From the ground up.

In the name of Allah, Most gracious, Most merciful without Him, none is possible.



First food garden in our backyard

15 July 17 night of Ramadhan 1435.
I love receiving gifts and presents, don't know about you. Its that lekker feeling that the recipient experiences that makes it such a sacred act. Had a great session at campus on the hill and when I came home only the most delicious koeksisters (light, spicy, melt in the mouth type) waited for us; a package containing home-made spring rolls which we fought over (I only fry ten so it can last longer) and a little box. In the box, a brown paper bag and in the bag my favourite, a cashew Florentine smothered in chocolate. Had few more laps to do this morning.

So I am busy doing reading up on Islamic teacher education and Abu is busy finishing a paperless newsletter late after Taraweeg-we start to capture the beginnings of the iLABS-From the ground up Project.

When we started planting in Cape Town, we lived in a flat in Lansdowne with a fairly sized backyard, as flats go. There was a grassy area where we hung our washing, a braai area and a small stoep. One day, in spring, I was hanging out the washing when from the corner of my eye I saw something red, slithering zigzag towards the grass by the wall. I freaked out completely and called Abubakr who was busy designing some childrens’  textbooks. Gesturing, “there outside, a snake in the grass slithering past me, its little forked tongue, catch it, kanala!” hart klop in die keel.

He looked up matter of factly and said, “Yasmina ( Yasmina when he is really serious), either you catch it and kill it or you leave it, it’s a grass snake.” En die man kyk net terug na sy screen. When my heartbeat had calmed down, I spotted the snake in the grass with its mate a brownish orangey colour. I enlisted some help in the complex but Gareth professed that it may be poisonous and walked away. So I took the broom to hit them both but they were too tough and just curled up, (I felt really guilty), this was Allah’s creation too. I took the handle and heaved them up one at a time and chucked them over the wall.

A few more snakes were sighted after that in the most beautiful colours, a beige one even came into the house for tea, but by that time realized I was just over reacting, a snake is actually a beautiful thing (I know Gerda will agree). So I decided no more grass, I am digging it all out to plant vegetables and flowers, the snakes can play on the field over the wall but not in our backyard. An iniative on FB called “Grow food not lawn” spurred me on. 

Bushbeans for the pot

I started to dig out the grass, a bit hopelessly and then Abu and my sons came to rescue me and did all of the digging properly. For our anniversary I bought bags of compost and garden soil (15 of each) about 100 seedlings for R1 each at Harts, a few herb shrubs and few packets of flower seeds and said “slamat Abu!” We really enjoyed working in the garden, it was lush and green and yielded many vegetables and herbs.  Sometimes in summer I would deck out the table with white table cloth and silverware and flowers in the backyard and serve dinner by candlelight with the neighbours leaning out of their window giving us a thumbs up





Growing lettuce in crates

Some friends would bring us little gifts of lavender and chives and the garden took shape. I posted the progress on Facebook and a few of us inspired one another. Rameez brought us some old railway sleepers to raise the beds. On a summers day we would take a drive through to Wellington where Abubakr’s family gave us gifts such as the groen amaara,  the curryleaf tree an avocado and mango tree. A friend brought me some clean seed that he takes around the world and the rest is history.
 When we moved to Schaapkraal the project was ready to take off. So the idea of a seed took root and we started cleaning up rubble and digging out tar and overgrown grass, bought garden soil and compost and made a start. We also involved two schools but as winter approached we had to put it on hold until the weather is a bit warmer. Now we are organizing our resources and preparing the ground for the spring to allow the learners to enjoy the planting and taking care with us.

 

After four months we have not only started planting more than 47 kinds of vegetables but we managed to trade favours for manure and sawdust;  make our own compost; fence off the garden with shade cloth from Die Korperasie; created over 800 new plants from cuttings; started a flower and shrub garden; planted out 1000 strawberry plants in the grounds and gave away many for sadaqah; seeded our own seedlings; planted over 119 fruit trees in the ground as well as in barrels and milk containers and started a pilot of urban food gardening in crates. We have extended the food garden to double its size and we are now working on a more efficient water system: the tank for run off rainwater needs a pump and inshaAllah we would like to have a bore hole placed in the ground. Designs for the beehives are in progress and it will go off to Zygner Designs where the Master wood carver and his apprentice will build the hives for us.

Alhamdulilaah! None of this would have been possible without the support and help of the following people:

Rameez and Nadia Adams (from their garden many trees, plants and pots and tables and benches and moral support); Ridwaan Bawa and his brothers (stable manure, flower pots and generosity); Rukayah Pedro and family (7 Beautiful fruit trees); Waseemah and Umar Mdoka ( cuttings, seeds, plants and labours of love); Ml Ebrahim Yahya for his generosity and support and beautiful teas; Ruwayda and Abdurahman Fields (orange tree);Madeneya Gallie(digging); Ali Saqaf (money to buy seeds); Ismail Shubadien (the pink wheelbarrow); Sabira and Husain Rakiep (50 metres of fire hose for watering); Sayed Mohamed (use of his machinery, seedlings and camaraderie); Umar Ghaniem (plants, cloning machine and labour); Sheikh Saalim Peck (hard labour - shoveling manure, sawdust and inspiration); our children Rifqa, Zaheer, Luqmaan and Azrah (lemon pips, seeding, camera training for me and labour); Uncle Basil (heavy digging and general assistance on the smallholding); The Rabbit King good prices for supplies; 2OEF for 2 cubes of compost; Zain and Soraya Jacobs (seeds, cuttings, wood, fencing, grasses, plants, trees and advice); the late Gareth (who helped me clean up my garden); Mumtaz Harun (love, support and seeds from Azaadville); Aunty Alice (groen amaara and encouragement); Boeta Yusuf Kamadien (curryleaf, mango and avocado); Rushaan Philander (a black fig tree); Karana (many many seeds of love); Safiyah Cox and Kamal (artichoke seeds and advice and labour; Fuad Jacobs for the use of his bakkie and Husain Shabudien for the use of his car. Should we forget to mention a dear helper, please consider us grateful.

And so on to new heights, the entire project of iLABS with smaller programmes (organic garden; composting; seeding; propogation; urban food gardens, how to booklets etc) is now called From the Ground Up. InshaAllah may Allah SWT guide us in our attempts to test, learn and pass on this knowledge to all who are interested in working from the ground up and towards a way of life that has barakah and is wholesome for us and the entire environment as well as leave a sound legacy for our progeny, Ameen. May this benefit us all in the here and now as well as in the Aagirah

Talking about collaborative efforts, a friend sent us a copy of an Islamic farming toolkit for conservation agriculture that was presented at an environmental conference in Japan by Dr Husna Ahmad. She is also the author of the Green Guide for Hajj and I really love this book, Islam and water: The Hajjar (r.a.) Story and Guide.

The farming toolkit is excellently illustrated and put together, opening with Surah `Abasa: 24-32

Then let mankind look at his food

How We poured down water in torrents,

Then We broke open the Earth, splitting [it with sprouts],

And caused to grow within it grain,

And grapes and herbage,

And olives and palm trees,

And gardens of dense shrubbery,

And fruit and grass—

[As] enjoyment for you and your grazing livestock.

Dr  Husna also draws upon the rich farming history of Islam; the Holy Qur’an- the promises of Allah SWT and the success story of Nabi Yusuf and then an offering of their farming methods and good planning. Finally, the benefits of beekeeping. I am sure that the toolkit can be downloaded from the internet but if you have trouble with it contact me. Her other two booklets are available for downloading too. Do yourself a favour and take a peak!

Plant food and collaborate with others.

Yasmine
ps. a huge shukran too to Umer Peters who just came to load off some manure with his tipper truck, much appreciated, now enough compost and start cooking!