Growing Soil

As farm work begins for the school year. Many students have finished double digging their beds to make sure that they are properly aerated to sustain crops and are now focusing on what they will plant to make their OneBed project unique to their group. Among a wide variety of options are: broccoli, beans, kale, lettuce, radishes, and sunflowers. But almost equally important to the care of the seeds and growth of the crops is the soil. In Sustainable Agriculture we're not just growing plants but also soil. A good thing to remember when trying to grow your own plants is that the soil is the key to the harvest. Without fertile soil the plants will not get the proper nutrients that they need to prosper.  Soil provides the support for plants and most of the nutrients. As the soil components break down, elements are released and become available to plants as nutrients. Because the farm is on filled in marshland, we are constantly battling with poor soil. To make up for the soil quality we must add fertilizer and compost to replenish the nutrients and insure for great crop yields. As we continue throughout the year we will constantly monitor the soil to make sure everything is correct and our crops are getting the proper nutrients that they need. 

-Mats