Urban Agricultural Enterprises

All living beings must have nourishment better known as food. Food production and food distribution, carried out to meet this basic need, are the common ground upon which we can build sustainable communities.

Food production, otherwise known as agriculture and food processing, can create sustainable employment, healthy neighbourhoods and a strong local economy.

How we grow and transport food from the farm to the kitchen defines our society. Fast Food is becoming our most popular food delivery system and it is one of the most environmentally unfriendly.

more

Late Summer Snack

The School Garden

What is a school garden?

Simply put a school garden is a garden on the school property. It may be a flower garden or a vegetable garden or both. The choice is up to the people who plant and tend the garden; the students with guidance and advice from teachers and parents.

A school garden is an excellent way for the parents to become involved in the school that their child(ren) attends. The garden can be a container garden, raised bed or planted directly into the ground, once again the choice belongs to the gardeners taking into consideration the available resources, such as the amount of land available and the type of land as well as the amount of time that can be dedicated to gardening.

The school garden can complement the learning experience as there are many lessons that can be based upon the garden. For one thing, students can learn how to work together to plan, plant and care for the garden.

How to get started?

The impetus for the garden may come from a teacher, a parent or a student. For the garden to work all must be involved. Regardless of who initiates the project, the school principal must be involved and the principal’s permission is essential.

If a teacher starts the project and gets the principal on board then the next step is to rally other teachers and plan a public meeting.

The students’ parents are invited to that meeting in order to inform them about the project and get them interested. Have them bring their children as well so all the concerned parties are in the room.

You will need to give them information such as the size of the garden and where on the school grounds it will be located. Having a clear purpose for the garden may help; for example will it be an edible plant garden, that can provide fresh food for the cafeteria; or will it be a native plant garden designed to introduce native plants into the area and encourage birds and butterflies.

The meeting begins with a quick overview of the project which includes the benefits that the students will receive from being involved. Then a question and answer period follows.

Be sure to have a sign up sheet handy for any parents who want to help with the garden, their assistance will be invaluable over the summer months.

If a student or group of students is eager to start a garden on the school grounds, the first step is to talk with a teacher and get his or her support; once that is done then the process becomes the same as the above for the teacher initiated garden.

If a parent or parents are interested in starting the garden, then the first step is to contact the school principal and any teachers you may know and arrange a meeting to discuss the project. A parent initiated garden may not need to hold a community meeting, as parents are already in the loop.

Once you have the principal’s permission and have students, teachers and parents o board, the final gardening decisions can be made. Decisions such as organic or not; what to plant can be worked out by the gardeners.

A school garden can provide an outdoor classroom, a source of healthy food or habitat for local wildlife or the best, all three. There are enough examples of successful school gardens around to know that it is a win win situation for your child’s education.

Gardening can help build a child’s confidence, engage their imagination, make new friends and enhance the school property.

How and Why to Plant Trees

Now if there was a situation when it was important to follow the right plant, right place rule it is when you are choosing a tree or trees for your property. Pick the wrong tree and you may find its roots assaulting the foundation of your home. Pick the right tree and you will enjoy its many benefits for many years.

Remember that a tree’s root system can cover an area 2-3 times as wide as the crown. 

more

Mint

Still growing on Balcony, November 18, 2016

How to Pollinate the Indoor Vegetable Garden

Plants grown indoors have the same needs as plants grown outdoors,however, there is a major difference. Indoors, the gardener supplies the sun, perhaps in a brightly lit window, perhaps with artificial light, or maybe a combination of both.

The soil used indoors differs from what we plant our vegetables in outdoors and the plant roots rely on the gardener for water and food.

more

How-To-Attract-Butterflies-to-Your-Yard

It is not all that difficult to attract butterflies to your garden and have them set up house. There are two things that butterflies are seeking: one is nectar, the food that adult butterflies need, and the other, host plants, the place where the female will lay her eggs and the food that caterpillars need. Both are necessary to create a successful butterfly garden.

It does take some thought and a bit of planning but then so does any successful garden. You need to know which butterflies are native to your region. You need to know what they like to eat and where they sleep, in short, you need to know butterfly habitats and habits.

more

How to Propagate Houseplants

Stem Cuttings

The advantages to having houseplants are many; they add beauty and colour to a room, give you a hobby that can provide you with pleasure and considerable satisfaction and make great gifts. Most houseplants are reasonable. They do not make tremendous demands upon your time and resources.

Perhaps, one of their greatest advantages is the ease at which you can multiply your houseplant collection, and to make this even more enticing, you can do so without spending a dime.

more

Christmas Cacti

The indoor garden blossoms.