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22 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin Healthy Options

Healthy Options : Ubi keledek (Sweet Potatoes)

I enjoy having ubi keledek goreng (sweet potato fritters) for tea with a nice cup of fragrant tea.  Sometimes, it is quite difficult to find this at the stalls and sometimes the taste is not so nice as the sweet potato has been harvested for quite some time.  So, what do I do?  I plant them so I can have my own supply that I know is nutritious and pesticide/chemical free.  After all, one of my aims is to have the best quality of food.

At the farm, it is planted in beds of about 9 inches high, fertilized with compost and watered only when it has not rained for many days.  At it often rains, this means that I rarely need to water it.  With plenty of sun and good moisture and organic content in the soil along with good drainage, it takes about 3 months for a suitable size of ubi for consumption.  his plant is propagated either from the tuber or stem cuttings.  It takes 2-3 days for the roots to form from the stem cuttings. However, the downside is, because of its good conditions for growth, it is a battle with grass and weeds so weeding needs to be done fortnightly to ensure all the goodness goes to the sweet potato plant.
The leaves can be prepared as a vegetable dish as a stir fry with scrambled eggs or with sambal belacan and anchovies.  Its texture is similar to kangkong but not “chewy”.  Personally, I prefer it cooked with sambal belacan and achovies (ikan  bilis) – tasty.
The sweet potatoes can be prepared in many ways and can be a substitute for carbohydrates in your main meals – try it roasted with a touch of salt and olive oil, a healthy alternative.
The sweet potatoes are best consumed right after harvest.  It can be stored but the taste begins to degrade.  Being lucky enough to have it on the plant, I harvest on the same day that I plan to cook it.  For sale at the market, it is harvested the day before in order to have it as fresh as possible.  
In Malaysia, sometimes the sweet potatoes are added to bubur cha-cha, made as a pengat, added to flour and made into kuih cek mek molek, kuih keria, cucur badak and many other tea-time dishes.
From a nutrition standpoint, the sweet potatoes are high in complex carbohydrate, fibre, beta carotene, vitamin C and B6.  According to some studies, the sweet potatoes ranks higher than potatoes from a nutritional standpoint.
The conclusion, this is a great food source both from a nutrition aspect as well as preparation versatility. 
19 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin Farm Recipes

Farm Recipes – Sugar-Glazed Striped Gourd

I love striped gourd with its creamy texture and subtle taste.  Most of the time, I tend to prepare it as a savoury dish.    I have roasted sliced gourd coated with a bit of salt and olive oil, diced them and used them in a vegetable soup, added it to dalca and just had them boiled in salted water.
The current plants have produced a substantial number of gourds so I started thinking of how it can be prepared.  Thus, recently I decided to try preparing it as a sweet tea-time dish, calling my dish Sugar-Glazed Striped Gourd.  To my delight, I loved it and so did my testers.
It is very easy to prepare and takes under 30 minutes to prepare.  The sugar glaze is prepared with a bit of blended margarine hence it adds that creamy taste to the glaze and less sugar is used and does not dry out.  I love adding cinnamon to it as it not only adds to the taste but also gives a nice aroma to the dish.

Ingredients:
  • 1 striped gourd
  • 2 tablespoons of margarine or butter-blended margarine
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar – preferable raw or brown sugar
  • Salt (not required if using salted margarine)
  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon powder (optional)
  • 3 tablespoons of water
Method:
Peel, slice and remove the seed of the gourd.  Using a flat pan, melt 1 tablespoon of margarine and cooked the slices of gourd until tender and brown.  Remove from heat.  Using the same pan, melt the remaining margarine, add sugar, cinnamon and water.  When the sugar has melted, dip the slices of gourd and plate it.  Pour the remaining glaze over the slices and gourd and serve.
19 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin SHL Journal

SHL Journal – Countdown to Durian Fest Part 2

The Durian Fest will be a “house-warming” of sorts – the second anniversary since I started the development of the farm and marking the completion of the house – a time to celebrate with my family and friends.

Entrance to the solat area in my bedroom

Two weeks seems to have flown.  The construction job is still underway and substantial progress have been made, albeit sometimes it seems to take a bit longer as I add some “beautifying” elements to it.  I am looking forward to the completion of my bedroom as then I can move out of the solat room to a proper bedroom.  It will be divided into 4 areas – ruang solat, sleeping area, bathroom and closet/dressing room.  There will also be a door leading to a patio area when I can just imagine myself enjoying a cup of coffee in the morning at sunrise.  
The walls are up and the base for the roof is being constructed before the roof tiles can be laid along with the “sun roof” so that during the daytime, there will not be any need to turn on the lights.  After all we are living in the tropics where natural light is available almost 12 hours of the day – save energy.  Two other rooms will also be added – one for Aziz and Seri, my great assistants who live on the farm all the time and the other, a guest room along with another bathroom.

From the main front gate
In front of the house

The road leading from the front gate to the front door has also been completed.  So for those who came last year and were worried if their car can be driven on the property, you will not have to worry anymore.  The portion in front of the house has also been widened to about 20ft so that should provide for some parking spaces.  All in all, a major improvement for vehicle access.  Now all that is left to do for this part is the beautification process and to build additional porch so my dear van can be protected from rain and sun.  In the plan, is to do the road on the outside leading to the “smaller” gate but I do not know if there will be sufficient time to get this done as there are many more things to be done before the event.

Rezeki Timur area

The front “garden” also known as Rezeki Timur, has also undergone its major cleanup – now I need to maintain and fertilize to keep it nice with healthy plants.  The main plants there are the herbs, bananas, cassava and limau.  I hope they will grow steadily and I will have a lovely garden for all the guests to wander in.  As requested by many who have visited the farm, I am working on creating the “tags” for the plants so that you will know what it is.  I hope from this, people will have a first-hand view of how these plants can be incorporated into their own gardens.  At the same time, they can also know what precaution to take with some of the plants like jeruju and bintang tujuh which have thorns.
The Durian trees in the area are in full bloom, although none in mine as they are still young, so insyAllah, there will be plenty of durians without alphabets for all of friends and family to enjoy.  It is only 3 months away and there is still a lot to do.

12 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin Eating Well, Edible Landscape, Healthy Options

Edible Landscape – Papaya Tree

I find that the papaya is a refreshing fruit to have for breakfast and is full of vitamins with a high vitamin C content and fibre – a great way to start the day.  The papaya fruit that are tree-ripened also contain the highest amount of the papain enzyme which is beneficial.  The tree also makes an interesting addition to the garden, with its “fancy leaves” and based on the type, will fruit or will just have flowers.  In Malaysia, the papaya trees that do not fruit but just flowers are known as Male Papaya trees and the ones the fruit are know as just Papaya trees.  Its botanical name is Carica Papaya.

It is propagated from the seeds from the mature, ripe papaya and grows well in sunny locations with regular watering – naturally or manually.  I still haven’t figured out which type of papaya tree I will get from the seed and hopefully some day, I will know what type of tree the seed will produce – fruit-bearing papaya trees or male papaya trees.  On the farm, it has grown up to 10m tall, which made picking the fruit a challenge.  Luckily, I have someone who is adapt at climbing it.

Fruit bearing flower

There are many varieties of papaya and depending on the variety, the height of the tree is different.  Some varieties start bearing fruit even at 1.5m tall, making it much easier to harvest.  The skin of the fruit turns from green to yellow to orange as it ripens.  The fleshy part of the fruit ranges in color from yellow to vermillion to red and the taste vary from one species to another.  It is a plant that requires minimal care fertilisers, it is an easy plant to grow.  At the farm, the life span of the plant is about five years.  Even if they live more than that, by the time it is 5 years old, they are too tall for me to harvest and the quality of the fruits have diminished so I will remove it and plant a new one,  As I stagger my planting them

Ready-to-eat Papaya flowers
do not turn into fruits

The papaya flowers that are eaten, either raw as ulam or cooked, appear in multiple flower buds whereas the fruit bearing flower grows as a single flower.   The flowers that are eaten have a slightly bitter taste but there are ways to counteract this.  If you plan on eating it raw, combine them with terung pipit or Turkey Berry.  I tend to eat the young papaya leaves with terung pipit wrapped inside.  The resulting taste is less bitter and I am left with a papaya after-taste – definitely more pleasant than a bitter after-taste.  If you plan on cooking them, first boil them in water with senduduk hutan (Melastoma Alba) leaves and this will remove the bitterness from the papaya shoots and flowers.  The resulting taste is slightly creamy papaya-like.

The papaya shoots and flowers are traditionally used for high blood pressure and hypertension therapy and to encourage red cell production hence it is often given to someone who is recovering or fighting dengue fever.  It is becoming more common in Malaysia as a supplementary treatment for dengue fever as it will help the production red blood cells faster, counter-acting the effect of dengue fever that causes a decrease in the red blood cells.

Because of the leaves bitter taste, for people who like to juice, it is juiced with fruits like green apple and also vegetables like celery and cucumber to make it more palatable as well as adding nutritional value.  Personally, I take it at least once a week to help prevent hypertension and high blood pressure as well as a blood cleanser and is in my regular diet regime since I love eating “rich” foods.  The flowers can also be turned into a salad or “kerabu”, either in its raw form or blanched.  The leave stem can also be eaten raw by first removing the outer skin.  It has a crunchy texture and is creamy in taste and can be added to salads or eaten on its own.

The young green papaya fruit makes a delightful addition cooked in spicy dishes such as curry.  It is is used to make papaya soup with a clear broth.  A semi-ripe papaya can be turned into a sweet and sour pickle and sometimes, chillies are added to spice it up.

The ripe papaya is often eaten raw as a dessert in Malaysia.  It can also be blended into a lovely smoothie or milk-shake.  Papaya is often eaten as part of breakfast as it can help to expedite the bowel movement.  A tasty papaya conserve can also be prepared from ripened fruits.  The papaya peel can also be used as a facial treatment by placing them on cleansed face and leaving it for 10-15 minutes and then rinsing the face.  I also use the wastes from the papaya for my beneficial microorganism fertiliser.

With all the ways to eat the fruit , leaves and flowers and the benefits, this plant is a great addition to an edible landscape.

Updated: 5 October, 2015

07 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin Edible Landscape

Edible Landscape – Kacang Kelisa

This perennial climber is also known as Goa Bean (Malay Name : Kacang Kelisa, Kacang Botol
Botanical Name : Psophocarpus Tetragonolobus).  It is am amazing plant as the whole plant is edible – the leave are cooked an eaten as a vegetable similar to spinach, the flower can be used to cook with the leaves, the bean can be eaten either raw as ulam or cooked, the root can be cooked similar to potatoes, and the mature bean seeds can be ground to flour or roasted and used to make a coffee-like drink.  One could prepare a complete meal, including a drink, from this plant – simply amazing – an all-in-one plant.

As it is a climber, at the farm, it is grown on a trellis, providing a nice, shady arbor when one can enjoy the day,  With its beautiful purple and white flowers, it can be a beautiful addition to a garden landscape and it requires minimal maintenance.  It has the ability to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere so requires minimal fertilizers.  You can also get away without giving it any fertilizer.
This plant is propagated from its mature seeds which are almost black in color.  It takes about 3-4 days to sprout and does very well in our sunny Malaysian climate with its abundance of rain and sun.  To maintain its beauty, just remove the old leaves regularly as this will also encourage it to produce new shoots and flowers which turns into the bean.
It is very nutritious – the leaves contain a high amount of vitamin A, C and Iron whilst the bean has all those wonderful Bs – riboflavin, B6, Thiamin, etc.  As it is versatile, there are many ways to consume it.
06 Apr 2011
0 Comments By admin SHL Journal

SHL Journal – Countdown to SHL Durian Fest

The first Durian Fest was held last year on July 31, 2010 with the main idea of having my family and friends over at the farm.  Last year’s fest was a success with over 100 guests who consumed over 300 durians, 60kg of mangosteens (manggis) and 20 kg of duku langsat and of course the home-made lemang made from 20kg of glutinous rice (beras pulut).  It started at 3pm and the last guest left at 10pm.  I had a great time and from the feedback, my guest enjoyed themselves too.  I decided then, Allah willing, it will be an annual event.  So, here I am, about 3.5 months away from this year’s event, with still a ton of stuff to get done for the farm to be ready for the guests.

In the last 9 months, the farm has undergone further transformation, focussing on agriculture and aquaculture.  At the same time, construction has also been underway to build a house, albeit leggo-style.  The last phase is underway now, with the addition of 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.  This will complete my “farmhouse”.  It will take another month for it to be completed, insyAllah.
On the aquaculture front, the fish pond is being beautified.  At four locations, steps to the waterline has been constructed to allow easier access as well as creating places where one can sit by the water and enjoy the peace and tranquility, watching the fish or fishing.  A word of caution, it is quite difficult to land a fish although there are a few thousand in there.  The vegetation surrounding the pond is also being “processed” and getting rid of those plants and vegetation that I consider as weeds or pests.  This job is not that simple as I thought as when I begin to identify them, many have some value to them, either as a food or traditional medicine source.  Thus, what I thought would be an almost simple weeding turned out to be a painstaking effort as well as time consuming.  I hope to get it into a decent enough state so that all my guests can enjoy the beauty of it.

The fishes have also had a “good” time, as since the last event (my Aidil Fitri open house), they have been left to live in peace.  A few thousand new babies – some becoming food source in the natural eco-cycle and some growing.  There are a few species in the fish pond, some I introduced and some naturally introduced with the flow from the water source.  Among them are Kelah Merah, Tengas (Kelah Daun), Bujuk, Ikan Putih, Lampam Jawa and Kerai, Keli, Haruan, Telapia Merah and Bunga, Jelawat, Puyu, Tongsan, to name a few.  I also feel blessed that fresh water shrimps have also found their way to the pond and thus serve as a natural food source for the fish.  The plan is to let them live in peace for another year before making it available for market.
With a land size of 2.5 acres, and Sg. Lui, splitting the land, a natural division of the farm was created.  On the land across the river, the focus is on vegetable farming with baby cucumbers, spinach, chilies, squash pumpkin, pucuk manis, long beans, green beans, varieties of brinjals, kemangi (lemon basil) and tumeric (kunyit) to name a few.  There is a sprinkling of papaya trees – some bearing fruits and some for the flowers and new shoots, as well as banana trees and cassava (ubi kayu).  The cassava planted here is strictly for the shoots which are a favorite at the market.  Corn is also planted on rotation here.  In preparation for the event, the fence will need to repaired due to damage from wild boars and also from “wild” man.  I hope my guests will enjoy a walk in this area.
On the front portion, of course work on the house is still to be completed as well as the work to be done on the herb garden, the home vegetable garden, as well as all the clearing and fertilizing of all the various plants and trees which include hundreds of banana plants, various fruit trees, cassava, ubi keledek, corn, and many others, all in all on almost 2 acres.
There is also the tea production to be done – teh misai kucing, teh serai and teh kemangi – which will be served to my guests.  Considering what we will be eating, these three teas are probably the best to have to balance the meal.  In previous events, big kettles of tea were brewed and it was consumed with relish.
On top of that, I have had requests for purchase of some of the plants so it is time to propagate them into polybags.  The plants available will be of the herbal variety.
So, I guess, we will be busy at the farm until the event.

30 Mar 2011
0 Comments By admin Farm Recipes

Farm Recipes – Rastali Banana bread (Kek Pisang Rastali)

Pisang Rastali

Once the Rastali Banana is ripe, it gets soft after a few days.  So, since I had some ripe Rastali banana, I decided to experiment making banana bread that was easy to make and didn’t take a long time nor use complex ingredients.  After all, I do not think cooking should be complicated, use as little time as possible (we all have busy schedules), easy to find ingredients and as nutritious as possible without having to think of it as a “Health Food”.
With the abundance of bananas at the farm, I decided that I needed to come up with alternative ways of eating them other than raw or as banana fritters (pisang goreng).  Moreover, I wanted to test how this particular banana tastes when it is transformed to a bread – flavor, sweetness and moistness.
The beauty of Rastali is it has a natural sweetness to it so you can use less sugar.  Since the fruit was produced as naturally as possible, I decided to use ingredients that will add to the nutritional value and are as less processed as possible.
The bread turned out well, springy and soft and slightly moist giving it a light taste with a lovely banana flavour.  It takes about 30 minutes of preparation time, without using any electrical gadgets so you do not need to go out and buy a mixer or own a food processor.  The utensils that I needed were 1 mixing bowl, 1 large bowl (to mash the bananas), 1 whisk, 1 fork or masher (like those you use to make mash potatoes) and 1 spatula.

Ingredients:
8 cups of mashed Rastali banana
6 cups of self-raising flour
2 cups of corn oil or olive oil
2 cups of brown sugar or raw sugar (trying to get the most out of sugar)
8 eggs
2 cups of milk – I prefer to use low fat milk
2 teaspoons of vanilla essence
2 teaspoons of cinnamon – preferably fresh grated.  I used Sabah cinnamon sticks.
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Method:
Using a whisk, mix the eggs, corn oil and sugar until it has blended well and slightly foamy on the top.  Add it to the mashed bananas.  Stir in the vanilla essence. cinnamon and salt.  Add milk to the mixture.  Fold in the flour and pour into 2 cake pans or 1 large pan.  Bake at 175F for 35-40 minutes or until the cake is done (I use a toothpick and stick it in bread.  If it comes out cleanly, it is done).

Next experiment, is Pengat Pisang Udang or the closest I can describe it in English, is a soupy banana pudding(?).

29 Mar 2011
0 Comments By admin SHL Journal

SHL Journal – The Corn and The Tapioca, The Beginning

Once upon a time, there was a land section of 30ft by 20ft, that was covered by healthy weeds.  Seeing as it was such a rich and fertile soil, it seemed a waste to have weeds enjoying its life.  Thus began the back-breaking job of removing the weeds manually, without weed-killers, and turning over the soil as well as adding more compost material to it.  After 3 days of sweat, and 1 day of heavy rain, the ground was ready to welcome the tapioca (Cassava) stem cuttings.  Rows of 6-inch-depth holes, two feet apart were dug, preparing the new home for the tapioca stems.
It is important to know which way to lay the stems or else it will not grow properly as to my knowledge, the tapioca tubers can only grow in soil and not come out like fruits.  Each stem is place, right side up with its “eyes” facing upward, and at an angle and lightly covered with soil and left to begin its new life.

Tapioca shoots

For good quality tapioca, rich soil with good drainage and sufficient water is a necessity,  As the soil factor was covered, this meant that a sprinkler system needed to be implemented to supplement the natural, rain watering.  The source of water for this system is from the upstream source thus it is non-polluted water.  A few days later, lovely green shoots appear on the stems indicating that it has begun its new life cycle.  So now, these new babies are ready to be “more covered” with soil.  The roots have now started to grow but its hold in the soil is still week thus tilling the soil around it and topping the stem with more soil needs to be done carefully so as not to dislodge the roots.

Tapioca trees, 3 weeks after planting

About two weeks later, it has grown to about 1 ft tall and the weeds have started to make an appearance.  Once again, it is “cangkul” action time, turn over the soil, adding some organic fertilizer as well as compost to it.  Rows of tapioca trees were created and it appeared to me that this tapioca patch would be able to support some rows of corn.
It takes about 4-5 months before the tapioca roots can be harvested, making selecting corn to be planted in between it, as the best choice.  The corn should be ready for harvest within 3-4 months.  Just nice timing.  First harvest the corn, which would not disrupt the soil.  Then harvest the tapioca a month later, which will result in major soil disruption, but since the corn has been harvested, it doesn’t matter.

Corn shoots

The ground was prepared for planting, once again being turned over, to remove the weeds.  Corn kernels, from my previous harvest, was sowed in about 1 inch of soil, between the rows of tapioca.  With lovely rain watering them on a daily basis, and the rich soil, 3 days later, they sprouted with the shoots appearing in verticl rolls above the ground.  Now the experiment of the Corn and the Tapioca is in full swing.  The next time that the soil will be worked on will be when the corn is about 6 inches tall. The soil water content will also need to be monitored to ensure that both varieties get the water is needs.

26 Mar 2011
0 Comments By admin Farm Recipes

Farm Recipes – Lemon Basil (Kemangi) Pasta

More often than not, we have pasta Italian-style or “Malaysian-Italian” style with the addition of chilli or sometimes, spices.  With our tropical weather, I like a lighter version of pasta – without cream or butter.  There are many herbs and vegetables on the farm and I decided to try something different today so I experimented with this dish.  With the Kemangi, it gives the dish a slightly lemony flavour balancing the “heaviness” from the pasta and parmesan cheese.  I must say I really enjoyed it and if you are on a diet, watching your cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, and other stuff, try this (by the way, I am not the “measuring” kind of cook so bear with me):

Ingredients:

  • Spaghetti, Fetuccine or Linguine pasta
  • 1 fresh, Terung Bulat (oval Aubergine)
  • 2-3 stems of fresh Kemangi (Lemon Basil)
  • 4-5 young leaves of fresh Daun Salam (Indian Bayleaf)
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic
  • olive oil
  • salt
  • fine grated Parmesan cheese
  • chilli flakes (for those who like it a bit “hot”)

Method:
Boil pasta to al dente and drain the water.  Dice aubergine, slice Kemangi and Daun Salam, chop or crush garlic.  In heated olive oil, toss garlic and aubergine until soft. Add pasta.  Turn off heat and add Kemangi and Daun Salam.  Toss them around and salt to taste.  Serve with Parmesan cheese.  Add chilli flakes if you wish.

Based on the ingredients, here’s what you feed your body :

  1. From Kemangi, you get magnesium and beta-carotene – good for the heart, diabetes, stress
  2. From the garlic, natural antibiotic and good for the heart and those nasty bacteria
  3. From Daun Salam, good for diabetes, high blood pressure, reducing cholesterol
  4. From purple Terung Bulat, vitamin A, C, Calcium,etc. – good for the cholesterol, bones, etc.
  5. Pasta – carbohydrates to fuel your body
  6. Olive oil – you all know how great this oil is for you

Of course, to get the best nutrition value, get chemical-pesticide free produce.  If you try this recipe, let me know what you think and if you did variations, please share.

23 Mar 2011
0 Comments By admin Development

Suria Helang Lui – The Story Behind It

Nature’s bounty
When I was growing up, I often heard stories at meal times, mainly from the older generation, of how one leaf or another is good for you and how it has been eaten for generations.  Most of these came from plants and trees that seem to grow easily in the Malaysian tropical weather, with its warm sun and plenty of rain.  Some grow in the forests and jungles bordering the villages, some grow in the area surrounding the houses, some by the streams and rivers and in marsh areas but the one common element it that they seem to require no care, just happily growing.  Through the years, with development and easy access to stores and supermarkets as well as the change in lifestyles, our diet has changed and some of the natural diet benefits have been reduced or lost.
With the commercialization of farms and push for “quantity production” and profits, how our food is produced has changed.  Chemical pesticides and fertilizers as well as polluted waters now are often used – all in the name of producing larger quantities faster and cheaper.  All these chemicals are introduced into our food, which even after cleaning or washing, would still remain within them, albeit in trace quantities.  After years of consumption, the amount of chemicals within our bodies would increase.  Our bodies become more “open” to illnesses and disease.  So, what do we do, we start spending more money to strengthen our bodies with vitamins and supplements and go in search of better quality food.  This is fine for those with bigger disposal income but what about those who don’t.  Cheap food doesn’t mean quality food but at times, for some people, there is no alternative.
Over-run by vegetation

It is from these thoughts within my head, that Suria Helang Lui was born, with a determination to go as natural as possible.  When I acquired the land, it was an overrun of weeds, shrubs and trees and lots of unknown creatures that had overtaken this over 50 years of abandoned paddy field.  Over time, the river and streams had also changed its flow including some additions and deletions of streams, with the last major change occurring in the early seventies after a major flood in the area.  It took me about one year to study the land, looking at the soil, the contour of the land, the vegetation in existence, the sunlight movement, rain pattern and several other factors, before I formulated my development plan.  In my estimation, it would take me about 5 years before it would reach what I would call “maintenance mode”.  This land is rich in its bounty and my development principle was to maximize its features.

I received a lot of advice that the easiest and cheapest way was to bring in a crew with bulldozers and just bulldoze the land to clear it and then I can start building quickly.  This would only take a few days to do and then the land would be nice and clean for me to do whatever I wanted.  The flaw in this advise would be by razing the land, the beauty and natural contour would be lost as well as the top soil – one of the important elements for quality soil for agriculture.

On-off stream, depending on rain
On-off stream, now a fish pond

Not only that, nature had provided for a natural draining mechanism to this land via its “stream-like” pattern on the land.  This is also another important element as this area receives a lot of rain and the streams and rivers can overflow causing floods so why mess with the natural drainage pattern that had protected this land from  major floods.  My intention was to maximize this and turn it into my fish “pond” and start an aquaculture project thus achieving two objectives: flood protection as the fish pond would be my water overflow containment and producing another food source, fish.

Nature’s beautiful gift

The method I used to develop this land is in a way, more manual.  I started by studying the land with many “walkabouts” on the land, using a machete (parang) to clear my pathway.  Then I started using a brush-cutter. I had help, sometimes, from good friends.  This enabled me to see the contour and flow of the land as well as identify what vegetation I wanted to retain and what I wanted removed.  It was a slow process but the benefits were great as I found many plants that I wanted to keep, some that are harder to find, some that were considered as weeds by other but were medicine or food source for me, and some that were just beautiful for landscape.  The additional benefit was that I got a good workout as a bonus while breathing in clean air with lots of oxygen and less pollutants.
I envision this land will become a beautiful farm with comfortable living quarters surrounded by Malaysian plants and trees that are not only beautiful but are a food or medicine source.  Of course, I foresee some farm animals like chickens and geese.  After all, no farm is complete without some animals.The planning for a house with features that take into account the purpose of the farm makes it a bit complex.  I have to plan for work areas for preparation of produce, storage areas for produce and equipment, disposal of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste, water and power consumption, ease of access and of course, ease and comfort for my visitors.  All this would take time, effort and money so I had to prioritize.  As such, I use the “Leggo” building method, building in phases with “build-on” concept, starting with a bathroom/storage.  After all, there are limits to time, effort and most of all, money.  Thus the adventure continues……..