Sumba Cooperative · Tarimbang, Sumba, Indonesia
March 7, 2026
Front Gate In. Fruit Trees from Bali. First Corn Cobbs.
A temporary front gate is finally in — the buffalo problem is solved. A shipment of fruit trees from Bali Organic Center has arrived and is going in the ground. And the first batch of corn is growing cobbs.
March 4, 2026
Progress Between Rains
The workshop and storage shed is taking real shape. More infrastructure work planned once the dry season begins.
February 23, 2026
Second Well Cased. Bananas and Papayas Taking Off.
A concrete culvert is set in place for controlled trash burning. Two culvert pieces are installed over the second well as a casing — next step is the wood top, pipe, and pump, same as the first well. New banana and papaya plants are starting to take off. Corn is going well. Workshop deck work continues.
February 18–19, 2026
Thatch Roof Finished. Workshop Deck Next.
The alang-alang thatch roof over the workshop and container entrance is finished. Work now shifts to the deck for the outdoor covered workshop.
February 15, 2026
Water Tanks Arrive. Baby Buffalo Causes Trouble.
The water storage tanks for above the container have arrived. A baby buffalo has been wandering the property and sampling the new coconut trees. The front gate can’t come soon enough.
February 13, 2026
Thatch Struts. Rice Fields Plowed — Last Season.
The alang-alang grass thatch struts are going in — these are what the traditional grass thatch roof will be tied to over the open workshop and container entrance. A beautiful material, completely local.
On the lower property, the guys are plowing for rice. Mark tells them this is the last season for rice — in the dry season the land will be reshaped into three small lakes as part of the permaculture design.
February 9, 2026
Starting the Week with Progress
February 5, 2026
The Roof Goes On
The top roof of the container structure goes in today.
February 4, 2026
The Tractor Arrives. Road Graded in Two Hours.
The tractor made it. Stump removal and road grading completed in two hours flat.
February 3, 2026
Well #2 at Six Meters. Tractor Coming.
The second well is now six meters deep using the water-blasting method, drawing water from well #1 — itself an encouraging sign of supply. The container structure is coming along. A shared tractor has been commissioned with two neighboring property owners to grade the loop road — except it broke a hose and had to send someone 60km away for a part.
January 29, 2026
Container Structure Rising. Road Clearing Underway.
Good weather brings good progress. The container structure is being assembled on site. Brush clearance for the loop road continues. The next corn patch is tilled and planted, and the pig-damaged patches get infill seeds.
January 26–28, 2026
Pigs in the Corn. Chicken Wire Goes Up.
Little pigs found the first corn patch and helped themselves. A chicken wire fence goes up around the patch the next morning to protect it until the plants are big enough to hold their own.
January 21–22, 2026
The Internal Loop Road Takes Shape
The internal ring road alignment is being marked and cleared of gamal vegetation so a grader can pull the stumps in the dry season. Meanwhile, the living fence has started sprouting new leaves — a beautiful sign, and also a future maintenance challenge. The mahogany shavings from the carpenter work make excellent compost material. Corn is doing well.
January 18, 2026
End of Week Progress
January 16, 2026
Moo on Site
January 15, 2026
Fence Complete. Carpenters at Work.
The last load of gamal stakes arrived and the perimeter fence is finished. The carpenters are preparing the timber for the container structure at a nearby property where they can access electricity — once all pieces are fitted and ready, everything will be transported and reassembled on site over and around the container.
January 7, 2026
First Plants In. Wood on Its Way.
The first plants go into the ground. The truckload of wood for the container structure was loaded up in Waingapu and is en route. The first corn is already sprouting. Fence work continues.
A truckload of Mahogany-grade timber from Waingapu — 35 million Rupiah (~$2,300 USD including transport). There’s no such thing as accurately dimensioned lumber here; every piece gets hand-planed to spec on site.
January 2, 2026
New Year Progress Report
The final batch of gamal stakes for the perimeter fence has arrived. The west edge and access road — including both the main and secondary gates — are nearly complete. Only the southern boundary remains, and materials are already ordered.
The first corn has been planted near well #1 in the upper middle tier. The plan: once it’s about a foot high, intercrop with string beans, then squash as a ground cover to keep weeds down. Two camp staff have asked to use the rice paddies this season. A new attempt on the second well is planned.
Moo has chosen his site for a cottage and started early design work — a working home away from home.
December 22–23, 2025
The Stream Breaks Through
After two days of intense rain — the heaviest of the season so far — the stream that borders the property finally carved a four-foot channel through the beach dune and reached the sea. The ankle-deep lake on the lower tier has drained. Rainy season is now fully on.
A surprise visitor: forest honey bees (Madu Hutan) have taken up residence under the lid of the first well. The planned apiaries may not be difficult to establish after all. The road to town held up, which was a relief for errands in Waingapu.
December 14, 2025
First Update from the Field
Mark sends the first comprehensive site update. The living fence — a perimeter of planted gamal stakes — is about 65% complete and expected to finish within a few weeks. The lower part of the property is ankle-deep in water from the rains, waiting for the estuary to break through the beach dune and drain out to sea. The first well has a hand pump installed and working. A second well hit sandstone hard pan while digging — the water-blasting method will need to be adjusted.
Wood has been ordered for the structure that will go over the storage container, inclusive of a covered outdoor workshop. Tools brought back from the States are stored in the container. A meeting with the village head went well — he’s fully supportive of the plans.
Field Journal 