VSF in Colombia planting update
San Rafael: the first planted site inside VSF in Colombia
San Rafael is one part of the broader VSF in Colombia project: a real site where vetiver is already planted and ready for follow-up.
Proof already in the ground
The first planting happened on April 2, 2026.
The first San Rafael planting is already in the ground. On April 2, 2026, VSF and local partners planted 250 vetiver slips in El Juego, San Rafael, Antioquia. The next work is to check survival, confirm maintenance, and prepare more local plant supply.
Why San Rafael matters
Why this planted site matters.
Steep terrain, real risk
Mountainous communities can face erosion, slope instability, soil degradation, and pressure on paths, farms, homes, and water systems.
A simple biological tool
Dense vetiver hedgerows can slow runoff, hold soil, and form living barriers that local teams can maintain over time.
A concrete starting point
San Rafael gives the broader VSF in Colombia project a real site that nearby communities can see, understand, and learn from.
What we are tracking
The next work is follow-up, not just storytelling.
VSF is building a simple update rhythm with the local team. Each update should track survival, maintenance, risks, photos, video, and community interest. This helps turn one planting into a clearer plan for nearby communities.
Survival rate and weak or dead slips
Watering, weeding, and maintenance responsibility
Photos, videos, and field notes from the site
Local interest and future nursery targets
Community push
San Rafael is rooted in the El Juego community.
The site sits within the El Juego community in San Rafael. Their broader community work and place-based hosting make the planting local and visible, not an isolated technical experiment. You can learn more about the community itself through their website.
Visit El Juego CommunitySupport the next phase
Help fund follow-up and local plant supply.
Use the embedded Zeffy campaign below to support follow-up visits, site photos, survival counts, and the nursery work that comes after the first planting.
If the embed does not load in your browser, the fallback donation link remains available below.
Proof → propagation → expansion
The next challenge is growing enough plants locally.
The idea is no longer the bottleneck. The next phase is to check survival, strengthen local plant production, and prepare a nursery-based approach for nearby communities.
- Confirm - check the first planting and count what is alive.
- Grow - build local nursery capacity to produce more vetiver slips.
- Share - support nearby communities once plant supply and maintenance are clear.
Donations help document the first planting, support field follow-up, and prepare nursery expansion.
About this project
The first planting is done. Now it needs follow-up and more plants.
San Rafael now serves as a planting update inside VSF in Colombia. The site needs follow-up photos, survival counts, maintenance confirmation, and local nursery capacity before the broader work can move outward.