Back to the Biodome

To view the latest from Ridge Berry Farm visit our new blog and site!

With the cold weather now firmly establishing itself, we decided to spend a bit more time correcting the deficiencies of our Biodome. Last week, with the help of a new temperature recorder, we discovered a 7 degree Celsius difference between outside and inside the dome. We did not feel comfortable with that, so we started to work on our insulation.

First we started to use insulating foam to fill small gaps between the foundation and the structure.

Using foam insulation on the base of the dome structure

Then we taped seams we had missed earlier.

Taping some missed panels

And finally, we installed block foam insulation on the outside of the fan assemblies (the louvres provided no insulation at all).

Installing insulation outside the fan assemblies

This work really paid off. We went from a 7 degree difference between inside and outside to 12, to 17 and eventually well over 20 degrees C (on a sunny day).

Inside temperature

Outside temperature

We will now be charting the temperatures over time to establish the type of environment we have created. We already know there is a strong relationship with weather and in particular overcast skies.

Even though most nights in the past week have reached below zero degrees C, so far the dome temperature has been well above freezing. The only frustrating thing is the high humidity (it hovers between 75 and 85%)...particularly when you are wearing glasses. This is also causing a significant amount of condensation inside the dome.

It's not easy to work with glasses in a very humid environment!

With the temperature tackled, it was time to also address our prototype hydroponic bed. Last week we found our concept to be relatively expensive, time consuming and not very effective (ie. leakage). As a result, we decided to standardize on the use of "off the shelf" hydroponic tables.

Using equipment from our local supplier of everything hydroponic (Northern Lights on Highway 20), we were able to rapidly set up a four bed prototype in order to test our water flow concept.

Testing the water flow

The height of the beds is a bit of a nuisance, but since we are hoping to only test things out with one solar powered pump and gravity, we had to set them up at a level above the edge of our large water tank. We may be able to refine this a bit, but a lot will also depend on the dome flooring which has not yet been installed.

Using this type of set up and configuration, we believe we can install  well over thirty 32 in. x 48 in. beds. We will then have additional space on the edges of the dome for additional seeding beds and in the center for larger plants or columns.

Elsewhere on the farm, we continue to pick Arctic Kiwis. With so many frosts under our belts, the berries are looking somewhat shriveled and soft....but they also seem to be at their best, loaded with sugar. With the leaves dropping from the vines, the berries are easy to find even when they have climbed their way up the odd tree.

Picking Kiwis that have crawled up a Staghorn Sumac tree

With the recent success of our Kiwi wine, we are seriously considering an Arctic Kiwi Ice Wine. This will definitely be the subject of our next experiment.

In the restaurant and Tea Room, the team continues to bake traditional and seasonal cookies and breads. Chef made a batch of Stollen (a traditional Saxon Christmas fruit cake, loaded with Marzipan/Almond Paste), while Morgan has been decorating his gingerbread cookies.

Traditional and seasonal Stollen....right out of the oven!

Decorating cookies in our kitchen's "assembly line"

This week, we also decided to tackle a small project: a new compost bin.

When we first arrived at the farm, our objective was to lead a more sustainable lifestyle. We felt this could be achieved somewhat by monitoring and reducing our waste (ie. garbage). So our first action was to compost and we set ourselves up with a small plastic bin just outside our home's original kitchen.

Our first compost bin

We were then horrified to find out that running a restaurant generates a significant amount of waste. A large part being packaging....but as well a massive amount of organics. So it was time to put the restaurant on the same composting regimen. 

With the restaurant and our yard/farm waste, we ended up creating a large compost pile. Not a very pretty site but a wonderful impact on the number of garbage bags we produce.

A compost heap next to our beaver pond.

This week's project was to put together a new kind of bin which we may be able to use to distribute the compost piles where they will be most needed. 

To do this cheaply, we took our hints from the Internet and decided to procure some cheap (free) pallets from our local building material retailers. Using these, old T-bars and shelf brackets (scavenged from the barn), we created something which may do just the trick.

A new compost bin

Given the amount of waste generated by our restaurant activities, producing sufficient compost will not be a problem. In fact, we believe that some form of animal husbandry will be necessary on our part if we are to use a lot more of this organic matter. Chickens or pigs may definitely be called for.

I close this week, with another interesting event we have been promoting at the Tea Room. This week, we hosted both a private evening and an open house where Tea leaf reading was the attraction. 

While at the farm, we have developed a lot of different friendships and one of these is Gloria. Gloria is our Tea supplier and an expert on Tea blends....but she is also an impressive "medium" and reader of Tea leaves. 

The interest in these events proved so popular that both were rapidly booked with no advertising. Christine is now determined to make this a regular activity.

An evening of Tea Leaf Reading at Ridge Berry Farm