Cayo District of Western Belize holiday photos.

* You have to swim to get into this underworld cave.
* Mennonite farming family cross river bridge in horse and buggy.
* Cayo District horseback riding.
* Cayo District, Western Belize valley.

OVERNIGHT TOURISM in Belize, RECOVERING IN APRIL from loss of high season in January.

TOURISM RETURNING TO NORMAL IN WESTERN BELIZE.

December and January were terrible for tourism in Western Belize, with all the negative panic publicity from BUSH and OBAMA at the changeover of USA administrations. Due to Banks that gambled with derivatives and lost in the TRILLIONS. Other investment banks that collapsed with their PONZI pyramid schemes and Hedge Funds that went belly up, a tradition in a BEAR MARKET everytime. Hedge funds only work a little bit in BULL markets. Most of the time, they are a scam sold to the gullible for brokers commissions. We lost in Western Belize our six week high season of last half of December and all of January, in which most tourist places make the most money, equal to the rest of the year put together. February, a trickle of travelers for overnight trips started. By March things were doubling. Now it is April and reports out in the TWIN TOWNS indicate that tourism is back to normal, equal to the statistical performance of past years. We can breathe a sigh of relief over that.

MARKET DAY IS GLORIOUS HERE IN WESTERN BELIZE

Macal river market in Twin Towns of Western Belize


Western Belize Twin Towns Macal River market.

What a wonderful day out there this Saturday morning. Sun is shining. The Macal river market is loaded with people. Vegetables and food stalls, used cloths, tools, flowers for planting, young chickens chirping away, a crate of small puppies sleeping away among the bustle of people. Country girls are dressed in their finest dresses and high heels. The young farmers of tomorrow sport their sombreros, and cowboy boots and western belts with western buckles. Our famous local soloist street musician was playing to the crowd for all he was worth. He said, he is going to be on Channel 7 tv on Thursday and Sunday at 9 p.m.and I should watch it.
The Macal River is shallow and clear, kids are just wandering into the shallow water, to play and swim on this day that promises to be hot. Horses are picketed along the grassy river bank, below the market tents and stalls. Said hello to a few friends and acquaintances. Janet the Mennonite dairy farm widow, at her stall gave me some samples of her granola. So I didn't have to buy breakfast. The wife had disappeared shopping and later we met when she had her quota of radishes, bananas, and myriad other vegetables we do not grow at home. The tomatoes this week are huge. I could not resist weighing one, it ran over a half a pound, but not quite three quarters of a pound. Lots of new vegetables.The carrots, radishes, and onions have vastly improved in looks and size. It takes an extra six weeks to let green bell peppers turn red on the vine so most farmers sell them green. I did see some red ones though, but no red chiles. I have some of those growing in my nursery. Wife got some cucumbers, they add a very nice tart flavor to our home made salads from our own nursery vegetables. The vegetable scene is real good this time of year.
It was a very pleasant stroll through the market stalls, talking and stopping to gawk at things. I was thinking I wouldn't like to live anyplace else in the world, than right here in Santa Elena Town. This is what I call living! Small, folksy with a touch of consideration from your neighbors. Beats living in Miami by ten thousand times. You can take your FIRST WORLD industrialized country life and large metropolis and shove it.
The park nearby to the market was loaded with tents and I see by the sign that Sacred Heart High School is going to be having some sort of event. The traveling circus has gone this past week to another location.

Sandpoint, Idaho native visits Belize leaving 3 feet of snow behind.

John Holub, 26 years old, from Sandpoint, Idaho, USA. A carpenter by trade building in houses. Avid snow skier. Enjoying quiet time in Belize. Said he flew in and will fly out of CANCUN from Los Angelus. That he left 3 feet of snow in Idaho in March. Staying at Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel, in the dormitory, all to himself and quiety reading the days away in a hammock and exploring the local ancient Mayan ruins.

Beautiful girls of Belize - photos

Beautiful girls of Belize
Costa Maya beauty contestant in Belize

We have some VERY pretty girls in Belize!

TWIN TOWNS ELECTIONS - 2009, Belize

Town Councillor of the TWIN TOWNS, Western Belize town board


CAMPAIGNING FOR TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TWIN TOWNS OUT WEST IS HOT AND HEAVY.

Latest gossip I got from a Santa Cruz resident, was that we are being cheated over in our side of the Macal River of the twin towns. I was told and I don’t know if this is true, or not? But I was told that the San Ignacio Town side of the river has 11 weed eater machine workers cleaning street sides and 4 trucks to pick up trash and garbage. While on the Santa Elena Town side of the Macal River only 3 weed eater machine workers are assigned and 1 trash truck. I do know that we go a month sometimes and even longer before our garbage is picked up quite often. I had put that down to insufficient funds. They tell me in the suburbs of Santa Cruz nobody is doing anything from the Town Council, because they have no voice on the Town Board. I’m not sure about this, but it is my information that a Santa Cruz resident is running as an Independent, Alfonso Cruz Jr. for the Twin Towns board.
That we get some attention in Hillview, is due to my articles about Hillview. Hillview and Santa Cruz are like two suburbs that are growing rapidly and probably have more houses than the center of old San Ignacio Town of by gone days, some 30 years ago. They are up in the hills from the Western Highway and all these houses out here are not observable when a person normally drives past on the Western Highway through Santa Elena Town. The other day I was over in the KON TIKI area. There are a lot of bad streets and many, many houses out there as well. Hundreds of them! Totally neglected by the TOWN BOARD. I hope the KON TIKI people have a resident running for the Town Board as well. The party doesn’t matter.
Interesting story about the current TOWN BOARD UDP Council, that are running. The word I got, and have to admit I don’t really know the truth. But the current slate of candidates running for re-election as incumbents in the UDP Council, never got appointed by a UDP Convention out here in the West. I’m told there was no UDP CONVENTION and no DEMOCRACY in the process, just an acceptance and appointment by the UDP party leader DEAN BARROW.
Today, the PUP campaigners came by, and actually gave me an expensive flyer in color, for their slate of PUP candidates. In the news somewhere, the PUP make an allegation asking the existing incumbent UDP Town Council where $5 million dollars they received for something or other disappeared too? They claim there is no UDP TOWN BOARD accountability and transparency. What I did get from the PUP campaign flyer was the probability that the PUP will raise PROPERTY TAXES.
There is a move afoot by the UDP to install the new Building Permit ACT laws created by the PUP in the previous National Administration and generally speaking I am against that, as it means a monopoly by Belize City architects on the whole darned country, as the rules get expanded, requiring people to shell a couple thousand dollars out for useless plans. It is just a money making gimmick and racket for those in the process to squeeze people for more money in various ways. After seeing this work in the USA, I don’t think our country of Belize is going to be better for this Building Permit system.
I understand there is a method of social welfare used by previous Town Boards and this TOWN BOARD we now have; to help the aged and others who want $20 for food and other reasons. I’m against that system of political patronage and paternalism. If we want something like a social welfare system for citizens, then it should be formalized in an accountable process and put through some INDEPENDENT CHARITY like the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army are professionals and could and should disburse vouchers and stuff for social assistance. They do in Canada and the USA. You need to take the social welfare out of the hands of the Town Council members. What is missing in this social welfare business, of hand outs for the needy, is that if you have an INDEPENDENT NGO doing it, a Charitable Organization, you can by soliciting abroad, get the whole shebang of funds COVERED by FOREIGN AID in the form of GRANTS. What is hurting Town Boards practicing paternalism political hand outs, is that it eats into Council funds longer term and eats up the SUBVENTION money. While the TOWN BOARD could establish a slush fund for social requests administered by say the SALVATION ARMY, this money would eventually be recovered by FOREIGN GRANTS if done right.
When the campaigning started I was pretty much satisfied with the UDP Council we now have, but since then, I’m going to VOTE for YOLA FLORES a Hillview neighbor running for the TOWN BOARD on the PUP ticket. Not interested really in the party affiliation, just that HILLVIEW my community, has a voice on the next TOWN BOARD, if possible. We don’t have one now and get slighted a lot on our side of the river. If Alfonso Cruz Jr., is running as an INDEPENDENT and is going to speak for SANTA CRUZ, then probably I would vote for him? We need some muscle in TOWN BOARD meetings. That leaves two of the UDP candidates that will lose votes from this side of the river. Which ones I don’t know yet?
Far as I understand from UDP party people, the current UDP TOWN BOARD slate are illegal by UDP rules, as they never went through a PARTY picking CONVENTION. Other UDP would be contenders are really angry about this meddling, by the National UDP party and Mr. Barrow. They felt, if you are going to be DEMOCRATIC, then a CONVENTION should have picked the slate of candidates. There should have been some competition. I hope I’m not being misinformed here?
Everybody running, is in it for the money apparently? Think the Mayor gets around $4000 a month, don’t know what councilors get? This is before a stick of work is done on cleaning, or repairing streets. Past councilors on the TWIN TOWN BOARDS claim there is a lot of opportunity for SKIMMING and nepotism. Kind of an interesting campaign though. First time I and my wife are really going to vote in this one, in this geographical location.

ICA Stones and the Brontasaurus in Peru

Map of valley where ancient engraved stones found.
Over 15,000 stones going back 150 million years, with humans and dinosaurs co-existing
Dinosaur and human




GIANT HUMANS RIDE BRONTASAURUS 150 MILLION YEARS AGO

Some years ago I put forward the theory that humans farmed dinosaurs, back in the dinosaur age. Based on fossil footprints found in Texas of humans and dinosaurs together, frozen in TIME and MUD casts, which were excavated.
Well now the ICA stones of Peru have opened Pandoras Box of human history. Thousands of stones, carved with all manner of prehistoric dinosaur creatures have been found in a remote desert valley of Peru. THOUSANDS! Some of the carvings show Giant humans killing Tyronaus Rex with a weapon and others show humans riding the Brontasaurus. This would make humans over twenty feet tall. We did have a different environment, air quality and other factors during that ancient time. That is a lot of ICE AGES ago though. Look up ICA stones and see what you think. Tihuanaco is still a puzzling ruin and while dating says 13,000 years, it may be a millions of years older than that.

NEWCASTLES CHICKEN VIRAL DISEASE IN BELIZE

Old style Mennonite farmers using hand labor and horses on very small homesteads.
Modern Mennonite farmers of Belize who use the latest technology.

small milpero farmer in Belize



NEWCASTLES CHICKEN VIRAL DISEASE IN BELIZE

by Ray Auxillou

The chicken industry has been built up by the Mennonite industry group in Belize to the point that today, chicken is the mainstay of meat consumption. The production of lean meat that is cheap, accompanied by the egg production, has become a major part of the self subsistence nature of Belizean agriculture. Agriculture teams are also targeting Guatemala, Salvador, and Costa Rica for marketing our agriculture products, in particular for exporting not only frozen chicken parts, but also for crops like beans and corn.
It has been several months since NEWCASTLE CHICKEN VIRUS swept through the Belizean countryside, but today, after various assistances in technology from foreign parts, the National Government of Belize has budgeted the $100,000 Bz ( about $50,000 usa ) for the appropriate equipments and medical assistance to fight NEWCASTLE disease of chickens in Belize. That equipment has now arrived and the vaccination program is to start in the first two weeks of February, 2009. The vaccination will occur from North to South, from Corozal in the North, to the remote Southern Toledo District and from the East to the West, from the Caribbean coast barrier reef islands, to the borders of Guatemala. The Ministry of Agriculture is in charge of this program. Major producers of chicken with large hatcheries, mostly the Spanish Lookout Mennonite Community are already vaccinating. But the big problem are wild chickens, and home chickens that are allowed to roam the backyards and countryside of isolated houses and farms. Many small homeowners keep a few chickens to provide themselves with eggs. Viral diseases are spread through the air, and so cannot be contained otherwise. Vaccination is believed to the answer.
The very small Government of Belize is putting considerable efforts into all forms of Agriculture, as the growing population of Belize is sustained during this world crisis, going on outside in the international arena, by our ability to be self supporting and to feed ourselves. Self sustainability is foremost as a priority, among the leaders of our government in this uncertain world. Our fledgling small agriculture industry is steadily expanding in technological means, skills and research abilities. The new crops for export are vegetables, vegetable processed products, red kidney beans, rice, and corn. These are slowly going to replace the uncertain old colonial mainstays of bananas and sugar.
The Ministry of Agriculture is also fielding marketing teams for our products seeking to export to our neighboring Central American countries for markets for our products. Mr. Canto of the Central Farm Research headquarters in the Cayo District was interviewed on local TV station, PLUS TV explaining the progress.

GIRLS OF BELIZE !

Schoolgirls of Belize
Mennonite girl of Belize

Girls of Belize!

BELIZE FINANCIAL STATUS REVIEW Feb 1st - 09

Ray Auxillou, reporter on the economy of Belize.

photo - image Dean Barrow, Minister of Finance of Belize.




BELIZE FINANCIAL STATUS - Feb. 1st, 2009

The Belize economy is going to be good for projections through 2009. This is due mainly to an infusion of macro spending infra-structure support, using $200 million Bz., of FOREIGN LOANS by the UDP Government. There will be a sort of mini-boom and by the end of 2009, we should see GDP rise by at least 1% for one year.
How much the government spending on infra-structure, for macro economic growth reasons, will actually be reflected in the longer term, say at least the last three years of the UDP term in government, will remain to be seen. Long term, we are building in recessionary corrections for following governments, who will have to revert to austerity measures and a tightened economic situation. In the series of BOOM and BUST cycles favored by Caricom style English, debt financing driven government economics, we are for this year at least, in a BOOM year in Belize. Sort of like the three years the PUP did the same thing, the political term before last, when they went on a three year borrowing spree.
Like the Eastern Caribbean CARICOM countries, that are reputed to be over extended in DEBT FINANCING, to the tune of 170% of GDP, Belize is also increasing the overall National Debt to GDP ratio, expected to be over 100% of GDP by the time the end of this fiscal year. Economic announcements are made by Belmopan in April. The goal in a well managed economy is a National Debt to GDP ratio of below 3% GDP.
The Banks in Belize are fairly stable and not over exposed on their real estate portfolios. Unlike the outside world, margins for real estate loans are high, collateral is usually based on solid valuations, at least in an expanding economy and population. The exception if any, or weakness in the real estate loan market, are the Government institutions, who traditionally make loans based on low false collateral evaluations. Bank liquidity seems to be adequate for the moment. We have to watch the EXPORT figures and TOURISM figures, to more appreciate how liquidity is going to be effected, mostly for the government tax revenues on an annual basis. Liquidity for 2009 should remain stable, despite some economic downturn in sugar and tourism revenues; but the high debt ratio is building in a DEEP DEPRESSION for the Belize economy, down the line at the longer term situation. Many are concerned about DEVALUATION again in Belize before the UDP leave office in four years, or shortly thereafter. Recently in Iceland, with the collapse of their government, because of their private banks investing too high a percentage of their funds in high interest, high risk mortgage portfolios ( gambling on financial swaps and bets ). Icelandic citizens saw their private public SAVINGS wiped out and the currency devalued 50%, and the story is not over yet in ICELAND. The government of Belize does not have insurance, or guaranteed bank savings accounts. Should such a DEVALUATION occur in Belize it would be more damaging economically, long term to the nation, than twelve category five hurricanes striking Belize in one season. Undoubtedly there would be massive migration to other countries. People would vote on UDP management policies with their feet and leave.
The Chinese community into grocery retailing are doing well, keeping profit margins fairly low and going for volume sales, with rapid rotation of inventories. The Hindu merchants are likewise doing well, because in their case they are concentrating on population growth and sales of household goods, that all young people need, as they start their families and proceed through life. While the sales may be slower, profit margins are very high, sometimes over 200% to compensate for lower sales volumes. The construction industry remains strong and will do so through 2009 and into 2010. Hardware stores are rotating the fast moving inventories about every 80 days. Steel re-bar and cement is being consumed on two week cycles. Tiles for floors on three month cycles. Being an agrarian society, Belize can revert easily to a former colonial life style of self sufficiency, subsistence and hunter-gatherer methods of survival, though it would mean in the case of a national debt caused DEVALUATION, in losing two thirds of our population to migration someplace else, for a more stable life style.
The fly in the ointment for the Belize Economy are the two political party governments, following a high debt financing policy, favored by CARICOM countries under the British style parliamentary system. Liquidity for the government revenues, despite a probable increase of 10% a year on average, will cycle downwards for the next few years, based on shrinking customary agrarian and tourism cash flows into the Belize economy. Some sort of breakthrough into light manufacturing is needed to increase export valuations and overall economic spending within Belize. The only export target so far, is the agro-processed exporting niche market. Some sort of manufactured items need to be made in Belize and exported also. Would such endeavors see government assistance, and or protections? That is a question most people feel not! The predatory nature of government institutional growth and expenditure costs is discouraging people from such endeavors. Both the government attitudes must change and that of people willing to try their hand at high risk experiments in light manufacturing.
The core of growth in Belize is controlled primarily by the high debt ratio to GDP. With a liquidity tax revenue base, running around $750 million to $850 million a year in revenues, for the remaining four years of the UDP term in office. The projections indicate that a depressionary cycle is in the offing, if not disastrous; because of the looming costs associated with the alleged SUPER BOND escalating costs eating up too much of the government revenues. Currently the SUPER BOND interest payments are consuming $250 million of government revenues approximately, and the government is trying to maintain costs within the $500 million figure. Alas, when the interest rate jumps 50% to $375 million a year, we are not going to be able to pay the interest. Shortly after that, the SUPER BOND interest rates are scheduled to double again to $725 million a year. Coupled with the twenty year loans currently borrowed during 2008, in the amount of $200 million and the UDP have announced more loans are in the pipeline. Spacing those existing loans payback over twenty years, means that payback would be roughly $500 million over twenty years, and this projects to an additional $25 million a year to pay. Manageable, if it was not for the SUPER BOND. Twenty years is a long time and that means four new governments taking five year terms, and if history is any guide, each of those governments based on our two political parties mean they in turn will be borrowing loans, or wish to during those four terms of office covering the twenty years. The only person that grasped the enormity of the debt financing crisis, was past Prime Minister Musa, who went on an austerity schedule for six years, which effectively cut the National Debt to GDP ratio from 127% of GDP to 76 % of GDP. The current government policies are shooting the National Debt ratio back up again and expected to increase once more over 100% of GDP, like the financially mismanaged Eastern Caricom island countries.
There is another option open to the Government, as a trader I favor this one. As the debt and economic crisis for Belize develops, as the SUPER BOND interest rates increase, the inability of the Government of Belize to handle the SUPER BOND LOAN COSTS will create a PANIC in the BOND HOLDERS, as well it should. Unable to pay, Belize is going to have to at some point go bankrupt again under current circumstances. The media are reporting that average price of the SUPER BOND was .32 cents on the dollar, when it was reported that Lord Ashcroft picked up about $17 million of the SUPER BOND. There are if I remember correctly, a couple of BILLION outstanding? As a trader and if I was the GOB I would go into LADDERING. This is a trading methodology and term. Get someone like Chavez to loan the money on concessionary terms and set up buy orders, every 10% down as the price of the SUPER BONDS falls from 32% on the dollar, as the economic crisis situation deepens. This will occur as the scheduled two interest rate increases come on line. Simply buy up the SUPER BOND on shrinking bid and ask values as the panic hits BOND HOLDERS. It is going to be a choice for them, of losing it ALL, or taking what they can get.
The devil is in the details. The details are that this government does indeed take in enough revenues to maintain and expand our economy, if they had no loans to pay.

TAIWAN IS BELIZE BEST FRIEND IN THE WORLD!

The guy on the right is Taiwan Ambassador Ting Jospeh SHIH. Photo on the left, but he is on the right viewing the photo.



Western Belize Happenings NEWS REPORT
THE PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT OF TAIWAN DONATE A CONTAINER LOAD OF MEDICAL EQUIPMENT TO BELIZE
by Ray Auxillou ( http://westernbelizehappenings.blogspot.com )

During the October river flooding and subsequent widespread damage in Belize of 2008, several Belizean bureaucrats were invited to Taiwan by Taiwanese Ambassador Shih, here in Belize to go to their island country. Once in Taiwan, the Belizeans were able to meet with a number of business people and politicians. Subsequently, around a half million Belize currency, of medical equipment was donated to Belize. This arrived recently in a container by ocean shipping. From the photographs on the television news here in Belize, there are all kinds of electronic specialized medical equipment, for diagnosistic purposes and applications during surgery and that sort of thing. The contents of the container were very impressive and nothing like these modern machines would be normally affordable by our much poorer Belizean economy. The medical equipment is going to the WESTERN REGIONAL HOSPITAL in the capital of Belmopan, in the center of the country of Belize. Belmopan our capital is in the CAYO DISTRICT, of our Western Regional agriculture, industrial and tourism recreational area, and possesses about half the population of the country in around 500 square miles. Mind you, with around 310,000 people, of which 80% are probably under 15 years old, we don’t have all that many adults in our nation.
The thing is; the constant and steady support with GRANTS and ASSISTANCE from medical equipment, agriculture programs, school feeding programs for poverty class children, budget assistance and emergency disaster grants; the country of TAIWAN, their government and people halfway across the world, are seemingly our BIGGEST DONORS and do more for the small nation of Belize, than the UK, the European Union, the USA, & Canada, in the form of financial and development assistance programs than all the others put together. The Belizean people are well aware that TAIWAN, strange as it may seem, has a big heart, compassionate people and the few immigrants from TAIWAN that have moved to this country of Belize are highly appreciated for their work ethic and high ethical standards. There are no words to really describe the emotional ties that bind the people and government of TAIWAN and the people and government of Belize. This small island country of TAIWAN, are making a BIG DIFFERENCE in the quality of life and our development as an emerging pioneering agrarian society. Ambassador Shih is the catalyst and driving force, for forging the strong ties between TAIWAN and BELIZE. Those TAIWANESE are darned GREAT PEOPLE mon!
---------------------

Channel 7 News Report on television in Belize

Taipei Hospital Donates Medical Equipment
posted (January 21, 2009)

This afternoon Taiwan’s Ambassador to Belize Ting Joseph Shih formally handed over a container with two hundred thousand dollars worth of medical equipment to the Ministry of Health. The equipment which includes portable x-ray and ultra sound machines were donated by the Tao Yuan Hospital in Taipei. They are the second half of a US$200,000 assistance secured by Health Minister Pablo Marin when he visited Taiwan in November. The first half was in cash but the equipment didn’t get here until Christmas Eve. It has now been unpacked and CEO in the Ministry of Health Dr. Peter Allen says they will go where they are needed.

Dr. Peter Allen, CEO – Ministry of Health
“There are x-ray machines, ultrasound machines, anaesthesia machines, operating theatre tables, electrocardiograph machines to monitor heart and patient safety monitor machines for operating theatres and they will go to places of course where they are most needed to principally to the Western Regional Hospital. The Tao Yung Hospital in Taiwan along with the regional management team led by Pearl Ellis of the Western Regional Hospital created a twin relationship and so the Tao Yung Hospital is particularly keen on helping the Western Regional Hospital.

They can only improve the delivery of healthcare. One donation is never enough to do everything that we would like but they can help to improve and along with the other efforts of the ministry and our other partners, we intend to make sure that the people of Belize keep getting quality healthcare at an affordable cost.”

The Ministry of Health has another container of equipment and supplies waiting to be unpacked at its Central Medical Supplies Compound. It is from a group in Chicago and includes wheelchairs, beds, surgical instruments, and other medical supplies.

VEGETABLE GROWING IN TROPICAL BELIZE

STATE OF THE ART OF VEGETABLE GROWING IN TROPICAL BELIZE

by Ray Auxillou, Jan. 20, 2009

A recent visit to our BELIZE DEVELOPMENT TRUST ( internet NGO of volunteers ), two very small, simple, hand applied, hydroponic research facility nurseries, located at Hillview Hacienda, home of Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel on the slope of Green Parrot Valley on the edge of Santa Elena Town in the Western Cayo District of Belize, enquiries by a fairly new USA immigrant and investor, sent to us for information by Central Farm Government Research Station, who wanted to go into Greenhouse production of vegetables; required me to sum up the state of the art in vegetable growing in tropical Belize, for him and his son.
The last book we printed on the subject, the FOURTH EDITION of the BELIZE VEGETABLE FARMERS BIBLE ), primarily for government employees and the University of Belize Agriculture College Library was a year ago, in January of 2008. We only published 20 copies which cost us $700 bz currency out of pocket each printing edition and sold only two. The rest were donated FREE to government institutions mostly. There has been some progress since then in the last year. In summary, the knowledge of how to grow temperate zone vegetables in the lowland tropical climate of Belize, is thus:
• Winter time vegetables should be planted late September. These vegetables require a temperature differential between the night and day temperatures to suit their biological clocks.
• Summer time vegetables can start to be planted late February, as our summer is two months earlier than that of Northern climates.
• The vegetables with tap roots do better than vegetables with shallow roots.
• Current emphasis is on testing and trying different varieties of seeds. We have done dozens of tomatoes and lettuce types of seeds. The best so far, in Belize conditions are the POLINA tomato and in lettuce the loose leaf variety of TROPICAL EMPEROR for commercial usage. Many seeds have different daylight exposure times than we have in the tropics. We have not yet been able to grow a ball head lettuce in Belize for example.
• Of paramount importance is preparation of SOIL. The soils of Belize are mostly CLAY, SAND, MARL, PEBBLES, etc. The amount of LOAM and HUMUS is minimal. The rule is; that you must change your soil to LOAM. This is done by turning over your CLAY for example and breaking it up into small pieces. Then adding things like; coarse WOOD CHIPS from the planer at sawmills. (Sawdust does not work.) Adding some kind of LIME, in our case, we use GYPSUM available in sacks from over the border, and at Juan Chuck Hardware locally in Western Belize Twin Towns. The best LIME is DOLOMITE LIME in remote Punta Gorda, “Belize Minerals” but they do not sell, or deliver yet to Western Belize agriculture area. There are many chicken growers with big operations at Spanish Lookout. Chicken manure is probably the best addition for fertilizer. Not too much, a tea spoon full, for each plant is plenty. We also add ashes from garbage burning fires for potash. The addition of all sorts of organic leavings, like grass cuttings, etc. are also beneficial to making CLAY into LOAM and you know it is good when the soil is crumbly and has worms in it. Adding CHARCOAL is recommended by Brazilian research, but nobody yet produces CHARCOAL in Belize. Clay clumps otherwise in rainy season, to a greasy brick like texture, unusable by vegetable roots. Fine sawdust does that too.
• Adding daily water eliminates growing seasons. We have found by three years of experiments, that you can plant weekly for commercial purposes, but this is too often, as the harvest time of plants tends to vary and spread out more. We would recommend depending on the type of vegetable planting, either monthly, or the earliest every two weeks.
• For greenhouses, there is as yet, no importer of thin feeder black plastic hose to connect from mainline water pvc pipes and to six inch plastic drip feeders for each plant. In commercial field operations, farmers have been using well water and flexible coils of drip feeding hose that is about an inch in diameter, with success. Commercial onion farming is now being done successfully with this method in the fields. Greenhouses require drip feeders if you are going commercial. We use a garden hose for our small experimental research operation.
• Hydroponic operations are being used. There must be 200 kinds of hydroponic operations of growing vegetables systems worldwide, but EBB and FLO, seem to pre-dominate? So long as you supply the nutrient and water for the vegetables you are using a hydroponic system, irregardless of the method. I have currently gone to plastic pot growing, using prepared potting soil, made of humus, wood ashes, lime, chicken manure, and compost tea made from organic decomposition. My only addition this third year of experimentation is to supply just the water. Adding nutrient does work faster though, to get results in a timely harvesting manner. We mix our own nutrients. We also use COMPOST TEA we make ourselves and works great.
• Greenhouses get hot in the tropics. The sides must be left open. The local available plastic rolls are not greenhouse UV protected and consequently between the sun and ultra violet light, the stuff tears up fast, about six months. Which is no good. Plastic roofing is used to prevent the rainy season from diluting the nutrients in ebb and flow systems. Shade cloth is available locally. It may not be necessary, but does keep birds out.
• Technically there is no season for growing vegetables, if you supply nutrient and water. However, we can qualify that, and say that during the rainy season, production will go down, when there are too many days of cloud cover and not enough sun.
• GREENHOUSE growing of vegetables is a controlled environment and you can get your vegetables off the ground, which eliminates a lot of bugs and pests. So far, we use water and coconut oil mix for bugs on tomatoes, and compost tea foliar spray for diseases. The only problems we have had, is with tomatoes in which after several months of re-planting continuously we got TOBACCO MOSAIC VIRUS, which wiped them out. THRIPS on tomato plants also gave us trouble. The water and coconut oil spray works, but has to be applied every two days for THRIPS. I’ve known of soil based tomato operations, that had trouble with APHIDS. In our compost tea, we usually add a bit of chicken manure in the mixing part.
• I am now on our third year of continuous vegetable growing, without stopping for seasons. We feed our family with vegetables several times a week. Our research has shifted to finding the most successful varieties suitable for local conditions. We welcome foreign donation of seeds to try. ( mail to: Box 276, San Ignacio, Belize, Central America. ( mark them FREE SAMPLES )
• Currently vegetable growing is an IMPORT SUBSITUTION situation. The country imports a lot of vegetables from Mexico and the USA. Expertise is growing rapidly and soon we expect MARKET GARDENING will become more sophisticated, better managed and applied properly, to lower risk. BUYERS, OR MARKETING is still a problem in most areas of the country. EXPORT buyers so far have expressed interest mostly in HABENERO PEPPERS and PAPAYA. There exist local exporters of both for these two. Potatoes are doing well by Barton Creek Mennonites and Orange Walk and Corozal Mennonite operations are doing well, in onions and partially so in lettuce. San Antonio, Cayo District farmers are doing well in MARKET GARDENING vegetables on a year round basis for the local TWIN TOWNS river market.

Scarlet Macaw photos in Belize

It is January and on television we see and hear of blizzards and freezes in the USA and European countries. Here is a wild set of Scarlet Macaw birds here in tropical Belize. Mind you it was cold here in January part of the time too. I think it got down to 74 degrees farenheight once or twice and even in the high 60's once or twice. Eat your heart out you foolish people living in the North ( laugh! )

Howler Monkey, Jaguar and Vicious Lizard of Belize photos.

The monkey is a famous HOWLER MONKEY. They are making a comeback in Belize after a disease killed most of them around World War Two. The lizard, I do not know it's name, but it is a vicious thing. A real killer. Goes after birds and their eggs in their nests in our entrance arbor and in the orange tree of the side of the front of our Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel. Even my dog is afraid to tackle the darned lizard. The JAGUAR is the national famous something or other. We actually have a Jaguar Reserve in Central Belize along the Belize Alps Eastern side. This jaguar was in the famous BELIZE ZOO, full of native animals orphaned young, or injured and rescued by Sharon Matola ( a traveling backpacker and immigrant to Belize who started the Belize Zoo )

We have lots of photos on the internet at: http://westernbelizehappenings.blogspot.com and articles and stories of life mostly to do effecting people living in the Western Belize foothills area. A 500 square recreational and agriculture area with a climate of ETERNAL SPRING.

Tropical Belize POLINA tomato experiment at Taiwanese Vegetable Mission in Belize

The POLINA tomato experiment at Taiwanese Vegetable Mission at Central Farm in Belize is over. As you can see from the photo the tomatoes are about done. They are also smaller than the POLINA I get. I talked to the Chinese guy Miguel and he said he did not do anything to the vines. Consequently they were bearing 5 to 7 tomatoes per branching, or budding and thus without pruning down to 2 or 3 tomatoes per bunch, you don't get the big size, because the nutrition feeding capacity is reduced, for soil based production.

Reid and Ayers visit Falconview owner in Western Belize

A rainy day, with a NORTH STORM FRONT stalled overhead. Hear it is freezing cold up in North America. Coldest they say since 1912? Two Belize Culture Listserve members came visiting, as they were in the vicinity. Al Ayers from Philadelphia someplace, a Belizean originally and Mr. Reid, our retired ex-Police Press Officer. We had an enjoyable chat up here in rainy Green Parrot Valley at Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel. It rained for two nights and a whole day straight. The Macal river is flooding again, the hydro dam upstream must be overflowing also.

TRAIL BIKES CAN BE RENTED IN TWIN TOWNS FOR 2009 TOURIST SEASON

PACZ TOURS AND RENTAL TRAIL BIKES

Western Belize is full of dirt roads. A trail bike is ideal to get around. A German guy apparently has this tourist season in 2009, put out trail bikes for tourism rental. For saving money on tours, this probably is the way to go. You want to go the long distance inland to CARACOL ruins, definitely. Or tour the Belize Alps back roads. Be sure you have a map though. I was told by BOB the retired army Englishman living here and helping to manage PACZ TOURS that two of the bigger trail bikes charge $70 usa per day and the rest of them charge $50 usa per day.

written by: Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel, tel: 663 5580 your HOME away from HOME and lots of adventures and expeditions.

CLARISSA FALLS IN WESTERN BELIZE, A SWIMMING SPOT FOR TRAVELERS AND LUNCH BREAK AT THE RESTAURANT

The white line of breaking water in the background is Clarissa Falls on a Sunday afternoon swimming expedition by some tourists of ours at Falconview Backpackers Adventure Hostel in Hillview, Santa Elena Town, Cayo District, Belize, Central America. This is a low falls and rock barrier extending from one side of the river to the other and was always a portage for the last 11,000 years for the different Maya Empire kingdoms that lived here during that time. It's a great swimming spot out Western Belize Recreational Area and for us is the lunch stop, between the two ruins of Xununtanich and Cahel Pech. This photo was taken Sunday, January 4, 2008 and the dug out tree shows the force of the river in flood during the now well known October floods of 2008.

Frank L. Dueck family and cousins spending the Sunday noon at recreational spot of Clarissa Falls, in Belize.

Farming Mennonite family with their cousins on an outing to Clarissa Falls on a pleasant warm January Sunday outing. This is the Frank L. Dueck family and cousins from nearby Spanish Lookout, Mennonite German speaking farming area.

SANTA ELENA TOWN PUBLIC LIBRARY SEEKS DONATION OF DOZEN BOOKCASES!

SANTA ELENA PUBLIC LIBRARY SEEKING MORE BOOKS AND A DOZEN BOOKCASES.

The readership of the Santa Elena Public Library continues to expand as better quality of choices in books are being donated. Just a few at a time, but the Chief Librarian is complaining they have insufficient bookcases and could immediately use a dozen more. They cost about $50 usa each to be made, usually out of mahogany or some exotic tropical jungle hardwood tree and varnished. DONATIONS ARE VERY WELCOME!