It has been a while since I’ve written about the walipini, but it has been getting steady work over the last year. A walipini is an in-ground greenhouse. It uses the thermal mass of the earth to help keep its internal temperature from fluctuating too quickly in the winter. It is essentially a pit with … More Walipini Update
This week’s video shows the second half of our timber-frame, chicken-coop build. The first half was put in out a video a few months ago and can be seen here. I discuss some ratios for plaster and daub, and you can find that information at two previous blog posts (here and here). Please remember to … More New Video: No. 16 — Timer Frame Chicken Coop, Part II
The timber-frame chicken coop saga is coming to an end. The last update showed much of the work through plastering. This can also be seen in video form here. Since then, the plaster has been finished, clapboards wainscoting went on the bottom, and the whole structure has been coated in whitewash or linseed oil. Yakisugi … More Another Chicken Coop Update
I’ve been working on a chicken coop over the last year, first felling the trees and then hewing the timbers. In this video, I show the process through erection of the coop’s frame. In the next video, I’ll show the roofing and wall construction. Please remember to subscribe to our YouTube Channel! You can find … More New Video: No. 13 — Timberframe Chicken Coop, Part I
Many of you will remember that I’m building a timber-frame chicken coop from dying spruce trees downed on the institute grounds, shown in the video below. After felling, these trees were turned into timbers and put together into a boxy 6-×-6-ft coop. The roof was covered with scavenged cedar shingles. Right after getting the structure … More Chicken Coop Update
Last year I profiled a bienenhaus (“bee house”) at the New Glarus Swiss Historical Village & Museum in two blog posts (part I and part II). This is a purpose-made building that holds bee colonies in cabinets with frames attached to the sides of the cabinet. The bees enter and exit through small doors in … More Introducing den Bienenstall