SURGE African Keyhole Garden

Food Security in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands: Implementation of the African Keyhole Garden.

(Step by Step Guidelines for Household Level Construction)

AUTHORED BY

Covel McDermot,1 Julian Jones,2 Isaiah Higgs,3 and Hans M. Louis-Charles.4

ABOUT US This document is a product of collaboration between the St. Thomas Long-Term Recovery Team and the Minority Scholars from Under-Represented Groups in Engineering and the Social Sciences (SURGE) Capacity in Disasters.

SURGE focuses of two grand challenges: the underrepresentation of STEM racial and ethnic minorities in hazards and disaster research and the disproportionate impacts of disasters on underserved racial and ethnic minorities.

SURGE is a Design and Development Launch Pilot project for National Science Foundation (INCLUDES) Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science initiative. Learn more about SURGE at www.surgedisasters.com.

University of Delaware, Urban Forestry Ecology.

Tuskegee University, Food and Nutritional Sciences.

3 East Carolina University, Geography.

4 Virginia Commonwealth University, L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs.

1 2

OVERVIEW In the aftermath of Hurricane Irma and Maria, St. Thomas residents found themselves challenged by the limited food supply available on the island. Residents of the island are heavily dependent on food imports with official estimates ranging between 95 to 99% of all food being imported. This reliance on an outside food supply was exposed as a significant vulnerability in the aftermath of the two catastrophic hurricanes that struck the island in 2017. Storm damage to built infrastructure and salvage operations in the harbor made offloading cargo difficult and distribution to grocery stores impossible. Ultimately, the post-disaster food demand could not be met.5 In an effort to address this long standing vulnerability, the NSF INCLUDES Minority SURGE Capacity in Disaster- Food Security Team assisted the St. Thomas Long-Term Recovery Team’s (STRT) initiative to promote urban agriculture and cooperative community farming on the island to lessen the territory’s food import dependency, increase native seed production, supplement livelihoods, and increase the island’s resilience during the annual hurricane season. Urban agriculture is a viable food security method for increasing disaster preparedness as it makes a community more resilient to supply chain disruptions.6 This document highlights the African keyhole model as an ideal garden type for St. Thomas. This is one aspect of STRT’s broader food security initiative on the island. The African Keyhole Garden is a sustainable gardening method which makes it suitable for harsh climate conditions, challenging topography, modified soils types, and various geographic locations. The raised bed technique and the keyhole indentation allow easy access (particularly helpful for individuals with mobility limitations) to the central compost basket for dumping kitchen waste, organic debris, and greywater,7 and to the bed for harvesting crops. This document provides step by step guidelines for garden creation with pictures featuring the members of the NSF INCLUDES Minority SURGE Capacity in Disaster- Food Security Team during their “Boots on the Ground” service-learning project in June 2019. The team created two prototype gardens in two different locations in St. Thomas. The first traditional African Keyhole Garden was built at the condemned Addelita Cancryn Junior High School and the second garden, a modified “Ankh” African Keyhole Garden was constructed at Camp Umoja in Mandahl Bay.

TOOLS AND SUPPLIES Rocks (Large & Medium) Pebbles (Gravel) Work Gloves | Shovel | Wheelbarrow Cardboard (Used Boxes) Chicken wire (3-5 sq. ft.)

Stakes | Sticks Hammer | Wire Cutter Measuring tape Zip ties

Soil | Topsoil | Organic Debris Wood ash Sargassam Debris (Washed) Worm Castings Potting Mix & Promix (Peat Moss & Perlite) Manure (Cow & Hen) Root and Leaf crop seedlings/ Seeds Flowers (Attract Pollinators, E.g. Perry winkle) Pest Control Herbs (E.g. Basil, Onion, Garlic)

Garbage Bags (1-2bags)

Nitrogen Fixing Plants (E.g. Peas, Beans)

Civilian cargo planes with nonperishable food provided some limited relief, along with FEMA supplied Meals-Ready-to-Eat (MRE).

Community gardens, backyard gardens, street landscaping, greenhouses, rooftop gardens, aquaponics, aeroponics, and vertical farms are all excellent examples of urban agriculture that we encourage in urban environments and disaster-prone regions.

7 Sources of greywater include, sinks, showers, baths, clothes washing machines or dish washers.

5 6

STEP 1 Find a suitable area to build your garden.

• A flat surface is preferable of approximately 8-10 ft in diameter.

• If your land is on a slope you can level the designated area to create the flat surface (fig. 1).

• The area should be exposed to direct sunlight. Avoid areas of excessive shade.

Figure 1. Clearing the designated area for the African Keyhole Garden set up.

STEP 2 Measure and build your keyhole garden wall.

(a)

(b)

(c) Figure 2. Designing the keyhole garden layout

• Mark a 6 ft diameter circle for your garden’s inner walls (fig. 2a). Rocks are ideal for constructing the wall (fig. 2b), but you can use alternative materials for your garden walls e.g., metal, timber, block/ brick or anything that can support wet soil.

• Cut a keyhole wedged wall inwards at the center to access the compost basket (fig. 2c). The keyhole entry should ideally open from the north side of the garden. The keyhole entry should be wheelchair access friendly.

• Construct the walls with additional rocks up to 2 to 3 feet high.

• Outline a 1 sq. ft by 3 ft high compost basket at the center or next to the keyhole wedged wall (fig. 2c).

STEP 3 Construct the compost basket.

• Place four stakes in each corner of your 1sq. ft. basket outline • Wrap the chicken wire around the stakes and secure with zip ties or with additional wiring.

STEP 4 Develop the composting layers of the garden bed.

• Line the interior of the garden walls with cardboard (fig. 3a) and spread gravel or small stones (2 inches thick) at the garden base around the compost basket.

• Add layers of wood/ board, sticks, cardboard, metal pieces, cloths, green and dry plant materials, debris and other compostable materials (e.g., animal bones, seashell, and seaweed) found around the home.

• Soak each layer with (grey) water before adding another layer of compostable material.

• Add a layer of soil (fig. 3 f & g) and saturate soil with grey water.

• Add a layer of nutrient dense soil (humus), if available.

(e)

(f)

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

(g)

Figure 3. Keyhole Garden lining and layering with compostable materials

STEP 5 Create the growing layer of the garden bed.

• • • • •

Add a thin layer of wood ash to the soil layer followed by a 3 - 4 inches thick layer of Pro-Mix then saturate with (grey) water.

Add another 3 inches layer of a mixture of peat moss/ perlite, manure (e.g., cow and chicken), wood ash, and worm casting to form the growing bed (fig. 4). Rich humus soil can be used to replace this step.

(Products available at ABC Nursery or other local plant stores) Line the walls of the compost basket with black garbage bag to regulate the internal temperature (fig. 5).

Fill your compost basket with sticks, wood, grass clipping, mulch, manure, ash, kitchen waste and seaweed (sargassum).

Add water. Cover compost basket when it is very hot and very wet.

Figure 4. Keyhole Garden growing layer medium and compost basket

STEP 6 Germinate the seeds and plant vegetable and herb seedlings.

• • • • •

A combination of root crops and leafy crops is recommended for the garden. Two of each crop is appropriate. Leguminous plants are recommended for nitrogen fixation in the soil.

Plant pest resistant vegetables/ herbs like onion and garlic and basil next to regular crops.

Crops that will grow tall should be placed in areas that receive the most sunlight.

Integrate flowering plants to attract pollinators to the garden.

Water crops at the base. Add more water to areas of garden that get more sunlight.

Figure 5. Germinating seeds and planting vegetable/ herb seedlings planting

STEP 7 Complete the garden and engage in upkeep activities.

• • • • •

Congratulations on creating an African Keyhole Garden.

The garden should be watered regularly keeping the soil moist.

Clean water is used on the topsoil but grey water can be used in the compost basket.

Soil and dry manure can be added to replenish the garden bed.

Add uncooked vegetable scraps, dry manure, eggshells and compost, etc., to compost basket.

Figure 6. Completed African Keyhole and Ankh Keyhole Gardens

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Gratitude is owed to our St. Thomas project partners and contributors, St. Thomas Long-Term Recovery Team, Imani Daniel, Dr. Greg Guannel, Dr. Moe Alahmad, Jamile Kitnurse, Khalarni Rivers, Nyaila Callwood, Anna ‘Djabana’ Francis, Alcedo Justin Francis and Camp Umoja.

FUNDING This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (award # 1929204) and the St. Thomas Long-Term Recovery Team - Center for Disaster Philanthropy 2017 Atlantic Recovery Fund. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation or the St. Thomas Long-Term Recovery Team.