Not forever... just for a week or so. But never fear! Our greenhouse guys know what they're doing and so do the awesome job coaches and program coordinator here. Everyone is awesome. Check out our finished greenhouse!! The benefit of having everything planted is that we now have a) room for activities and b) time to do individual or less production focused tasks. I had mentioned recently that our mystery greenhouse worker had wanted to do some planting so now will be the time! We have posted photos below of the awesome greenery all square-foot-gardened and in the planter boxes. As a refresher, we used about 6-7 bags of compost (roughly 9kg), reused a bunch of old soil to help clean our garden and act as filler, 5 bags of Sunshine Mix (did I mention that we love Sunshine Mix #4!?!?!) and about 1/2 a large garbage can of perlite. Perlite is used to aerate the soil which is particularly beneficial if you're reusing old, heavy soil as it makes things fluffier (essentially) and easier to mix. Our creative greenhouse team also used some coconut coir in the bottom right box, the one with the cabbages, as an experiment. It is beneficial for hydroponics and growing systems and will likely work for us as, although coconut coir doesn't carry the nutrients that soil does, it can be beneficial in gardens. It is a bit expensive but we started trying it out in the winter for some of our sustainable experiments. There are different types of coco coir while we used the Beats Peat bricks which are light and easy to store, then expand when you add water. Good for our smaller space. For more information about the use of perlite, check out this site: www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/perlite-potting-soil.htm For more info about coconut coir, check it out: www.epicgardening.com/coconut-coir/ or www.groworganic.com/beats-peat-3-cu-ft-brick.html Our team also got certified in WHMIS this week! What an amazing group of people we have! I will be excited to see all of the changes when I return from my trip. That's all for this week folks. TTFN - Ta ta for now!!
0 Comments
Friends of the greenhouse.. the focus of this week has been the newfound (for Programs) moves of our greenhouse guy. He was holding out on us but select songs bring out the funk in all of us. In between dance sessions this week, we've finished the planting in the planter boxes!! How exciting! And the plants which were recently transplanted have been flourishing in their new, expanded homes. We ended up having so many tomato plants that, while doing square-feet-gardening planning, we just dedicated an entire box to tomatoes. This box is the one with all of the crazy looking, zombie killing metal spikes coming out of the soil. This way, our tomatoes are able to extend their limbs and we have a first point of attack for the eventual zombie-pocalyps. Win win, really. If you are interested in learning more about square-foot gardening concepts, check out the link we used: https://www.growveg.com/guides/planning-a-square-foot-vegetable-garden/ Alongside doing lots of planning for square footage, after measuring out the boxes, we also (as mentioned last week) did some research on companion planting to avoid unnecessary plant failings. If you want to know a bit more about companion planting, as in what goes well with what (or not), I have included an image based sheet below. We use the complex graph looking thing because we like to think we're really smart. Our team has been in practicum week - we like doing that thing where people get comfortable in greenhouse and then we disrupt their schedules. Our greenhouse folk took a break with one going to the Ledge to try out kitchen work and one going to North End Gallery to help promote local artists. Also a win-win as she is a local artists herself (I'm referring to our mystery greenhouse lady). Therefore, our greenhouse guy has been holding the fort and keeping everything alive. We've also paired up with our residential services program for weekend watering to share the load and provide some opportunities for other Challenge folks to get to relax in the tropical greenhouse setting. The rest of the photos below are of the progress of our plants! Enjoy the greenery! I mean scenery.... no, no. I did mean greenery. Happy Thursday!! And make sure to take some time to dance (or wiggle if that's all you're in to) tonight :) |
about usWe are part of the Employ Ability Skills Program with Challenge Disability Resource Group. We take part in a 12-week program that allows us to learn new skills and foster our interest in growing our own food organically. Archives
August 2017
Categories |