Progress since the beginning of the year!

By Maia Mazur

This week on the farm, 5th Period Sustainable Agriculture has made significant improvement on the weed overtake of our farm. Although there is consistent weeding to be done, our class has worked very hard to double dig beds and plant beautiful calorie crops to feed our community. 

The sithe is my favorite tool for efficiently cutting large quantities of weeds. 

Most of the time on the farm, as of lately, we have been working to remove the regrowth of weeds that were cut down in the very start of the year, on our personal beds. 

Unfortunately, a weed called bermudagrass, is very hard to remove permanently. To do so, the roots of the grass need to be removed from the soil,  eliminating the possibility of regrowth. Our soil is very sticky, so some soil is taken out along with the roots of the bermudagrass, and thrown into the growing pile of invasive plants.  This has to be done in order to keep our beds bermudagrass free! 

In addition, my bed group was in charge of building compost, and spent a good amount of time cleaning out the green compost bins that the CEA uses.

Update

This week of 10/23 we had a seminar on sustainability, a test, a work day involving planting, and we prepared crops for sale. During the seminar we discussed the likelihood of sustainability in the future, whether or not it works, the implications of water usage, and the responsibilities of the farmer and consumer. The test covered all the topics we touched on so far this year. On block day we planted seeds in our "E" beds which were recently prepared for planting. We used the broadcasting method on one half of the beds and used spacing to plant the other half. Friday was overcast and rainy and the day was spent preparing basil and taking scarlet beans out of their casings for sale.

-Tommy

Midterm and winter preparation

This week consisted mostly of midterms. On Monday we had a seminar and discussed a few major issues regarding industrial farming and the importance of farming sustainably. The three topics that were discussed were "What does it it mean to be sustainable when it comes to agriculture and what are some of techniques to grow sustainably," "Why are soil erosion and soil fertility major concerns for agriculture and the environment," and "Agriculture is responsible for approximately 70% of global freshwater usage, Is this how our water should be used?". All the students who participated brought forward their opinions facts or any incite they had on the designated topics. Many ideas were discussed addressing the issues with industrial farms that are not growing sustainably.

The rest of week was spent outside on the farm preparing our pop quizzes and "one-beds" for winter. This was done by weeding beds and finishing any last minute planting. One generous family donated a gift card to home depot. With the donated money, enough organic plants were purchased for each "one-bed" to have a Sixpack of transplantable seedlings. Paths were also updated by putting down a layer of cardboard followed by Wood chips. With these preparations the farm is ready for the rainy season.
--Austin

Recent work

This week on the farm we participated in a pop quiz. After mastering bed preparation from our one beds, we expanded our skill to the rest of the farm. Each group was assigned a new E or P bed to work on. The assignment of the pop quiz was to prep the bed for planting. This entailed weeding, double digging and amending the soil.

            Starting the pop quiz required a lot of weeding. In my bed it took an entire class period just to get the garlic out! After the invasive weeds were extracted from the beds we were ready to double dig. The purpose of double digging is to improve aeration in the soil improve soil drainage and assist root penetration.  Initially we dug up the first 12 inches of the first 3 square feet and set it aside. Then using a spading fork we loosened 12 inches below the trench. We then dug up the next 12 inches of the next 3 square feet and filled in the first trench and aerated the bottom of the second trench. This process is continued to the end of the bed.

            After double digging the beds we had to amend the soil in order for it to contain optimal nutrients for crop growth. We used our calculations from the soil testing to determine how much we needed. The results of the soil tests told us to add 3.6 lbs. of alfalfa meal to make up for the lacking 2.4% of nitrogen. Looking forward, our pop quiz beds are ready for planting; a task we will accomplish this coming week.

-Ella 

This week in SustAg

This was a busy week for Redwood's Sustainable Agriculture Class and the farm. The students spent the majority of farm time creating new beds, and analyzed our soil in class.

The beginning of the week consisted of each group collecting soil from their beds to place in glass cylinder test tubes. We did this to create samples for us to test later in the week. We went back to class to learn more about the complexity of soil. We learned how different fertilizers contain different values of Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus. For example a common fertilizer we use for our beds is Alfalfa which is a 2-1-2 which means it contains 2% Nitrogen, 1% Phosphorous and 2% Potassium. All three of these chemical elements are critical for high productivity in the farm.

We went to the farm in class on Tuesday which usually doesn't happen, since there was a Teacher Development day on Wednesday. We were given a surprise pop quiz! With our one-bed groups we were each assigned to create a new bed from scratch using all proper procedures. Every group had to first clean their new bed by removing all the weeds and other things that were in the way. My group was assigned to a bed in the Hoop House, so we had to clean out the instead before we could start. We removed the tables, weeded out all the unwanted crops, removed the hay and relocated some voles.

A key step in creating a successful bed is to layer the soil correctly. This meant double-digging and layering the soil were required. Although it was very tedious work, it made our beds immensely better. Thursday was also spent working on our pop quiz, and by the end of the class most groups had made tremendous strides of improvement from their original plot of land. It was very hard work, but I believe that everyone was proud of their work by the end of the block period.

The last day of class we quickly ran out to the farm in the rain to collect the soil samples we made on Monday, and to get another soil sample from our original beds. We headed back to class to test our soil. We did a total of four different tests: One for the nitrogen levels, one for the phosphorous levels, one for the potassium levels and one more for the pH content. We also figured out the texture of our soil by using the Clay Sand and Loam triangle. It was fun to see each group learning more about the soil in which they grow crops on.

Overall, we had a great week in Sust Ag. We accomplished many things and have started new projects that we are eager to complete in the coming weeks.

Tiago

Rain can't ruin our day!

Usually on friday's our class works on the farm, but due to the rainy weather, we spent majority of the class in a classroom. Friday's class planned for a soil test and in order to do so, we had to collect soil samples in the rain. It took about 10 minutes to get done what we needed and head to the classroom. Mr. Stewart taught us about the four tests we would administer to the soil. We tested how much nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium there was or wasn't in our soil. We also tested the soil's pH level. The purpose of these tests was to inform us, parents of these beds, how nutritious our soil is or isn't!  

Each test took about a couple of minutes so we conducted multiple tests at once. The procedures of each test were to fill the test container with a little bit of soil, add water and put a capsule that would change the color of the water based on the level of specific nutrient. The color of the water lets us know what nutrient we're strong in and what nutrient we're lacking. With this information, we're able to adjust our soil treatment for the future. Never mind the rain, we made sure this class was productive and meaningful, the two words I always take away from sustainable agriculture!

Mackenzie Slaugh

Soil Testing

For the past month and a half, the class has been focusing on keeping our soil healthy and maintaining our plants. Along with taking care of our beds, our management jobs have been keeping us busy with making pathways, weeding, and making more compost. The farm has been having some issues with puddles forming due to the fresh water from Mount Tam coming into the marsh. Fresh water is less dense than salt water and that makes the fresh water lay on top of the salt water, thus creating the puddles. It is mainly affecting the beds in the back near the hoop house. 

Since the farm was built near and on part of what once was the marsh, what is our soil made of? That was the question we began trying to answer on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Tuesday, we went over in class the components of soil: sand, silt, and clay. Sand creates pores in soil to help hold water and nutrients. Silt provides structure and clay provides nutrient bonding sites. LOAM is kinda like a really good mix of all three.

There are various types of soil in the world. At the farm, we have entisol, which basically is just bad soil and this takes up 30% of California's soil. Near the farm, we also have histosol, which is wetland soil. The best soil to have mollisol, which can be found in grasslands. 

Anyways, to find what really makes up our soil, we conducted a Squeeze Test on Wednesday in the farm. There are three steps to the squeeze test. The first step was to get some soil from our bed and add a little water. We then tried to role it into a ball. If it didn't make a ball, it would be made of sand. The next step was to see if our soil would make a "ribbon". We pressed the soil out of our hand with our thumb to make a ribbon. If it made a long ribbon, it was made of clay. If it had small ribbons, it was loamy. And if it made no ribbons, it was sand. I was able to make a ball but wasn't really able to make any ribbons. And the last step was to wet the soil a lot and feel the texture. If it was gritty, it was sandy. If it was smooth, it was clay. Mine felt very gritty so I concluded my soil was a sandy loam. 

Also on Wednesday, after we did the Squeeze Test, Mr. Stewart announced we were having a "pop quiz". This pop quiz would be on Double Digging. Our groups were assigned either a C bed, B bed or a P bed. The B beds were filled with a lot of tall weeds and old squash plants. My group was assigned to the B2 bed and we were able to harvest some squash before taking out the old plant and putting it in our compost pile off to the side (we still need to weigh it before putting it in the compost pile). We used pruners, hand weeders, and even a grass whip to take out the weeds. Once we finally cleared the bed, we took off the irrigation and started to break up to the soil with a mattock and began to double dig. Many groups were able to finish their bed or close to finishing. Those who didn't would be able to finish next week, like my group. Some ideas for playing were carrots and some lettuce. 

On Friday, we went out to the farm and started to harvest for another Market Day. Some groups could sell some lettuce or kale that was planted back in August. There was a huge onion in the B1 bed that was ripe for the picking. Overall, everyone had a good time this week in SustAg and looking forward to finishing our beds next week. 

Morgen C. 

The "Squeeze Test":

Looks like loam!

Market Week!

This week on the farm consisted of hard dedicated work, as usual, but with a little more excitement as we approached market day! The students spent a couple of days watering, planting, and weeding as we do every week. 

But this week we had a chance to work in groups on separate beds other than the ones we are assigned to. Starting from the beginning with weeding and double-digging to having nice fresh prepped beds. Since we have been practicing prepping beds before, this time was easier. It was great to watch everyone working together and with ease as the students already knew all of the techniques. We were able to finish prepping all of the beds in one class! 

On Friday, the day of the market, all of the students were busy harvesting all of the naturally grown crops that we helped taking care of. Everyone started by weighing and reporting everything they have harvested. After that the crops were set on a table were students washed, bundled, and prepared the crops making them look nice before placing them in the cart. Lastly, at the end of class all of the crops ready to be sold were taken out to the front of the school. As I had the chance to help with market day after school, I shared the excitement of selling the crops we put work into with others. 

—Olga

How about the market!