Bright and early, at 8am Friday morning, 60 excited sustainable agriculture students gathered around Mr. Stewart before grouping up and heading out to the IVC Farm for an educational work day. We departed for the farm with our notebooks, pencils, water, and positive attitudes for the day ahead of us. Upon arriving, we were awe-struck by the beauty of this campus. Surrounded by rolling hills and pristine nature, we could finally get away from the air, sound, and light pollution that we were accustomed to.
We met the team that would be leading us: Johnny (who has a great laugh!), Vick (but never Vicky), Teily, and one other. An initial tour of the farm left us somewhat surprised. A majority of the land was being let bare, which we had learned is a huge "no-go" due to the soil's susceptibility to erosion and the loss of nutrients. Although, because it is winter, new seedlings would not grow, so there was no other option. Mr. Stewart mentioned how seeing all the open space makes him feel better about our farm at Redwood in regards to having lower yields at this time of the year. When we continued the tour, we saw a large hoop house to grow seedlings and allow for season extension (start season early and end late). Furthermore, IVC Farm created a rock trench to divert the water stream from the surrounding mountains away from the field (to prevent erosion). The tour came to its end at the compost and mulch pile. The mulch pile was steaming from the microbes respiring within it. We learned that the farm's soil has 6-8% organic matter, and that they do not make their own compost as there is too much ground to cover.
We were separated into four groups and finally got to work! For group B, we started off in the planting house to do some weeding, planting, and maintenance. A few students got to try the world hottest pepper, the Carolina Reaper! Talk about spicy! After around an hour and a half, we rotated jobs. Group B's next task was to sift the soil for potting plants and to create more soil. We got to experience first-hand how much water organic matter can absorb (A LOT), and learn what IVC does to maintain nutrients in the soil. Lastly, part of the group carried breezeblocks behind the sheds to create a temporary compost center. Meanwhile, a nearby group was painting tools. An enthusiastic student, Anna Kaufman, stated "I would like to paint the tools at the Redwood farm for my final project. It's fun, and makes a huge difference in the aesthetics of our materials." I'm looking forward to seeing our tools as colorful as IVC's! After lunch, we all heading out for our last rotation. Group B was lucky to work with Mr. Stewart adding mulch and fertilizer to the olive trees in the orchid. Wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow, we made immense progress and finished over 2-3 rows.
It took a lot of time, work, and sweat, but we could see a physical different in the farm by the end of the day. We saved their team 3 weeks of work by helping them out for just one day! In return, we got to spend our day with these wonderful individuals surrounded by trees and wildlife rather than being cooped up in a stuffy classroom all day long! I'll choose farm field trips over that anyday!
Isabella Karman
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