L
DESDE 2001
FINCA ECOLOGICA-JARDIN BOTANICO-CENTRO TURISTICO- RESERVA NATURAL
LOCATION – The farm is situated between the city of Pitalito, in the department of Huila, Colombia, today a renowned center for quality-coffee production, and the town of
San Agustin, Colombia's foremost tourist/archeological zone and world heritage site. The farm is located in the Albania neighbourhood, a ten minute drive in car from the principal road between Pitalito y San Agustin.
The region of Huila, Colombia has always drawn tourists and visitors to the area and the recent peace agreement has attracted even more tourism to the zone.
Cruce Vereda Criollos
CLIMATE - Throughout the year the climate is semi-tropical with alternating sunshine and rain and a more defined wet and dry season. This allows for cultivation of vegetables, legumes and tropical fruits such as mango, papaya, guanabana, cacao.etc. The farm is situated 1450 metres above sea-level.
Arriving at the Farm
THE LAND
THE LAND - The principal land for sale amounts to approximately 5 hectares, cultivated with pineapple, coffee, cacao, sugar-cane, macadamia nut, plantain, banana, guanabana, pitaya, papaya, mango, apple, citric fruits, borojo and many other fruit species. The gardens have been cultivated and terraced with an emphasis in self-sustainability to provide a wide variety of food and medicinal plants. With the principles of ecology, soil-regeneration and species propagation the land has been extensively planted with trees of all kinds and there are zones available for further cultivation. There are also abundant natural staple crops on the farm such as yucca, bore, and yota which abound throughout South America. The land has its own sources of water on the farm and various storage tanks. The farm also has additional water-rights supplied from a local aqueduct that receives crystalline waters from the surrounding mountains. The farm is also supplied with mains electricity and there is abundant sunshine for solar-energy based installations.
As an ecological project in self-sustainability the farm has been developed for over nineteen years and has a rich diversity in flora y fauna which attracts many hummingbirds, and in general a rich variety of colourful bird-life, making it a very pleasant refuge in the countryside with awesome views of Colombia's central mountain ranges it has proved a delight for visitors.
DWELLINGS AND
SOCIAL SPACE
The farm has a choice of three large houses, each complete with kitchen, bathroom and bedrooms. Two of those houses have stunning mountain views. Overlooking the mountains and set in the hillside there is also a small eco-house and in another gladed area rests a small clay-built retreat-hut with water and electricity. Upon entering the farm there is a reception house that has ample garage space for two cars, with three reception rooms and a general meeting-space on the second floor.
Set in a beautiful botanical zone beside a fish-pond there is a large temple constructed in wood as an open-plan social space with a pyramid-shaped skylight in the central point, with an underground refuge built underneath.
A circularly sculpted fire sanctuary offers fresh air evenings for social gatherings, story-telling, music-making, star-gazing and fire reflection.
We have built a hermitically-sealed hut that supports mushroom cultivation. There are also composting zones and a bio-digester for gas generation that is pending installation. There are various large enclosures for chickens and ducks and the cultivations of sugar-cane, corn, yucca, bore, amazonian wheat and pigeon pea helps them thrive on the farm.
As we have had beehives on this farm which supports a rich variety of wild flowers honey production is viable. The department of Huila in Colombia is renowned for its production of honey due to its natural bio-diversity.
BIODIVERSITY
LOCAL ECONOMY
DEVELOPMENTAL POSSIBILITIES
On the farm we have the following fruit flowering species.
Coffee, Piñas, Pitayas, Plantain, Tunas, Grapefruit, Guanabanos, Mangos, Guava, Cacaos, Bananos, Macadamia, Chontaduros, Nisperos, Mandarins, Chachafrutos, Borojos, Apple, Orange, Lemons.
We also have the following fruit bearing species planted - Aboticaba, Arbol del pan, Achiote, Araza, Castaño, Caimo, Carambo, Guamo, Granadilla, Maco, Minchu, Morera, Maracuya, Mangostin, Madroño, Noni, Zapote, Link, Freijoas, Pakay (Guamo de Bolivia), Pomo, Pitanga, Pomo Enana, Sacha Inchi, Starfuit, Grape, Amazon Grape, Zapote.
Medicinal Plants
Ambar; Almendro, Bolsa Panelero, Copiaba, Chiricaspe,
Chuchgguaza, Carare, Enebro, Granado, Khat, Matarraton, Matico, Sauco, Sugarcane, Sasafras, Yurima, Yopo, Zarzarparilla, amongst others
Timber Species
Abarco, Aguacatillo, Arbol Loco, Arrayan, Ceibo, Chacatia, Costillo, Caracoli, Chiparo, Chunchu, Cachimbo, Cedro Rosado (Red Cedar), Cascarillo, Caucho, Capiron, Eucaliptis, Espino, Gualanday, Guayacan, Guarango, Guasicucho, Laurel, Mara, Marfil, Nacedero, Nogal, Palo Cruz, Palo Diablo, Pine (Cypress), Pino Azul, Pino Colombiano, Roble, Soliman, Teca,Tachuelo, Tahibo, Urapan.
As a premier tourist zone in the country local restaurants are keen buyers of organically grown fruits, vegetable and legumes. Borojo fruit, Sacha-inchi nuts and Chontoduro palm-fruits are always in demand as super-foods and medicinal plants are valued in the local towns. Sugar-cane and honey products are always in demand and organically-grown coffee is easily sold as San Agustin is renowned for the quality of its coffee. Tourism in the area has increased greatly in recent years and tourists and working-volunteers are easily found to support development projects on the farm.
The farm has ample potential for further development as an eco-village permaculture project, tourist refuge or natural-medicine health sanctuary.