PermaTree a Holistic Gaia Association

Project Type

Project Summary

PERMATREE: A holistic, organic Fruit Farm and Regenerative Lifestyle Research, Jungle Reserve in Ecuador, South America. MISSION: A hub to share, learn and be inspired for a better resilient and healthy lifestyle. VISION: Living a healthy, resilient lifestyle which positively influences the surrounding region and environment. WHO: Btina, Yago and baby Violetta, Swiss family who decided to act upon their vision during their lifetime.

Project Description

The PermaTree Project is a 3-year old permaculture site in the edge of the Amazonas region of Ecuador in South America. The farm is approximately 76 hectares or 180 acres and located about 3 hours north of Loja, in Southern Ecuador. The lowest part is 800 to 1300 meters over the sea level. Which means we have a high variation of micro climates within PermaTree. It was not so long ago a dense tropical jungle with huge trees, and later in the ’60s, half of the property was made pasture land for cows… lots of depleted topsoil. Lucky us, the fruit orchard is very diverse: papayas, bananas, plantains, cacao, mangoes, bananas, lemons, white zapotes, lulo, guayabas, ice cream bean, passion fruit, sugar cane, and tons of other edibles. SURROUNDED BY NATURE: At PermaTree you are literally surrounded by nature. We are located at the edge of the Amazonas region in the south of Ecuador with a breathtaking landscape view of the Rio Zamora. The twilight is spectacular on cloudy days. At night you can enjoy listening to the frogs, bats and owls. During the day, if you are lucky enough, you can see eagles very near our bamboo house. Snakes, spiders and moskitos are a part of the ecosystem here. There are several creeks and waterfalls within the different micro climates of the property. FRUITS AND VEGETABLES AT PERMATREE: Depending on the season you can find: papayas, bananas, plantain, cacao, ice cream bean, sugar cane, pineapple, guava, lemons, guayusa, hierba luisa (lemon grass type), cassava (yuca), wild cherry tomatoes, corn, rosemarie, basil, thine, aloe vera, vettiver, neem, noni, naranjilla, zapote and we have been planting guanábanas, mango, avocados, oranges, grapefruits, chirimoya, coconuts, strawberry, maracuya, bread fruit, bamboo (bamboo shoots), macadamia, peach palm (contact), soursop, jackfruit, star fruit and dragon fruit. VOLUNTEER PROGRAMM: Additionally, PermaTree has an active volunteer program that draws both local residents and international people interested in experiencing a hands-on experience with permaculture design. Participation is experiential education; you are learning about permaculture and community by living in it. The most helpful, effective, and happy participants are self-motivated, interested, responsible, and accountable. Here we stress collaboration. We are about mutual enrichment and working together. There is no room for people who think they know everything. Since these things take time, ideally you will be able to commit to a 1 month or longer working alongside the PermaTree Volunteer Program. BASE FARM INFORMATION Surface area Total - 78 Ha Conservation area - 40 Ha Current Production - 10 Ha Geography Lowest point - 800m above sea level Highest point - 1300m above sea level Soil Type Main soil type - Ultisol - red clay with high mineral content Some areas containing higher OM than others Historically used as pasture land for over 10 years Climate Tropical/Rainforest - Af in Köppen-Geiger classification Rain Season: May - June; Dry Season: July - February Significant rainfall all year, even in the driest months. Average annual temperature in Yantzaza is 22.7 °C; Annual precipitation averages 1959 mm.

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