Wherein Moominmama visits the home of Earthship Biotecture to see some creative, sustainable homes and admires the surprising flora and fauna of New Mexico...

It was an unexpected blessing of the internet that Moominmama learned she was not far away from a fascinating experiment in sustainable construction near Taos. Having seen a video about the work of this community and its founder, Michael Reynolds,  I jumped on the chance to drive up for a tour.

Reynolds came out to Taos shortly after graduating from college in 1969 and built himself a beer-can house, baling the then-steel cans together to make bricks. It was the first of many experiments in using garbage to build sustainably, and over the years he's refined his approach while also continuing to experiment with new iterations -- like the building above, under construction, that will provide five "apartments" with a shared kitchen and bathrooms.

The fundamental principles of an Earthship home were clearly explained by our guide, Ryan (black t-shirt), who's built many of them here and abroad. The one pictured here is smaller than most as it's designed for student housing.

The foundation is made of tires rammed full of earth, creating a 350-pound steel- belted brick that can be stacked in rows, with gaps filled in with dirt or mud (sometimes also stuffed with old cans) then covered with adobe. For outdoor surfaces, a layer of cement generally follows. 

These tires create incredibly dense, thick walls which, in the case of the north facing wall, are reinforced from behind with a berm of dirt, where two cisterns are buried. This wall becomes an essential part of the passive cooling and heating system. Meanwhile smaller or higher walls are created using cans and bottles, often in very artistic arrangements! Here's a demonstration wall, with tires peeking out below and the bottles poking out above. 

At the front of an Earthship, facing south, the homes have a glass front that forms an enclosed greenhouse, where food can be grown. On a hot day, vents by the greenhouse are opened to let the hot air out, which, in turn, draws cool air in through wide pipes laid through the back, north wall of the building. 

In winter, the lower angle of the sun heats the greenhouse and the warmth can be moved into the living space. Built right, these homes can maintain a 72-degree internal temperature regardless of the weather outside. 

Roofs are designed to collect rain water for storage in the cisterns and the interior has features to conserve water. Grey water from the shower is directed to water the plants in the greenhouse, then recirculated into the toilet tank, where it's flushed out to an exterior black water treatment system that can provide nutrients to any landscaping outside.

The greenhouses are a delightful feature as soon as you enter any of these homes, with some plants as high as trees (in some cases, they are trees!) And apparently the system can transfer even to colder climes.

For electricity, homes are outfitted with solar panels and, in some cases, wind turbines. So that's the basic science of it. There are six "principles" that have to be in place to call a sustainable home an Earthship; others would just be considered "Earthship-influenced."

But then there's the wild creativity involved in building these often organically shaped homes with their adobe walls and unusual recycling of materials.

There are stained glass windows of bottle glass and walls that follow intriguing curves. The front of the greenhouses can be designed with various geometric or organic patterns. Each one is unique.

Earthship Biotecture owns 665 acres intended for sustainable development outside Taos. There are about 90 homes and 150 people living here, Ryan says. There's also a school, where the construction techniques are taught, with students coming for a month at a time.

There's room for about 30 more homes and the rest of the land is intended for other forms of sustainable development, such as farming or small businesses like a restaurant. Reynolds wants to extend his construction techniques and processes to new arenas.

As crunchy granola as this all sounds -- and Michael Reynolds definitely has the aura of an aging hippy -- there's a realtor who works with Earthship Biotecture to help people who want to buy land and arrange construction of their own Earthship home. 

The company has to deal with planning and zoning laws same as any developer, which made getting their multi-unit home a particular challenge! Guess that happens everywhere.

But this style of construction is now being applied in other parts of the world because, in addition to being energy efficient, it's more earthquake, hurricane and fire resistant than most construction.

While Moominmama is not looking to settle down anytime soon, an Earthship looks like a fascinating and fun way to live.

Closer to home, Moominmama has been exploring the hiking trails around Santa Fe. Despite the extreme drought, I've been amazed to find flowers blooming in the desert.

This glorious white flower is from a Yucca plant.  And the red blooms below are on a very prickly looking cactus!

I took these pictures while hiking the Sun Mountain trail in the morning before the winds typically kick up. The quantity of dust in the Moominhouse is wearing out my sponge, and I feel I've eaten and inhaled my fair share of New Mexico.

Next week, I will be back in Mesa Verde, Colorado, this time with a dear friend who arrives shortly and will travel with me from Santa Fe. Hope to have some new desert scenery from the high mesas for you!

Until then, I leave you with this little creature who crossed my path today. A "horny toad," which is something of a misnomer, because it's actually a lizard.

Though I've been warned several times, Moominmama has yet to cross paths with a rattlesnake.