Principles of Organic
This week, we began to explore and consider the Principles of Organic gardening/farming in practice.
We also discussed some important aspects of the garden plan for this season!
Our Garden Stakeholder Meeting will happen at the church at 6pm Friday March 3rd.
2206 N. Cole Rd.
We will start inside in order to discuss and consider plans for the garden this season.
You will want to join us for this meeting in person in order to:
Decide on our working-days strategy for the season
Determine what we would like the volunteer days to focus on. We will walk the garden and get a good idea of some of the tougher jobs before us that we will need help with. We will also discuss the enticing foods and fun that we’ll include on these days!
Discuss crop plans for the season. Although the main gardening season will begin in mid-April, we have begun starting several varieties.
Review and discuss the irrigation map and location of crops for the season.
Complete the Garden Agreement if you have not done so already.
This blog is not public right now. Please refer to Week 1 for details and the possibility of publishing a version of this.
The Principles of Organic
Vocabulary:
Ecology: the study of living organisms including where they are, how many there are, and what their relationships are with one another.
Biodiversity: the variety of life and living things.
Organic is both a set of rules and regulations defined by governments, and a set of ideas, principles, and values that farmers, gardeners, and ranchers follow. This lesson explores some of the values and principles that define organic agriculture. These principles of organic are from the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). IFOAM is an international organization that advocates for organic agriculture.
IFOAM’s four principles of organic are Health, Ecology, Fairness, and Care. In this discussion, we explore those values and talk about how they apply in our lives and in farming. If you missed the virtual meeting, we can continue these conversations in the garden.
Awareness
The following exercise would be best done in the garden, but you can begin the process at home, then carry a practice of awareness into the garden.
When we focus on day-to-day tasks, we don’t always see all that is around us. Taking time to notice allows us to pay attention to little things, such as the weather, or the texture and appearance of the soil. While exploring, see how much you can slow down. Allow yourself to wander and wonder.
Bring these questions with you into your garden exploration and see if you can complete them as you wander. Remember, you can do this at home, and/or wait till we meet at the garden.
Think about your observations and share them with the other gardeners, and those who care about (and participate in caring for) the garden.
What types of life do you notice?
Can you find 5 different types of plants?
Can you find 5 different types of insects?
Do you see or hear any birds or other larger animals?
Do you notice the different living things interacting? How do they interact with each other? Do some eat others or get their food from them?
Can you find any bugs that are resting on or eating from plants?
Do you notice any pollinator insects, like bees or butterflies, that are both harvesting food and helping the plants reproduce?
Have you found any birds or other animals that eat insects?
Do you think there are living things that you don’t see or hear? Where would they be? Why do you think they exist?
Many forms of life are microscopic! If you had a powerful microscope, what would you want to look at?
What do you think would happen to the bugs and other living things if all the plants disappeared?
What do you think would happen if only one type of plant was living in the entire garden? Would there be as many different types of bugs in the garden?
This material is kindly provided by the Edible Schoolyard Project and their Understanding Organic curriculum. It is adapted for adult gardeners, volunteers, and stakeholders. This offers us all a point of connection and framework to become familiar with the garden, and familiar with these practices based on where we are each at in discussion-based formats.