New Beds New Jobs

More than a month after getting our new plants into the ground the Sustag farm is sprouting up for another year. The lettuce is growing larger by the day, and the tomatoes are looking ripe and let me tell you how big of a bite I'd take out of one of those puppies. A big one. Mr. Stewart has been very helpful in getting us off our feet with our recently assigned, class beds. My group and I must've been given one fertile bed, because the kale on it looks like it could support a tree swing. Some groups' beds are rather weed infested, but judging by the speed at which our one-beds were put into shape, I have no doubt that my fellow Sustaggers will have them in prime condition in no-time. Just this week we did the first rotation of jobs on the farm. Every bed group gets a job for over a month, which could be compost crew, companions crew, watering crew, plants crew, or maintenance crew, each with specific jobs that are crucial in the functionality of the farm. I started out as part of the maintenance crew, weeding pathways and keeping order in the tool shed by cleaning it, making sure all the tools are returned and in good condition. I look forward to the coming months in Sustainable Agriculture where I am taking on a role as one of the watering crew managers, and I am confident that I will keep everyone's plants well hydrated. 

Hudson Brekhus

Water Conservation Blog-Pictures!

Maddie Loebbaka

Positive Progression

It has now been over one month, since we were first granted our own sixty square foot beds. On August 28th, the sustag students created groups, ventured out to the farm, and were given their beds. Most beds looked like a disaster. Different greens sprouting out in every direction. Weeds were commonly found in each patch of dirt. After some knowledge of the farming tools was demonstrated by each student, farming began! For many (and especially my group) it took a long time to weed out and remove all invasive species. However once that was completed the path to a biointensive garden began. We aerated soil, spread compost, and added new soils to our beds. Once our beds seemed somewhat organized planting was the next step. My group was able to plant lettuce, garlic, onions, beans, and potatoes. These plants have slowly grown every single day with water and care from each member of my group. Arriving at the farm each day and seeing the growth in all of the plants is quite rewarding. Everyone's beds began as heaping piles of greens and grasses. But now everyone has managed to start their own gardens. The farm will soon be producing harvest after harvest.

-Zach Ginsburg

Crop Families

In Class on Tuesday, we had a scavenger hunt where our goal as a group was to identify 10 different types of plants on the farm. We worked with our bed groups, and were given 30 minutes to complete the task. My group worked really hard to find all the different types of plant species, and we prevailed. The families that we found were Allium, Solanaceae, Cucuburbaceae, Legumes, Poaceae, Liliaceae, Brassicaceae, Apiaceae, Chenopodia, and Lamiaceae.  A challenge that we faced was finding a leaf from a liliaceae plant. Also in class on Tuesday we were given our class beds. Our job when we first we first received beds was to remove the corn stalks and start cleaning up the bed. 

Water Conservation!

 This week we are coming to the end of our first management jobs of the semester. I was in the water crew and was in charge of watering the plants, checking irrigation, and managing the reuse of water. Through this job, I learned in-depth techniques on the proper amount of water for plants of different maturities, and the little things that can be done around the farm (or a home garden!) to save water. Primarily, I had no idea that mature plants could survive on the little amount of water that drip irrigation provides. However, I learned that the drops throughout the day are more than enough to sustain a mature plant. In addition, there are many techniques to watering that save time and money. For instance, an English-style watering can is optimal for watering young plants because of the way that the water comes out, similar to rain. It has a larger watering area, so more plants are watered at a time, with less water used! One of my favorite water conservation methods we use on the farm is the water-catching bucket under the sink that can reuse the grey water for watering the large perennial plants or trees and vines in the orchard. It's my favorite method because of how simple and easy it is, but with such a big effect!

Maddie Loebbaka

Scavenger Hunt on the Farm!

For the last couple of weeks, students in groups of three created presentations about one specific plant family. The included families were: solanacea, chenopodium, apiaceae, cucurbitaceae, allium, legumes, asteraceae, brassica, liliacea and gramineae. The presentations included background information, pictures, planting instructions, recipes, and more. The class then held a gallery walk and students were able to take notes on each one. So, with the students new knowledge on the plant families (and some help from their notes), they completed their first scavenger hunt. The task at hand was to gather leaves from 10 of the 12 plant families that they had studied and learned about over the past couple of weeks, show them to Mr. Stewart, and without using their notes, list off the names of each family that they had gathered leaves for. It presented no challenge for many of the groups as the presentations had been in debt and provided sufficient knowledge to complete the scavenger hunt. Many students were nervous at first but it turned out to be a fun time in the end.

By: Sander Leszczynski

Calm Cooking

Welcome to the Sustainable Agriculture Page! Sustainable Agriculture also called "SustAg" by us talented individuals is all about using the minimum to create steady and sustainable grow for a long period of time. One great example of that if last week with our Iron Chef contest. Students separated into  four groups of eight. Those groups later came up with Ideas on how to incorporate crops into dishes that could be sustainably made with local resources. Groups were allowed to bring items from their house and supermarket but were encouraged to use the least amount from there and most from the garden. Day Two came around and the cooking commenced! Everyone was running around and screaming to one another like they were going to die the next day. While Mr.Stewart was getting into students' faces and calling their dishes garbage. WAIIIT, WAIT WAIT, That was just a scene from the normal Iron Chef my bad. Sustainable Iron Chef was calm and peaceful, students were laughing around and having a good time while cooking their food. While Mr. Stewart sat diligently waiting for the gourmet food that was about to enter his body. Each group finished a bit earlier than the other, but every team finished in the 45minute limit. My group made Bruschetta made from tomatoes grown in our personal gardens, herbs in our farm, Bread from a local bakery, Olive oil/Salt which was used by all groups, and strawberries which were picked fresh from our farm as well. Our team ended up falling just a bit short for first place, but it was definitely the most liked dish from our peers as we ended up having nothing left on the plate besides our sauce. All in all Iron chef was an amazing time, and it's definitely different from any other class because it's a breath of fresh air.

    Before Mr.Stew ate our dish            Mr.Stew crying over how great it is!

Hopefully you consider to do some sustainable acts yourself or even join SustAg in the future!

-Joshua Santos