Cob repair days – March and April
Want to play in the mud? Are you interested in building with cob? (straw + mud combination, a sustainable building method) A small team will be repairing the Westchester Community Oven during selected workdays in March and April. Damage to the…
Cactus juice preservative for the cob oven
I’m “cooking up” a batch of Opuntia juice preservative. It is a traditional weather coating used on adobe and cob structures. We will be adding it to the final coat on the Westchester Community Oven when we re-surface it next…
Rainstorms and the cob oven
After months of drought, last Tuesday in the wee hours of the morning we got 1.79 inches of rain within about 6 hours — the tail end of Hurricane Linda. Long story short, the Oven was uncovered during a severe…
Adobe Brick-making Success!
This past Saturday, we had LOTS of fun making adobe bricks at the Community Garden. Kids, both small and tall, got to experience squishy-squashy mud. It is so tactile and cool and smooth, and once you start, you just can’t…
Wish Bricks
Make a wish. Write it down. Put it into an adobe brick. The community will gather around your wish, for years to come. Here’s how …
Asphalt Demolition Party – April 25
What’s your opinion about asphalt, really? Wouldn’t you love to be there as nearly 1000square foot of it meets its demise? Too much stress at work, or school? Frustrated with insufficient action on political issues? Wouldn’t you love to take out…
Cob Oven workshop – June 6,7,13,14
Earthen ovens are cheap to build, fun to use, and provide a baking environment that is impossible to recreate in the kitchen. Ben Loescher will conduct a 4-day hands-on workshop this June, to teach you how to make your own earthen…
Adobe Brickmaking hands-on workshop – May 9, May 16
This Earth Day, get in touch with Adobe. California schoolchildren learn about it in 4th grade when they study the Missions. But did you know it’s part of the cutting edge of sustainable architecture and building with local materials. On May…
Artisan Bread Tasting (and raffle!)
Imagine: hand-baked artisan bread, fresh from the oven. Would you like to sample a diverse assortment of flavors and textures? …and enjoy a fun afternoon with great company? …and possibly WIN special loaves to take home? …or win the 50/50 pot at the…
The cob oven at RootSimple homestead
Mr Homegrown of RootSimple shared this video of their construction process. He is part of the team, advising us as we plan how to build the cob oven at the Community Garden at Holy Nativity.