Owen Geiger

Our Tropical Forest Garden Progress

by

Current progress of our tropical food forest. Much work remains to be done amending and building the soil, and planting additional small plants.
Current progress of our tropical food forest. Much work remains to be done amending and building the soil, and planting additional small plants.

I want to first thank all those who have pioneered the way for growing forest gardens. Special thanks to Geoff Lawton, Robert Hart, David Holmgren, Bill Mollison and Sepp Holtzer. Their permaculture books and videos have been immensely beneficial even though our food forest is unique, as partially explained below. I also want to emphasize the importance of permaculture and encourage readers to learn as much as possible in order to develop more sustainable practices.

Read more

Foamed Lightweight Concrete

by
Foamed concrete and foamed cement made with Allied's foam have very fine pore structure, unlike that made with conventional proteinaceous and surfactant foams.
Foamed concrete and foamed cement made with Allied’s foam have very fine pore structure, unlike that made with conventional proteinaceous and surfactant foams.

Natural builders strive to reduce their use of cement due to high cost and adverse environmental impacts. Sustainability conscious natural builders might use ferrocement, cement plaster or micro concrete roofing tiles which use relatively small amounts of cement, and avoid more concrete intensive materials such as concrete block. Foamed lightweight concrete is another material that could be added to the list of green building materials.

Read more

Roman seawater concrete holds the secret to cutting carbon emissions

by

This image shows a drill core of 2,000 year old volcanic ash-hydrated lime mortar from the ancient port of Baiae in Pozzuloi Bay, Italy.
This image shows a drill core of 2,000 year old volcanic ash-hydrated lime mortar from the ancient port of Baiae in Pozzuloi Bay, Italy.

This discovery shows how to make stronger, longer lasting concrete with far less energy. A green type of concrete like this could replace Portland concrete, which is viewed negatively by many due to its adverse environmental impact.

Read more