The origin of the coconut tree

Did you know that the name of the coconut comes from “coco” which means monkey face or “grin” and it was how the Spanish explorers first called it? The scientific name for coconut is Cocos nucifera. The coconut is a plant which favorably grows on the shorelines, it prospers on sandy soils. It prefers rainy and sunny weather, it can’t resist low temperatures. For a propitious growth coconuts also require an area of high humidity.

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On many islands coconut is a staple in the diet and provides the majority of the food eaten. Nearly one third of the world's population depends on coconut to some degree for their food and their economy. Among these cultures the coconut has a long and respected history.

Guests celebrating 10 days of staying at Jiwa Damai

Last night prior to the departure of our lovely French - Swiss group celebrating in the Indus restaurant and dancing Salsa. The group spent 10 days at JiwaDamai, morning sessions with the organizer Karene and afternoons with Margret for introduction to permaculture and much hands on work.

Guests at Jiwa Damai

Guests at Jiwa Damai

Guests at Jiwa Damai

Join us in October for a complete Permaculture Design Course Through the Heart! 

TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2015 for Jiwa Damai

Jiwa Damai was awarded the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence 2015 as a direct result of its consistently great reviews from its guests, being one of the 9% places in Indonesia receiving this award in a highly competitive market.

Jiwa Damai Organic Garden & Retreat is more than a hospitality business. It offers sanctuary in an idyllic, powerful environment, in the heart of Bali where the guests can reconnect to the life-giving qualities of the earth. Travelers can experience tranquility by taking part in yoga classes in the morning and evening meditation.

Jiwa Damai is also a place of personal development and of learning by doing. The garden is opened for the Permaculture Design Courses through the Heart which are organized in October. Through the Lagu Damai Bali Foundation, Jiwa Damai hosts interns who develop personalized projects in various fields under academically qualified supervision.

TripAdvisor used a complex algorithm in order to determine the Certificate of Excellence winners, taking into account the quality, quantity and recency of the reviews offered by the travelers, as well as their rating. The aim of the Certificate of Excellence is to reveal exceptional spots of happiness as recognized by travelers.

Preparing a field of vegetables and other edibles

At Jiwa Damai we take care of our garden. A team of 12 people strong began to clean out the area next to our meditation place in order to create a field of vegetables and other edibles. We collected the initial growth of greens, bushes and plants and made them into a large compost heap, which, after a while will be used to cover the earth and render it more fertile.

Garden at Jiwa Damai bali

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Morning yoga class for our teacher training group

Sadhana Yoga teacher training

is into its first week at

Jiwa Damai

garden and retreat center. A lovely group of young men and women, deeply interested in learning and practicing. Their day begins at

6 am

with meditation and ends at

8 pm

in the evening.

Having welcomed already several times  their wonderful teachers,

Mindi and  Anita

, who are facilitating the group, here are some of the photos during morning class.

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yoga at jiwa damai

The Karma Yoga Team

yoga at jiwa damai

Here is our Karma yoga team from Sadhana Yoga teacher training group getting actively involved in the garden and with garbage clean up. We truly appreciate this very much… Thanks!

Find out more about our activities at Jiwa Damai here! Have also a look at our internship programhere!

Permaculture introduction. Learning to mulch

As a part of their program at Jiwa Damai, Kearene's group from French Switzerland was also enjoying a permaculture introduction facilitated by our resident permaculture teacher. Some of the activities included learning to mulch. In the pictures you see different types of mulching. With paper, cardboard and with dry grass.

Don't forget to join our Permaculture Design Course Through the Heart in October.

Balinese wedding in our village

Our Swiss guests and Jiwa Damai was invited to the wedding of one of the village chiefs' son. A very exciting and elegant affair. The intricate clothing and make up of the groom and the bride, the decoration of the whole house takes at least a month to accomplish.

Balinese wedding

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Feeding the roots

The Rhinoceros Beetles are a problem all over the world because these beautiful beetles attack the coconut trees. They have already devastated entire coconut cultures in Spain, Mallorca, Hawaii and Asia. No solution was found so far for fighting them.

At Jiwa Damai we are trying several approaches in order to strengthen the coconut trees. After thoroughly cleaning the leaves, a deep trench is made to uncover the feeder roots of the trees. We use our best compost for the roots and  afterwards we cover it with earth. The following day we water the trench with our compost tea.

feeding the roots with best compost

We also tried to place bamboo sticks about 30 cm upright into the grounds. We fill them with compost and water them with our compost tea.

margret pdc through the heart

During the Permaculture Design Course Through the Heart we discuss with our students different ways of taking care of the plants and supporting their growth.  Join us in October to find out more!

PDC Through the Heart. Compost

One of the basic things we learn in permaculture is to be self-sustainable. Therefore, finding out how to make a compost is a must. This way one can reduce waste and create a nutritional soil for plants.

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The compost is created layering carbon, our dried leaves, nitrogen, green grass and ash and fruit scraps several times. It has to be turned every two days. Take care, it develops a great heat! On the 18th day the compost is done and exudes a pleasant soil like odor, ready to be used.

Compost at Jiwa Damai

Join us on the October 2015, Permaculture Design Course Through the Heart in order to learn by doing!