What excitement as our first year teens at Rural Resources jump into their garden/farm experience by helping transplant in the greenhouse. Mother nature has kept us at bay here at the farm, but we have ended up with a couple pretty nice weeks, minus a day or two. This young, new, and mostly inexperienced grows were excited to get their fingers dirty and help onions and strawberries thrive for our spring planting. One young man was so focused on making sure when he transplanted the onions that each row was perfectly straight, spaced, and the right amount of onions went into the whole. After finishing he commented that he so loves and wants to learn more about growing his own food! The excitement in his face was priceless. The group also helped to harvest some worm castings that they added to the transplants as they watered them. The worm castings will give them added nutrients that the young plants need to thrive. Taking more worm castings, they fed the herbs and newly planted peas. When these teens came back a week later, this is how their onion transplants looked:
The teens walked the farm and observed the growth in the greenhouse and garden. We then began starting to map their garden spaces for home.
The teens discussed different vegetables they could grow, and what might go well with one another. They will continue their mapping and design in this up coming month, as they continue to learn how to grow food!
Other activities we have had going on with our older groups of teens have been business planning, business management of pigs and rabbits, catering a benefit meal, and building fencing at Rural Resources. This has been a busy couple of weeks, with spring here and summer around the corner, it will not slow down. We are looking forward to many classes, workshops, catering events, and learning opportunities in this year to come!
This is AWESOME. Talk about teaching kids where their food comes from. Did any ask which part was the nuggets?
Hi Kathy,
No one asked that. However they were very fascinated with the findings in the cavity. They loved seeing the organs and understanding the roll they play for the chicken, but they loved the unusual finds best. We found eggs at different developmental stages, even one that was ready to be laid! We also had a few roosters and with a bit of blushing on my part had to tell them what “nuggets” those were that were found. It was a truly exciting day.
I bet they were ecstatic to see their plants growing. Looking forward to reading more from Rural Resources during the growing months!