Ready for the Winter

This week at the Redwood Sustainable Agriculture Farm, we have been busy trying to keep our beds in the best shape possible. Even though the weather is now shifting and the seasons are changing, it is still important to take care of our beds even though not much planting or harvesting can be done. In the farm, many of us focused mainly on our Maintenance Jobs in order to get the farm prepared for the upcoming winter and simply making our farm a better place to farm and create effective ways to manage our farm. This week also consisted of plenty of classroom time in which we all took results that we accumulated in this semester from our beds and converted it into information for the entire class and even ourselves to learn about what future plans and how to make our farm more sustainable in the years to come.

In our bed, A1, we noticed that our crop yield was pretty high, however our compost was not that much. After learning from our data that we have collected, we have a new goal to produce plants that can be used for compost in order to help our soil grow and make a perfect place for calorie crops to grow in. Many others presented about their beds and talked about their yields and problems that have occurred during this semester.  -Aarti

Beetle Companions

by Charlie Bucklar

These last couple weeks we have learned a lot about different companions on our farm, and how they can be both beneficial and harmful towards our crops.  One farm companion that I took a closer look at and learned a lot about in doing my companions report is the common black ground beetle.  This beetle is found all over the world and lives in the soil as well as under rocks, leaves and branches.  It is also a very beneficial companion that preys on a variety of different insect and mollusk pests, including Aphids, cucumber beetles, caterpillars, slugs, and snails.  

There are three major ways to sustainably attract these beetles to our farm.  The first is to plant crops with lots of leaves to form canopies over the soil (corn, bell beans, lettuce, carrots, other leafy crops).  These canopies provide the ideal habitat for ground beetles as they allow them to hide away from predators out in the open (birds, rodents, toads).  Laying down thick organic mulch is also a good way to provide ample shelter and refuge for these beetles.  The other major way to encourage more of  these companions to live on our farm is to plant nectar producing crops (Alfalfa, squash, broccoli, strawberries, etc).  These plants attract airborne predators (yellow jackets/hornets) that drive aphids and other prey closer to the ground.  This provides more available food for the common black ground beetle as well as other beneficial ground-dwelling beneficial pest predators.  

Iron Chef #2

This week we had our second Iron chef competition. We started by harvesting our produce from the farm. Some groups decided to bring in extra ingredients from home or the store. We took all our ingredients to the teachers lounge to prepare our master dishes. All groups anticipated the moment when Mr. Stewart gave the go ahead to start cooking. Once he said go, the chefs got their knifes out and started chopping their freshly picked produce. It was a very intense atmosphere as all four groups were cooking up a storm on the one four burner stove. Olive oil, salt, vegetables, and herbs were all being passed around the room. One of the vice principles was drawn into the room by the rich smells of our cooking filling the hallway. He complimented us on our cooking and went on back into the hall way. The competition was friendly as groups would give each other tips and a helping hand. After everyone was done and all cleaned up, it was the moment we had all been waiting for... the judging. As our judges, Mr. Stewart and Laura, were sampling the food, the groups were have friendly debates as to why their dish was better than the rest. A member from each group got up to show the class there dish and give them a little description of what they had prepared. Hungry students hands whet flying out as soon as the dishes came to their table. The students sampled all the dishes as well as the teachers, but the most enjoyed amongst the students was the french fries. The only opinion the groups were interested in was of the judges. Mr. Stewart and Laura talked amongst them selfs and came to the agreement that they most enjoyed the potato and salad dish made by Morgans group. We were all happy to participate in our second iron chef and let our competitive side show. I'm sure everyone is anticipating our next competition with hopes of winning.

- Dezire Celis and Ariella Bellingham 

​
​

A Great Egret Spotted

Although this week was quite a short one, it was still a productive one. From hearing the presentations of year 2 students regarding companions to working on our new management jobs, we have continued to enhance our understanding of the big picture of what Sustainable Agriculture is truly about. For instance, by promoting companions on our farm we are helping to create a more balanced ecosystem and so by mimicking nature we are working towards sustainability.

One particular type of companion I have seen during our area searches and farm walks are indicator species, mainly birds. I have observed about 4-5 white birds, which might have been seagulls, lining up in a single file line around the marshes. On our most recent farm walk, a seagull briefly flew past our farm. But more fascinatingly, this Wednesday morning, one Great Egret was waiting for me as I opened the gate to our farm. It was strolling peacefully around the area near our A-beds, but more than likely doing so in search for prey. These observations have made me realize even more greatly the importance of these indicator species since they serve as evidence for the quality of our environment. Their abundant presence over these past few days indicate that our farm is clean and thriving. Because the voles have been scavenging around our crops shown by the holes in the spinach leaves, their population is being kept in check by species such as the Great Egret. On a more general level, seagulls and great egrets generally thrive in marsh habitats near our farm area and their appearance also indicates that we have been successfully mimicking nature.

- Andrea Silvera

Farm Walk

This week on the RHS Sustainable Agriculture Farm, we put in a lot of good work cleaning up our beds and also started our new management jobs. We started the week off with a farm walk. On the farm walk we observed the progress we've made from the beginning of the year and we also pointed out areas that need more work. Some areas needing extra work are the pathways. They need cardboard and wood chips to be laid down along with some light weeding. There are also some beds with plants growing onto the paths which should be trimmed back. The rest of the farm work this week was devoted to our one beds and learning our new management jobs. We have also been using this week to polish our final drafts of our companion reports. Personally, the companion report has made me more aware of beneficials and pests that are prevalent on our farm. On Friday we began a film about bees called More Than Honey. It detailed the life of honey bees and how these beneficials help plants. It also showed the different ways that bees are used by humans. Next week we look forward to hearing from our year 2 students and the lessons they have planned for us on Monday.

-Max

Aphids

This week consisted of working on the farm and composing our companion report. On Monday and Tuesday we worked on our companion report and on Wednesday we worked on our farm jobs and one bed projects.

My companion report was about Aphids. Aphids are a little green bug and a pest to the farm. They mainly attack newly germinated crops as they are easy to eat and do not have any protection methods grown in yet. Aphids reproduce extremely fast and whole farms can be destroyed if the Aphid population gets too out of hand. 

In order to combat Aphids there are many organic techniques that can be used. One of which is to use Neem oil mixed with a little bit of water and spray it on the crops. Neem oil is a common oil that a lot of other pests do not like. Another way of getting rid of them would be to grow natural pest repelling plants such as onions and garlic. Finally, introducing beneficial bugs can also get rid of Aphids. For example, introducing spiders will be good for the farm as they only eat other bugs, not plants, meaning that the Aphids will die. 

There are many other companions on the farm that other students have done their reports on. Aside from pests, beneficial companions are lady bugs, spiders, garlic/onions, and cover crops. 

-Mya

Companions

This week we had a lesson on companions in the classroom as well as spending some time out at the farm working on our management jobs, our one beds, and preparing for our market day on Friday. We also took a short field trip to the marsh near the school on order to get a closer look at the ecosystem that we are trying to mimic. We observed several indicator species such as ducks which tell us that the ecosystem is healthy because a top predator feels like it has enough food and shelter. We also observed some of the features of the surrounding area that may lead to problems on our farm such as the marshy land that leads to flooding and the brackish water that may cause salinity problems. We observed and drew an area of the marsh as well as our farm and noted the natural features that make both of them similar.

During block period everyone worked on their management jobs and were able to get a lot done. My group sheet mulched and placed wood chips down on a large section of the farm near the hoop house, preventing weeds from growing and creating a clearly marked area to walk without stepping in the beds.

Friday was market day! We had a huge harvest with lots of kale that we had planted in our beds a few months ago as well as the rest of the lettuce. We harvested a lot of basil as well as a bunch of celery and rosemary. It's amazing to see so much growth over the past few months!

-Kobe

Companions, Pests, and Market Day

This week our class learned a lot about the relationship between organisms. It was interesting to learn how some plants compliment each other while others don't. For example if you plant strawberries with beans it helps both of these two plants grow. We also realized how huge of a problem pests are. 

Throughout our time on the farm we have seen many fruits and vegetables be eaten up by our vole infestation. This has been persisting a problem throughout the semester. Part of farming is dealing with the pests eating produce. We have learned this through first hand experience since we have been out here. We have also learned in class the putting out poisons or pesticides ends up hurting more than helping. Given that our pest problem was voles we just set out traps to dispose of the problem. 

Also, during this week we went out to the Redwood marsh to learn more about what the RHS Farmland looked like before landfill was added. From our time out in the Redwood marsh we were able to learn what we needed to do to mimic nature. For example, in the Redwood marsh more grasses and smaller bushes are in the middle of the marsh where trees and taller bushes grow on the outer ring. If you look at the RHS farm you will see that we have also done the very same thing. Trees tend not to like too much water on their roots so at a higher elevation their roots aren't going to be exposed to the sitting fresh water on top of the landfill. 

We also were able to observe the importance of having tertiary consumers at the marsh. These tertiary consumers help the ecosystem by limiting the amount of primary consumers so they won't wipe out the producers. In our farm the vole is an example of how we don't have a great amount of tertiary consumers to limit the voles from eating all of our produce. The vole is also a good indicator species showing us that we might not be picking our produce soon enough. 

However, we still have been getting quite a good yield of produce to sell at our market which happened this Friday.

—Josh D.

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!

Iron Chef #1, 2016

Normally farm days in Sust Ag consist of water plants soil and compost, but not this week. On Tuesday we all enjoyed a nice sunny day and worked on our management jobs, but our block day was a bit out of the ordinary. On Wednesday we all traded in our pruners and shovel for a pot and pan. We had our first ever Iron chef competition this week and overall it was a blast.

We made Iron chef groups Tuesday and quickly developed our plans. Each group needed a creative dish that would be graded on taste, look, and sustainability. The next day we all spent about 15 minutes picking any foods from the Farm that we needed. Then we took these and any other ingredients that we brought in to the teachers lounge. After a brief intro on rules and safety we were off and running.

After about 45 min of hard work we had all finished our master pieces. They looked absolutely amazing and lucky Mr. Stewart and Ms. Di Domizio got to taste and judge them all. We had two dishes of pasta, one with homemade pesto and the other with a homemade red sauce. Another group made an omelet and the last group made a fresh salad and onion rings. After a long deliberation, Mr. Stewart announced that the winner was the onion rings and salad!

However, once class was finished Stewart found himself cleaning up after the onion ring group. This did not make Mr. Stewart very happy, especially because he told us all we would be marked down if we didn't clean up. Therefore Mr. Stewart was forced to deduct points from the winning team, which put them in second place. This left the omelet team claiming the victory!

Overall this week was quite exciting and a nice change of pace and scenery. We got to see everyone's competitive and creating side shine very bright. We also learned a lot this week, like new cooking techniques, and the importance of teamwork and cleaning up. We all had a great time in Sust Ag this week and I know we're all already thinking of ideas for the next Iron chef.

-Alyssa

Working hard

This was a very busy and productive week on the farm. Rather than focusing solely on our individual one beds, the class worked collectively to work on the E beds. As a class, we spent a great deal of time and effort working to weed out compostable and invasive plants, while at the same time prepping the soil to plant a variety of seedlings. Additionally, we worked to reinforce the pathways throughout the garden using donated cardboard and wood chips. The class spent a lot of time working to make these beds (and soil) ready for new plants. Although we worked hard, there are still more beds to be worked and prepped.

As of now, most of the one beds have been prepped and have new plants growing. There is more work to be done and this will be achieved by working as a class again in our new management jobs. This week we were assigned new jobs. Students from previous jobs taught the incoming students how to carry out their new job to their best ability. It is important that we work in unison and execute our jobs properly so that the farm may function in the most effective way.

We have been experiencing a water leak that has resulted in parts of the farm being excessively wet, however, we are in the process of fixing that. 

Overall, the farm is looking better and better each day. It has greatly improved since the beginning of the year but, there is still many more things to do and ways to make the farm even better than it is now. 

Audrey P

More Progress on the Farm

During this week on the Sustainable Agriculture farm, all of the students teamed up and worked on some of the E beds, which are located behind the hoop house. With all of our efforts combined, we were able to finish four beds in one day. This included double digging, putting some compost on top, transplanting many different crops, and adding organic fertilizer to the bed.

We added many different plants to the farm that day, including lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, and spinach. All of these plants are classified as heavy feeders, which means the plants need a lot of nutrients from the ground to grow. Onions were already growing in one of the E beds, but it is a light feeder and will be able to grow well with these other plants. Peas were planted in one of the C beds along the fence, and those are classified as legumes, which help rebuild the soil and put nutrients back into the ground. The farmers have accounted for each plant and know that the next rotation for crops should be a light feeder or legume to allow the soil time to revitalize.

At the end of the period, all of the members of the Sustainable Agriculture Farm looked back on what we accomplished in just an hour and 20 minutes. All of them felt proud that together they were trying to create a more sustainable way to live.

Donald Ahn

New Friends (Plants!)

     Exciting week for the Redwood Sustainable Agriculture farm. We have been hard at work preparing our beds. We have gone through the extensive process of double digging our beds, lying down compost as well as organic fertilizer including aerating the soil. We also spent time on our pathways and laid down some mulch to make it functional as well as visually pleasing. With the farm now being in excellent shape it was time for us to select some vegetables to plant. This is not as simple as just choosing some plants that would grow well in the current season but had a lot more depth and planning which was an eye for me, for the reason I previously was unaware of all the delicate intricacies in maximizing plant growth potential that are associated with biointensive agriculture.

   Biointensive agriculture is an organic agricultural system that focuses on achieving maximum yields from a minimum area of land while also increasing biodiversity and sustaining and increasing the fertility of the soil. There were few process we went through in choosing the correct plants for our garden the first step was checking what plants were growing in our beds and making sure to avoid planting the same plants for the reason planting the same type of plants seasonally over time will deplete nutrients. Each plant absorbs different types of nutrients from the soil and having the same plants seasonally will deplete the nutrients specific to those plants in the soil and the soil will become deficient in that nutrient and over time it will make the plants not have enough of that nutrient and it will stunt that plants growth. This also would be against the biointensive agriculture concept which is not only about maximizing growth of crops but is also about maintaining soil fertility. My bed group looked up what was previously planted from last year ago in our bed and beets, potatoes, and squash were the main species.

   We then decided to plant some baby lettuce, onions, leeks as well as bell beans. All these were a nice mix of plants that complemented each other as well as the soil. Lettuce is a relatively moderate feeder, while onions and leeks are light feeders. A reason for us going on the lighter side of types of plants that absorb a lot of nutrients is that we have a large tomato plant that has developed over summer and tomatoes are very heavy feeders on the nutrients of the soil. We felt this combination offered us a nice array of crops but would not put stress on the soil as well as a rotation of the crops previously planted. It's only been a couple days and we have already have seen some solid growth from the baby lettuces. (pictures below)

   We have also been working on crop reports which is the process of selecting a plant and becoming very well informed about all of its traits as well as it is scientific name. My crop is the banana which scientific name is  Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana there are two because there are two different species in the wild. A fun fact is bananas are very radioactive compared to other fruits and are sometimes used as a gauge of radiation exposure. But don't worry bananas are very healthy.

Preston MB

This week on the FARM

This week on the farm we  did lots of planting in our beds. There was lots of weeding done and harvesting for our market day. This market day was a big success by making over 200$. There were pumpkins, squash, celery, artichoke, mint, catnip and so much more. I would say it was a very successful market day. 

Our beds are looking really good compared to how they looked the first day of school. You can see that there are little weeds and lots of open dirt which means lots of planting. This week I saw garlic, beets and lettuce being planted. there was also a great improvement on the pathways in-between the beds. The farm is looking in ship shape condition. 

In class there was lots of time to plan what the groups are going to be planting in there beds. Some groups started to work on there second bed and start seeing that. Groups also worked on management jobs. There was improvement in the irrigation — fixing some holes in a couple tubes. The compost crew started building a new compost pile and did some sifting. The maintenance crew did a great job in keeping the shed clean and making sure that everything was back in its spot. 

Even though it was a shorter week there was a lot accomplished.

Morgan G.

Weeds, weeds, and more weeds

Summer left the farm in a jungle of weeds and for the past two and a half weeks, most of our time has been devoted to weeding. In many beds, the coverage was so dense that we were not able pull the irrigation out without hand removing a hefty pile of weeds.

Weeding our beds was a three step process. First, we had to cut down all of the the big stuff with a grass whip, mattock, or some other large tool. Next, we got our hands dirty and pulled out all that we could from the surface of our beds. When it was time to start double digging, I had a hard time getting my shovel to penetrate the soil. My shovel constantly struck patches of grass that held the soil together underground. Finally, after double digging, we had to make one more sweep through the beds and pull up any grasses or roots that we were previously unable to get. 

Although it was a very tedious process, it was worth the while because now everybody¡¯s bed looks nice and ready for planting. However, there is still an enormous amount of weeding to be done on the farm. After a couple hours of work, our class was able to weed and prep a little more than every other A bed, only a small dent in the amount of weeding that needs to happen on the farm.

Al

AFTER:

BEFORE:

Bed Preparation

This week we began our preparation of the plant beds, which will be home to the many interesting and varying plants and animals found in the farm. Our group was quite motivated in preparing our beds, so we set off immediately. However, as soon as we witnessed the overgrown jungle of our bed, we had some doubts. How could we possibly turn this jungle into a neat farm-bed?

Our first task was grasping the process of double digging. I had never double digged(dug?) in my entire life, but I was relatively confident that I understood the method. The next task my group members and I had to do was remove the weeds from our bed. I, after seeing Mr. Stewart courageously hand-remove the dauntingly prickly weeds, decided to give it a try. Bad decision. Gloves, I found out, were more than necessary.

After a while, the work seemed less like work and I began to enjoy preparing my bed. Once I had gotten my hands dirty all of my apprehensions went away. Before we knew it, our group had completed the preparation of our first bed and prepared more than half of our second one. Now we can look forward to planting!
--Noah

Summer Approaches

This Monday, May 22, 2016, Mr. Stewart's 6th period Sustainable Agriculture class was busy at work preparing for the summer months. During the class period we weeded the class beds and did maintenance work like irrigation around the farm. The whole class needed to be focused and engaged if we were going to finish preparing the beds for summer. We have completed most of the work but have a ways to go before we can consider our work to be done.

The next day, our class was allowed to work on our final projects. I worked on a sign showing how to make compost tea. Compost tea requires 1 part compost, 1 part forest dirt and 1 part local dirt in order to make a suitable habitat for bacteria. After acquiring the dirt, place it in a five gallon bucket and fill it up with water. The bucket only really needs one cup of each dirt to do its job. After adding water, I needed to stir periodically for four days.

On Wednesday, May 25, we met in the classroom. We were met in the classroom by a guest speaker. The guest speaker's focus was on making people "rethink plastics". The most memorable part of the speech was her comparison to plastics as a "toxic love story". She highlighted that people love plastics because they make everything convenient, but it is toxic to us, our world and animals

There were three surprising things that I learned Wednesday and would like to put out there. First, when you recycle, the material is predominantly shipped over seas. This just shifts our problem to a different place. Usually, these places are underdeveloped and the people there are working with toxic materials everyday: secondly, 60-80% of the world's plastic ends up in the ocean. This results in massive die offs of birds, mammals and aquatic life. Lastly, there is diminishing land space in the world to store trash.

So what can we do about it? Well, what I took from the guest speakers speech was I can change little things during my day which lead to a cleaner planet. The first thing a person can do to limit waste is replacing plastics while grocery shopping. Using a mesh or cloth bag will suffice. Secondly, replace all plastic wear with glass or reusable material.

Lastly, although recycling is not a closed loop, recycling old bottles and making sure to use an item more than once can make a huge difference.






David Hall

Blog: Start your own garden this summer

Blog for students who want to apply what they've learned in Sustag

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ibf9vXAL-A8IROULryXU2vytqBHC2Va9mJ68X5PnhPU/edit?usp=sharing

Farm Mural

This week we have been continuing the final project process. To benefit the sustainable community in some way, our sustainable agriculture class has been building, presenting, painting, planting, and more.

Parker Bartlett and I have been painting a mural on the farm for example. Although in the picture below, it is not quite finished, we have been working to provide the farm with a piece of art that not only fixes the issue of a broken door, but also shows a "future version" of our farm with sustainable ideals in mind. In it one can see companions, a whole system, close plant spacing, deep soil preparation and more. Soon to be on the mural will also be the table filled with market day objects. This will signify the public relations part of our sustainable farm.

We hope that this mural can inspire students for years to come. 

Jenny

Year's End Projects

Greetings,

 This week has been busy in SustAg. The end of the year is upon us and currently we are working on a final project and our One bed presentations.

 Our final project was to build something or intern for the farm. I have seen a lot of great things around the farm being made that are sure to be helpful next year. Blaise, Ali, Enzo and Hugo have been painting some beautiful signs for around the farm. I also noticed a nice bench being built. Riley and I have been in the progress of making Dibble boards, boards used for planting with the correct spacing. We made two and think they will be very helpful for next years students. These dibble boards have been a lot of fun to make. The first thing that had to be done was measure out the correct spacing on the wooden boards i purchased from home depot. After making the measurements, it was a matter of cutting, drilling, and gluing in dowels. The boards definitely turned out well and it was satisfying to see hard work turn into a nice looking product that is sure to benefit the farm in the future.

 In other sustag related news this week was sustainability week so it was very cool to see the whole school working together to try and be sustainable. I participated in an after school work day and there were a lot of students there contributing to the farm.

 Today is the last farmers market of the year so i expect a lot of harvesting today in class and hopefully a lot of customers!

 Alex B.

Cooked

This week we watched a cooking episode on the origins of cooking. The episode we watched was called Fire. It talked about how fire is important to cultures and helped us evolve to be the humans we are today.

It also talked about how fire allowed people to hunt by bringing out the pray via fire. This shows that we have been connected to fire since we learned how to make fire or even before.  We learned about how people rely on fire to survive which is true. Without fire we would not be able to have the energy to think about anything  but our next meal. This is because we started making better weapons for hunting. The better weapons means you have more food and more food means you can think about other things such as civilization. Fire helps us form bonds and reminds us of when we are family was cooking for us. Fire keeps us warm  and scares away predators.  However while fire can protect and bring together it can also destroy.

This is the way it is and this is the way it will always be no matter how we try to control fire it is something that can never be controlled.  

--Catherine Foy