Campus Community Gardens
I volunteered at the Campus Community Gardens on January 5, 2018 from 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM. The event organizer was Nhu Tran. The contact email was Nhu.tran@email.edcc.edu.
This event is sponsored by the Department of Anthropology. The goals of the event were to learn about food issues, gardening skills, sustainability, nutrition, etc.
Unfortunately, during the winter season there wasn’t much to do at the gardens since there were very few plants still growing or ready to harvest. However, the jobs they had for us included pruning basil of dead sections; harvesting parsley, radishes, and sunchokes (Figure 1 and 2); collecting and feeding the worms; and reorganizing all the planting pots (Figure 3).
Figure 1. Sunchokes picked from the garden
Figure 2. Radishes and Parsley picked from the garden
Figure 3. All of the organized planting pots. It took a very long time to sort through these.
- This is not my first time at the community farm on campus, so I already knew the kind of things they do there. We were able to learn how growing fresh produce organically can help sustain healthy soil and healthy life habits. When crops are grown organically, it affects not only the crops and those who eat the crops, but also all the other creatures that that interact with the garden. For example, the farm raises its own worms that help to maintain soil quality and take care of any detritus material on the ground so that nutrients from the detritus material is returned back into the soil, which can be used for other crops later on. Also, they have green houses, which they use to grow and harvest crops year round, since it keeps the heat in during the winter as well as prevent pests. In a world where there is so much toxic chemicals and a shortage of food in a rapidly growing population, this these innovations are rather important. In these ways, science brings many innovations and ideas that can better sustain and shape society for the better.
- Washington has always been known for advocating for organic and the health of our environment. The farm uses all natural and organic ways of producing crops, so it is beneficial to both the animal life and the environment. From what I have seen, they use natural fertilizers, such as composts rather than the fertilizers that are filled with heavily nitrogenous materials that you’d find in most gardening suppliers. They do not use any pesticides, and instead use natural ways of deterring or killing off any unwanted pests. Also, having their own bee and worm farm allows them to populate garden all the “beneficial” creatures that will help to pollinate and maintain healthy soil control for the garden. The lack in chemicals lessens the amounts of pollutants that are drained into the waterways of the Puget Sound and keep the levels of toxins in the soil from increasing.
Questions:
· What crops are able to be produced in WA (without help of a greenhouse)?
· Are any of the vegetables or fruits grown at the community farm hybridized?
· What kinds of invasive insects can we find in the northwest?
· What crops are able to grow and are ready-to-eat during the winter season?
Hi Vy!
ReplyDeleteI also participated in the farm work party last quarter, and they also did not have much to harvest or plant. I planted some of the radish seeds last quarter, so I hope that the radishes you picked was one of mine! I liked your observations on the innovations that the community garden has made over the years. It definitely “shapes” the society for a better future since fresh, local food is always better for the body, therefore better for our community as well. I’m sorry you didn’t get to do much this quarter, since when there are stuff to do you get to see more of what the garden has to offer. Great post!