SANTA LUCIA SPRINGS ETERNAL

Summer has arrived in Costa Rica as it does every year. It begins at the end of November and runs through end April. With the dry season come the tourists from all over the world. Many come from Europe and North America seeking a respite from the cold winter. Not only do the visitors get to bask in the warm sunshine and blue skies but they also get to experience the bounty of summer flowers that emerge as the rains come to an end.

It is amazing how many flowers bloom in the dry part of the year. They are everywhere you look. One of the most conspicuous and plentiful is Santa Lucia. It is one of the first summer flowers to emerge and signals to the country that the heavy rains of October and early November have come to an end.

Santa Lucia seems to bloom great numbers overnight. One day it is nowhere to be seen and the next day it is everywhere. It grows n fields, hillsides, along the roads, anywhere that there is plenty of sunshine. Alone it is a pretty little periwinkle colored flower atop a weed-like plant. But in numbers it becomes spectacular. It turns entire pastures into beautiful blue ocean meadows.

Santa Lucia also has a secret. Costa Rica tradition says that if you pick a flower and place it in your wallet, you will always have money. Some say that it only works with the white Sana Lucia flowers which are in smaller numbers. Either way, there are plenty of both colors at Monte Azul so why take a chance. Pick a flower of each color put it in your wallet. This way you will be assured of having enough money for your return visit to Costa Rica.

ANOTHER GIFT FROM HENRY

Once again we have had the opportunity to host San Francisco artist Henry Jackson as an Artist in Residence at Monte Azul. Henry was at Monte Azul from January 6 to 18, 2011. This is Henry’s 3^rd time to Monte Azul and we were very happy to see him again. From his previous stays, Henry has produced some fantastic works that were inspired by the sights and sounds of our tropical rain forest.

In January 2009, Henry produced his now famous monkey monotypes. One of these monotypes is featured on the front label of Monte Azul’s Quick Monkey brand organic coffee. The February 2011 Edition of Food & Wine Magazine has an article about Monte Azul and features one of Henry´s monkey monotypes. http://www.monteazulcr.com/media/winefeb2011.pdf

He also produced a monotype of our goat, Heidi, which was a gift to me. This monotype is now framed and hanging in the studio as part of the Monte Azul Collection. Heidi has been immortalized and is admired by all of our visitors (see attached photo).

During his latest stay, Henry produced a extraordinary body of work titled the Selva Series (Jungle Series). Each print is a combination of oil paint, ink, stabilo, cold wax and graphite on paper. At the end of his residency, we were fortunate to have a gallery exhibition introducing these works. This exhibition was attended by several Trustees of the San Francisco Zoo. Attached is a preview photo of one of these works. To see these works, visit the www.monteazulcr.com

For me personally, the highlight of Henry’s trip was the gift that he made for me. This is a mixed media print of a cupcake and Twizzlers licorice. Henry knows me and my sweet tooth all too well. I have attached a photo of this wonderful gift. I am looking forward to getting it framed and adding it to our collection. Thanks again, Henry!

NEW GREENHOUSE RISES FROM THE RUINS

For the last few years Monte Azul has been tending an organic greenhouse. This greenhouse was erected about 2.5 years ago on the hill high above Cafe Blue. It was very rustic. The support posts were simply tree trunks and the roof was thick plastic. It had raised beds made out of lumber mill scraps and tree trunks with black plastic liners. It is the typical construction for a back yard greenhouse in Costa Rica.

This rustic greenhouse has served its purpose for our experiments on growing fruits and vegetables in this location. There are many micro climates and some things do really well and others just wither and die. No matter what we tried we cannot get big tomatoes to grow. The cherry tomatoes do extremely well but their larger beefy cousins do nothing.

Lettuce, herbs, peppers, beans, beets, carrots, cucumbers are some of the other things that have done very well. So well in fact that we are in a race to harvest the vegetables before the armadillos, pizotes, squirrels and rabbits get to it. Many guests at Cafe Blue have enjoyed the organic bounty that has come from his ramshackle structure.

Like most things in Costa Rica, this greenhouse has taken a beating from the weather. The rain and sun have slowly eaten away at the wooden structure. A large tree fell and destroyed a corner of the structure. Then the planting beds starting collapsing one by one. It was time to do something drastic.

Now that it the dry season, we are removing the old greenhouse and building a new permanent greenhouse made from PVC pipe, metal and a special greenhouse fabric. This new greenhouse will be built to last. It will have planting beds that are on the ground, an earthworm composting area and a coffee drying area. We are very excited. I will post an update with photos when it the structure has been completed and when we expect to serve these fresh organic vegetables at Cafe Blue..