The Brand New Orchard!!

Our newest addition to the farm this year is the elevated orchard. We were previously were not able to grow certain trees due to our limited soil space. We have about 2 feet of soil in the farm below our feet, then landfill. This previously restricted our ability to grow trees that required deeper roots, but now we have access to an elevated hill providing more soil space for roots to grow. The orchard contains a variety of trees and a mini vineyard for grapes. We use drip irrigation in the orchard to water our trees and on top of that we water with the buckets of excess water from our sustainable sink. This orchard provides us with the opportunity to broaden our agriculture education with a bigger variety of plants. Once our trees begin to fruit we will also be able to have a wider variety at our monthly farmers markets. This orchard opens up an abundance of diversity and opportunity making it an extremely exciting addition to our farm. -Tatum

The Urban Farmer

Last week on block day, Mr. Stewart took the majority of the class to help out at the farmers market in town center. For the rest of us who stayed back, he had two videos for us to watch. Both of them were by Curtis Stone, author of "The Urban Farmer". In these videos, he details how he takes care of his farm, and goes over some tips and tricks to a successful sales day at the market.

 In the first video, "This is How my Farm Works", he shows us through his mass-producing backyard farm system. To grow as efficiently as possible, he rotates his plants four times a season, each  time a quick growing crop. His farm has an entire section dedicated to post-harvest preparation, using cooling and compression boxes to keep his plants fresh, and machines that tie bundles quickly. Some tools he uses that are specifically designed for mass farming are a two-wheel tractor, and a tiller. 

The majority of the second video, "A Day at the Farmer's Market" is a timelapse of Stone and his crew setting up their market, but there is some explanation in there as well. He explains that in order to sell as much as possible, the stand must be organized in a way that makes it look like you have a lot of product. "The illusion of abundance", as he calls it. If customers see that the boxes are full of produce, they will be more intrigued and interested in buying more. 

For local Marin farmers markets, go to marincounty.org and go to the farmers markets section. A lot of information is included with each one, including times and days they are open!

Rachel Berg

Soil Sampling

As we jump into our new unit on sustag, we begin to focus in on fertilizer and soil and how to sustainably and correctly care for soil and the soil that is in our one-bed gardens. In the past Reading Log, we read about what additions and amendments can benefit the soil and how fertilizers and compost can improve soil structure and rotate nutrients throughout one beds and gardens. To further our understanding of what makes up the soil and see how nutrient-rich it is, we began a soil test sampling/testing the soil in our one beds that we will be working on throughout the next week. A Soil Test is a process where nutrients are removed from the soil and measured for their plant available content within the sample. In this case, we were testing to see what percentage of the soil is sand, compared to clay, and silt. And as an end result, we will also determine the amount of amendments that make up the soil sample such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium as well as finding the pH of the soil. We also completed a "feel test" with a ball of soil and determined what type of soil we had in our bed based off of if the ball of damp soil began to ribbon. After completing this assignment, we will have determined what nutrients make up the soil that is in our one bed and how we can amend our soil to benefit the surrounding crops and organisms.

Georgia Bennett

Movie Time!

Lights, camera, action! As we jump into our new unit, Soil, the Sustainable Agriculture class relaxes as we all get to enjoy watching a movie that encompasses the different types of soils. While watching Symphony of the Soil, the class learns about how soil forms and what it contributes to the environment and our everyday lives. Soil makes this thin layer of crust for life to be possible and for all of us to survive. We also got to learn the three main important components of soil: nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon dioxide. All these are elements that make our soil effective for our food and plants. Prairie soil, also known as mollisol, is the most productive soil in the world; the USA has the most of it (about 22%.) By understanding the elaborate relationships and mutuality between soil, water, the atmosphere, plants and animals, we can appreciate the complex and dynamic nature of this precious resource, and we can become more aware of how we handle ourselves with it. In the film, it examines human relations with soil and the key problems that we are making to destroy it. Filmed on four continents by scientists and farmers, Symphony of the Soil is a educating and mind blowing movie that highlights the possibilities of healthy soil conducted by humans and keeping our planet sustainable at the same time.

Mary Tarantino

New Year, More (Class) Crops!

This week, in Sustainable Agriculture, we had a "Pop Quiz." With all students nervous and anxious, we found out that this "Pop Quiz" was a stepping stone to the creation of our class beds. In order to complete these class beds, every group had to double dig ⅓ of a bed using our knowledge we had gained from the one-bed projects. After we double-dug and fertilized, we planted our plants that would become crops representing our class. Personally, my group planted arugula and a small amount of lettuce. While planting arugula, I learned that it is essential to bury the roots in the soil (and not expose them to air for long when transferring) and then water the plants in. I learned that a good test to ensure that you planted the plants correctly is to make sure that the plant is sticking straight up in the air and not falling side to side. Creating these class beds represents our class as a whole, and even though we have our one bed projects, these class beds will bring our class together and will allow us to have one common goal. Seeing growth in beds planted by students is one of the most gratifying things at a school. Usually, classes are sitting at a desk taking notes on a lecture every day, however, this class is different. Our project is to grow a sustainable garden, and doing it as a class makes it that much better.

-Jackson Barry

Compost

This week on the farm we had a focus on how to create compost. Luckily my groups maintenance job was compost so if you can't remember we learned in class I can give you a refresher. To start off a compost pile you must start with a layer of sticks 1-4 inches, this step is very important because this is the only time we will do this step. This layer of sticks allows air pockets to be created to allow room for organisms to move. The next step is to add 4 inches of browns making sure to separate out any invasive species because we don't want those getting into our compost. Next you will want to go get the food scraps from the green bucket at the cea to add greens to your pile. You'll probably need to dump all of what's in the green bucket to get the right amount because we don't normally get that many greens.After all the greens are added you have to inoculate the pile with a handful of already made compost to introduce new organisms. Once inoculated just water and repeat with browns.

The First Signs Of Life!!!

This week on the farm all of the groups have noticed their first signs of growth from one of the many crops that they are growing. After almost a month of learning the various tools we will use, how to prepare soil for planting, what crops grow best and double digging we have finally seen some of the results of our hard work. The beans grew the most some of them being almost 4 inches tall while the other crops were just beginning to sprout up. The only crop that didn't seem to grow was the potatoes. We learned that to have sucessful crops you must water everyday because when they are at the beginning stages, the eragation may not be enough especially during the hot summer months. You should water gently and make sure not to drown them as once you start seeing puddles lasting longer than 6 seconds you should stop watering. Mulch is a great idea for preventing weeds and unwanted invasive plants Mulch also provides many nutrients to the soil and encourages garden friendly organisms like worms which fertilize the soil. To keep out pests using a rock barrier or wall is a great idea. Rats are the most common pest found on the farm. Not only does this keep out pests but it keeps things from escaping the bed and separates the bed from the surrounding environment. Next week we will learn more information on how to care for our beds and how to grow strong and healthy crops

Zach A