Any person that has spent any time around the project here in Ojo de Agua notices the amount of Vetiver Grass planted around the property. I have to admit that I have probably gone over board with the stuff, I just can not help myself. I love planting this grass!
I started with only eighty small sprigs of Vetiver back in 2007 and since then I have propagated and grown my Vetiver to well over a thousand full grown plants. Last year we had a few incredible rain storms that eroded a part of the drive coming into the house around a culvert. It was not to bad, but if left unattended it could become a serious problem. Instead of spending money and a lot of labor in building some sort of rock and concrete structure, I went the inexpensive and green route by just digging up a couple full grown Vetiver plants and broke them into smaller pieces and planted them on a temporary terrace system back filling the eroded area. I will keep them watered enough during this dry season to have a good root structure to hold firm during next years rainy season. I have done this in a few different areas of the property and it always works. I took a few photos of the repair, unfortunately I forgot to snap some before shots, but if you look close you can see the different color of the soil as we back filled and get an idea of where the eroded part of the drive was.
Vetiver is a great grass for erosion control. I highly recommend anyone who plans on living in the tropics to investigate its many uses. The Vetiver Network International at vetiver.org is a wealth of information about this amazing plant. Check them out.