sustainable water gardens

FISH COUNT

2011-04-19T17:41:00.000-07:00

Its been some time since I photographed the water garden.
It has been a very cool and wet winter in Portland.
All plants and animals are at least 3-4 weeks behind schedule.
Today Jason and a parent volunteer zapped the fish to get an idea what was in the pond.
The shock didn't hurt the fish but allowed easy capture and release.
Last summer I placed 6 catfish and one Crappie. Today we recovered 5 of the catfish and the Crappie had nearly doubled his size.
Check out these pictures they are cool.

oiling the dragon bench

2010-07-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

DaVinci has a one of the largest cob bench in the city of Portland.
It was built 4 years ago by myself and several classes .
The bench is over 45 ft in length.
Since my retirement Andrew Butterfield the ceramics teacher at DaVinci has taken on the role of maintaining the bench.
Since we live in the North west we get a tremendous amount of rain.
This excessive moisture tends to breakdown the outer coating of the cob bench.
Every year Andrew with the help of several students reseals the bench. All the cracks in the plaster are resealed and then oil is applied to make it water proof.
The following photos show the recently oiled bench.

Wild Summer Growth

2010-07-30T07:53:00.000-07:00

I have been very busy this summer and only yesterday did i visit the water garden.
The pond has floating clover all over the surface.
The living machine is cleaning itself due to the addition of water hyacinth.
Everything is growing.
Notice the size of the wapato near the ponds edge.
Its quite a sight.

raku movies

2010-06-06T18:15:00.001-07:00

Its been raining like crazy in the Portland area.
But that doesn't seem to faze the art students at davinci arts middle school.
Its amazing to see these students handle this very hot material and the results are spectacular.
Kudos to their teacher Andrew Butterfield.

raku in the water garden

2010-06-02T20:29:00.000-07:00

the water garden is more than a natural garden. It is set at Portlands art magnet school Davinci arts.
Today it was raining but that did not hinder the ceramics class from firing their latest pieces out side in the garden.
the technique is calleds raku.
It results in a metalic coloring on the glaze. This is accomplished by heating the ceramic s and then placing them into newspaper , causing a fire and then reducing the oxygen.

Check out these films .

bees and lupin

2010-05-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

Today I saw a new flower in the garden. It was a japanese iris. It was growing beneath the solar panel. This is also the home for strawberries and day lillys.
Another interesting adventure involved the witnessing of a bee working the lupine flowers.
The lupin are of the pea family and feature a flower that resembles a slipper.
Inside the slipper are the pollen laden stamen. When the bee land on the flower its weight pushes down the the slipper section revealing the stamen nectar areas..
Check out the movie

lupine bloomin

2010-05-05T15:43:00.000-07:00

The sun was shining bright today and i ventured into the garden.
The lupine are very tall and in full bloom.
As soon as the temperature gets warmer the bees will arrive and begin to harvest pollen and nector.
The garden is also getting very lush. Notice the bright blue camus flowers.
finally the living is living again the water is cleansing itself in less than a week.
I added a butter cup plant that loves a watery nutrient rich environment.

living machine movie

2010-04-27T08:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I added air pumps to the living machine. the following is a movie about the machine.

fixing the living machine

2010-04-27T07:56:00.000-07:00

Today I added 2 air pumps to the living machine.
The living machine is composed of 6 50 gallon drums filled with water and plants.
The machine is fed liquid waste from the cafeteria and this materials is digested and cleansed by the plants and fish.
The original system had one pump but it was inadequate for the size of the tanks.
Over time the system became anerobic and started to smell.
We will wait for several weeks to allow the extra oxygen to break down the dead material before we feed it.

april flowers

2010-04-20T20:24:00.000-07:00

Monday I was at davinci subbing for the drama teacher Tom Becket.
I happened to venture into the garden and saw a shooting star in full bloom.

The lupine are about to bloom also they have started stalks of flowers.

the frogs are back

2010-04-09T12:18:00.000-07:00

The water garden has an April migration of pacific green tree frogs.
10 years ago i released some frog eggs in the pond.
The frogs from that first bunch have spread out all over the neighborhood.
For some reason they come back in April to the pond where they croak and mate. Play the video and hear them sing.

April flowers

2010-04-08T08:23:00.000-07:00

The temperature is rising into the 50's and 60's and the flowers are starting to bloom.
The daffodils are done but the tulips are vibrant.
they were a gift 10 years ago and were the first flowers in bloom at the opening on earth day 2002. I am amazed at how strong they still are.
the lupine are getting bigger almost a foot tall in places. Also the wild flowers are starting to pop.
Notice the purple shooting star. There is also a begining s of camas flower.
This plant was a starch staple for the natives in this region.
Finally the monkey flower is in bloom. It grows at the mouth of the streeam where the rain water exits the pond and flows into the the wet land.
Check out previous posting for pictures of the flooding.

March floods

2010-03-30T08:41:00.000-07:00

On Monday i wandered over to the water garden. It had been raining heavily in the Portland area.
I wondered how the garden was doing.
I found that the stream was flowing heavily and the wet land was flooded almost to the over flow pipe. This is the first time in years that water has flooded to that point.

cherry blossom spring

2010-03-19T12:37:00.000-07:00

Today is March 19th . The weather is fine warm and sunny.
I went into the water garden and discovered the flowering cherry trees in full bloom.
Notice how much bigger the lupin have gotten.
The song birds are every where they flit and fly from bush to tree.
The currant are in bloom they put off a distinguished odor.
The pond is also coming top life. The monkey flower near the mouth of the stream are just starting to bloom.
I can hear the sounds of some brave pacific tree frogs.
They will soon start croaking.

art in the garden

2010-03-14T14:58:00.000-07:00

There are many examples of art in the water gardewn.
as theflowers bloom the beauty changes.

flowers in march

2010-03-14T14:52:00.000-07:00

The water garden is blooming now.
The scent of the flowering currant is every where.
The daffodils are are coming in strong.
Even the calfs foot is in bloom.

the arrival of the lupin

2010-02-13T12:17:00.000-08:00

For the past 2 weeks i have been teaching biology back at DaVinci.
Its been interesting getting back into the routine of teaching.
We are studying cells and protists.
This week I ventured into the water garden to check on the plants.
Unlike the rest of the country the ground is warming up around here.
The daffodils are about to bloom and the lupin are returning from a winter retreat.

I love the shape of the leaves on the lupine. They are like inverted umbrellas catching the dew and rain.
Lupine are scattered around the pond and along the paths.
By May they will be 2-3ft. tall with spikes of purple flowers.
Here are some pictures.

plants are stiring

2010-01-25T18:54:00.000-08:00

The plants are stirring and growth is starting to open up.
The earliest things are the buds on the flowering currant.
They will soon turn into pink flowers that drip from each stem.
Since it is so wet here in Oregon the mosses are moving from a leafy stage into a spor stage.
On the ground in the wet land is an interesting plant called colts foot.
I guess it resembles a young horse in its infant stage.
What do you think?
Finally the nine bark is pretty now with its split bark against the twigs.

daffy dills

2010-01-17T21:22:00.000-08:00

It is starting to warm up in Portland. The garden has daffodils around the pond.
They are starting to poke out through the soil.
In addition to bulbs the flowering currant is starting to open its buds.
the flowers are pink and white .
they are the first things to bloom in the garden.

the beauty of rain

2010-01-09T20:59:00.000-08:00

The Portland rain often causes a beautiful light and reflects things differently .
Notice how the dragons shines.
The pictures show the head, then wings that are seats, the leg and finally the tail.

wild rose

2010-01-06T14:41:00.000-08:00

Our wild rose is located beneath the rotating solar panel.
Notice the rose hips (red ball like structures)

wet land plants

2010-01-06T14:17:00.000-08:00

Many plants exist in the wet land portion of the garden.
When it rains the water flows out of the pond down a creek bed into a low land area called the wetland.
This area has many plants that love water and are drought resistant.
The first is an upper area tree, incense cedar. Notice the bright green foliage.
The second is a shrub called nine bark. It has a characteristic split bark liken to paper birch.
The third shrub/tree is the pacific willow. It started out as a single stick and has spread into a water devouring plant.
Finally the red colored shrub is a red barked dogwood.
The red bark provides most of the photosynthesis for the plant during the winter.

plants around the pond

2010-01-06T14:05:00.000-08:00

Not many plants are growing now, but the moss and lichen thrive year round .
Originally the pond was lined with clean Camas grey basalt. Over 24 tons were brought into the garden and put in place by students.
Today the rocks have colonies of moss and lichen on them giving them a rich color and texture.
The sword ferns are healthy and well established . No fiddle heads yet.
The blank ground shots are views of the area between the path and the pond. This is the location of many lupine plants. They will be popping up soon

Plant id in the winter

2010-01-06T13:34:00.000-08:00

Many plants in the garden look dead or dormant .
I like to think of them as sleeping.
The first tree is a paper birch. Notice the white bark and how it flakes off the tree.
The second tree is an alder. It has small cone like structures.
Neither tree has started budding.
Most of the plants are native to this area. They survive wet periods and dry periods.
Spring comes early in the NW.
I look for signs of change in the buds and plants.

the birds are back

2010-01-01T19:57:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to the water garden in the rain .
It was very lively withthe water flowing.
In addition there was the return of the robins .
One of the quacking birch trees had almost 10 birds hanging out.
Spring is coming .

heavy rain cause water flow

2010-01-01T19:42:00.000-08:00

When it rains the water from the roof of several portable classrooms runs into the pond. The new sustainable classroom also provides water to the garden.
Recently we had a freak snow fall, followed by a warm front with lots of rain.
The pond filled up quickly and the water overflowed forming a little stream and a secondary pond in the wet land.
It so cool to see the water flowing.

water garden art in snow

2009-12-29T19:34:00.001-08:00

I love the way the tin man and sculpture look in the light of the snow.

water garden in snow

2009-12-29T19:26:00.000-08:00

Today it started snowing. So I went to the garden and took some pictures

flooding the new building

2009-12-17T18:17:00.000-08:00

Next to the water garden is a sustainable classroom.
All the rain water is suppose to go into the garden. You can see where it was flooding the field to release it I dug a channel through the gravel( low tech).

frozen pond and flow forms

2009-12-17T18:14:00.001-08:00

The past few days the temperature was around 20 degrees.
I went over to the garden and took these pictures.
Notice the ice on the pond and the flow forms.

flow forms

2009-11-16T19:46:00.000-08:00

We use 3 flow forms in the water garden to filter and oxygenate the pond.

A flow form allows the water to spin in a figure eight patern similar to the meandering of a stream.

The power for our flow form comes from our solar panels.

solar panels

2009-11-16T19:41:00.000-08:00

The water garden uses some electricity in the opperation of pumps for the pond and living machine.

The solar panel in the garden is a six panel 1 kilowatt system.

It is mounted on a pole and rotates to folllow the sun.

It use no power except the heat of the sun to shift the weight of gas filled pontoons.

the water garden after a clean up

2009-11-05T17:07:00.000-08:00

Last week I came to the watergarden to discover that students and Mr. Heigelke had been working all day cutting back the summer growth.

After a summer of growth it realy needed a trimming.

The flowering currant was trimmed to shoulder height. This will allow the plants to flower early in February.

Arround the pond the purple asters and lupin were cut to the ground. This will give them a robust growth in the spring.

the area around the Oregon Oak was cleared of service berry and lupin. You can now see the famous davinci totem pole. It is a ceramic piece created by former art teacher Anna Quin and the davinci students.

The living machine is doing very well.

It consists of 5 - 55 gallon drums filled with water and plants. They are fed liquid waste from the cafeteria every week.

This nutient rich liquid is digested by the plants ,fish and snails in the tanks.

Notice the size of the leaves in the closest tank. these are wapato and are three times the size of the wapato in the pond

pond in the fall

2009-11-05T16:33:00.001-08:00

This is a view of the eastern end of the pond .
The lilly pads are turning yellow . This pond is fed rain water from the near by portable classrooms. We estimate that 750,000 gallons of rain water will flow into the pond annually.

Stating my purpose

2009-11-01T16:26:00.000-08:00

Ten years ago I was teaching science at an arts middle school called DaVinci.
The school is located in Portland Oregon where there is no shortage of rain. The students and I began to wonder what we could do with all the rain water that came off of our school.
We noticed that there was a piece of dead ground that had once been a tennis court and it was located near several portable classrooms.
From there we began a journey of designing and building a water garden that today is know as the Davinci Water Garden.

I am now retired after 36 years of teaching but I still love the excitement of discovery. When I was teaching everyday I seldom had time to observe and reflect on this wonderful space called the water garden.
So the purpose of this blog is to share with people the wonderful changes that natures provides in a small space in an urban setting.
I will be posting pictures and observations of how the garden changes through out the seasons.
I hope that others might see this and want to create a space of their own.