A LOW-IMPACT GREEN WEDDING By Rosemary MacGreogor

July 20th, 2010

Doing something very different is often far more memorable than doing the “normal”. Planning and preparing for a low-impact wedding will bring such pleasure and GRACE to your nuptial experience.  Surprisingly, you will probably find you can also save an immense amount of money.
What about having a very small, immediate family wedding, a larger reception [...]

THE GREEN HONEYMOON By Rosemary MacGregor

July 20th, 2010

You are newly married, madly in love and want to spend a significant moment in time with your beloved.  You are also a Green child and very conscious of the environment and the low-impact a meaningful, highly playful honeymoon could have on the universe.  Yes, it all adds up!
You have several options.   You could stay [...]

CO-OPORATIVE CREATIVITY

July 3rd, 2010

Progress of Rural Tourism in Tres Rios de Coronado
Interdependency is a partnership of shared responsibility and rewards…We are smarter together than apart.
We started a rural tourism project here in Tres Rios. Please read my blog article entitled “STUDENTS FOR SUSTAINABLE RURAL TOURISM AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AT THE MANGO TREE SPA”. This is a [...]

Archaeological Report

July 2nd, 2010

During the V Festival of the Spheres in Palmar Norte of Osa, the civil servants of the Department of Museum Protection were in charge of a stand of the National Museum. They had a sign-in form for people interested in receiving further information of the museum. Ms. Rosemary MacGregor, owner of the hotel, “The [...]

NATURAL REMEDIES AND TIPS FOR BUG REPELLENT, INSECTICIDES, HERBICIDES, AND PESTICIDES

June 18th, 2010

In Medieval times Rosemary and Sage were strewn on the floors of hospitals to get rid of pests and probably to refresh the air with aromatic scents. In the days before insecticides, hedges of different herbs surrounded vegetable gardens. Simply planting marigolds and or garlic in and around your garden will keep many [...]

PAPAYA GARDEN TIP: The PAPAYA and what you may not know about it. This tree possibly originated in the Andes as a wild species and has been taken all over the tropical world and does best in lowland humid areas. There are 22 species, some plants being hemophrodites while others are distinctly male. Tip: Get rid of these male plants (tubular flowers in long clusters) as they don’t usually produce. Most other plants have hermaphroditic and self-fertilizing flowers. Fruit can be of small variety or shaped like a football. Inside fruit colors varies from mango orange to reddish orange. The redder the fruit the more Vitamin A is present. The fruit itself when ripe is 80% water, 10% sugars, loaded with calcium, Vit. A (unusual for a fruit) and collagen healing vitamin C. With a great tasting papaya, throw out the seeds and soon you will see little papayas growing. In about 9 months the plant will grow seed to fruit reaching 3-10 meters and producing 30 to 150 fruits a year for three years. BEAUTY TIP: USING ALL PARTS OF THE PAPAYA Eaten regularly papaya increases skin radiance and nail-strength, creates glowing eyes, and hair luster. Papain in papaya is a protein-digesting-enzyme that has renounced anti-cancer and skin-cleansing properties. This is found in the unripe fruit. Cosmetically, this papain in the semi-ripe fruit dissolves dead skin layers, creates healthy new skin due to its alkaline minerals, tightens the skin, lightens freckles, protects against skin damage and helps alleviate existing skin damage. Every part of the papaya can be used for healing from the latex of the scoured green fruit (papain), to the semi-ripened fruit for facials and eaten by women with breast cancer to the black peppercorn seeds to guard against or flush out parasites and for weight loss. FOOD TIP: Squeeze a ¼ of a lime on the orange red meat of the papaya to enhance and enliven the flavor.

June 13th, 2010

PAPAYA
GARDEN TIP:
The PAPAYA and what you may not know about it. This tree possibly originated in the Andes as a wild species and has been taken all over the tropical world and does best in lowland humid areas. There are 22 species, some plants being hemaphrodites while others are distinctly male.  Tip: Get [...]

The Costa Rica Costa Ballena ECO SCOUTS

June 11th, 2010

“Saving the planet begins with ‘me’”
By Rosemary MacGregor
Each eco-scout session starts with the following pledge and finger signing:
“I commit to be the change I want to see
Help my friends and family
Make a change in my community
Then I will spread the word globally
I promise to respect and take care of myself, my friends, my family, my [...]

STUDENTS FOR SUSTAINABLE RURAL TOURISM AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AT THE MANGO TREE SPA

May 22nd, 2010

The Mango Tree Eco-lodge had the fortune of receiving Vincent Delgado and his lovely family for a visit in our little community of Tres Rios. Vincent is the Academic Specialist for Civic Engagement in the Residential College for the Arts and Humanities at Michigan State University. He and Scott Yoder, the vice dean [...]

SEGURO OR HEALTH INSURANCE FOR RESIDENTS

May 22nd, 2010

As of March 1, 2010, all residents of Costa Rica are obligated to visit the caja seguro to pay for their health insurance. Most will assume once you have filled out the paperwork and paid your monthly stipend that you will be automatically covered and all that is required with any hospital or ebais [...]

LEMON GRASS (fever or Madagascar grass) – Cymbopogon citratus

April 19th, 2010

NATURAL PHARMACY
By Rosemary MacGregor
LEMON GRASS (fever or Madagascar grass) –
Cymbopogon citratus
Now cultivated throughout [...]