane from her incredible Garden-Farm...
...at least 2 varieties ( black & white ) are available on ShangriLao,..SO much better than store-bought sugar!...
...she is also preparing to feast on the latest crop of giant foot-long beans..
...and the adorable sweet corn with pretty pink hair!...
...in Manitoba, summer is yielding to autumn ,..but in ShangriLao, it's been just another week of gorgeous, endless summer!...
...a young Red Guava tree enjoying the never-ending summer...
...inhabitants of a Lotus pond preparing to bloom again...
...in Manitoba,.the once-yearly harvest panic is beginning early due to dry weather,...while in ShangriLao, the normal, endless production continues!...
...tree ripened bananas taste entirely different than " store bought "...
...giant cucumber...
...a few of the ShangriLao cucumbers look similar to western varieties...
...two kinds of eggplant...
...a "vegetable vine "...
...vine veggies...
...giant cucumber...
...giant cucumber...
...giant cucumbers that are sweet and eaten ripe...
...eggplant!...
...cucumbers...
...cucumbers...
...cucumbers...
...pumpkin...
..cucumbers...
...cucumbers!...
... the green ones are eaten green,..the brown & white ones are eaten ripe...
...the bees at ShangriLao look different than Manitoba bees,.and they make different hives...
...some baby pineapple trees...
...the vines growing on this tree are actually a vegetable ...
...and this is the vegetable!...
...more tomatoes...
...Pomegranites are coming...
...so many delicious Monberries!...
JULY 2021
...infrastructure development has slowed at ShangriLao, due to world events, but the growing continues undaunted...
...the wild watermelon are ripening...
...delicious Monberries...
... ever imagined having pineapples growing in your " garden"?...
...well, our GardenAngel now has the incredible number of 180 pineapple trees growing on ShangriLao!...
... plus 9 giant coconut trees...
..and 5 short coconut trees ...
...if the above isn't exotic enough for you ,.how about a few dozen Cashew trees?...
...or how about some bananas?,.several kinds to choose from at ShangriLao!...
...some Bamboo trees...
...some Date Palms..
Thai Tapioca ...potato trees!..
...both potatoes and tapioca are quite different in Lao than Canada,..this is the underground " fruit "of the tree...
...and this is the end product..more like dessert than main course...
...one of many Mango trees...
...incredibly,.a vegetable that looks, smells, and tastes like a flower!...
...more juicy Monberries...
...while seeming somewhat out of place,..ShangriLao even grows Cactus!...
...rice is getting fatter...
...so many Herbs...
...beautiful Lotus flowers...
...ordinary backyard!...
...the fence keeps growing...
...and the rice...
...the neighbouring trees keep growing !...
...the chicken house has stopped growing....
...but the chickens continue!...
...the fish ponds only grow in the rainy season...
...but the fish certainly keep growing!...
...the trees,vegetables, fruits,and flowers continue to thrive as well...
...beautiful flower on giant beans...
...delicious tomatoes on their way...
..purple eggplant coming...
JUNE 2021
...summer never ends at Shangri-Lao, and the gardens continue to expand!..
FEBRUARY 2021
...while the seemingly endless winter in Manitoba has turned frigid, with temperatures dipping to more than -40,..construction moves along @ ShangriLao...
..the sizeable project of a new, sturdier perimeter fence is underway..
...also notice the amazing practice of transplanting entire trees, without branches or a large amount of soil...
...two more banana trees!...
..." anything grows ", at astonishing Shangri-Lao...
...surrouding & enveloping a Tiny House,..hundreds upon hundreds of flowers, plants , and trees flourish while waiting to take their places in the giant garden...
JANUARY 2021
...although winter has been mild here in central Canada, we are still 3& 1/2 months from the first green grass, while at ShangriLao, endless summer continues...
...a tireless GardenAngel covers more and more of the project with beautiful natural life...
...water gardens are an integral part of the plan...
...the list of trees is amazing,...EVERYTHING grows here!
...hundreds ( thousands?) of plants waiting patiently for their new homes...
...many thousand Lotus plants will soon fill the water gardens...
...in addition to the unique plan for ShangriLao, climate and culture produce an entirely different building approach than here in the " west "...
...a kitchen and pantry/storehouse has been constructed centrally in the project, and will be used co-ooperatively by residents and guests...
...the unbelievable Lao weather ( +15 to +30 ), allows an entirely different building approach,...insulation is unheard of!...
...and without the ravages of frost & condensation, structures will remain pristine for a very long period...
...Toum's well connected Service & Consulting Co, ( Hearticultures.com ), has access to very talented and knowledgeable tradesmen...
...despite the acres waiting to be covered with color, Toum;s amazing thumbs stay very green...
... the long list of trees includes the tasty & beautiful Dragonfruit, of which Toum has 2, ( or3?) varieties!...
...inside the veranda of a TinyHouse,..building with these sweet materials here would see them destroyed in a single season...
DECEMBER 2020
Sunrise at ShangriLao
thousands of little fish are brought to their new home...
the base of the water tower is taking shape...
the washhouse & laundry is nearing completion ...
one of many truckloads of pants departs for ShangriLao...
some large trees are transplanted,...
and spring to life in the endless summer of Magic ShangriLao...
NOVEMBER 2020
...fish ponds,.Lotus pond,.plus utilitarian TinyHouses...ShangriLao is taking shape...
...every size of banana is alive and well at Shangri-Lao...
...and the amazing variety of flowers Expands...
OCTOBER 2020
...with the rainy season ending, work begins again in earnest...
...considerable terraforming work has been done..
...electric service has been brought to the property...
...the well has been dug...
...fish pond has been dug also, Toum is tenacious, with remarkable connections...
...the first utilitarian "tiny houses " are being built...
...and , of course, the hundreds ( thousands?) of plants are being planted/transplanted by Toum herself..
MARCH 2020
...Wildernear is frozen solid,.. but Shangrilao is teeming with life!
...some rain is beginning to fall in ShangriLao,. so Toum does not have to water the gardens as much....some of the rice has been harvested..
...young mango,...will change to yellow/red/orange as it ripens
...long thin beans!...
March 2020
...Work begins in earnest on the more industrial aspects of building ShangriLao
...TrackHoe resting under the " Big Tree "on ShangriLao
...new Fish Pond,.also excavated was the new canal, and the Lotus Flower Pond
...While Toum's expertise in engineering and architecture is priceless on this project, her gardening magic is also crucial for the endless transplanting
...I believe this Lady can make anything grow !
Toum has selected our first TinyHouse guest house
