Week 2, Summer 2023
Hello all, it’s Malia- welcome to the second week of the Summer 2023 season! I am a member of the new cohort and am super excited to be here! I can't believe how much has happened since we arrived. Let's dive into the exciting events of this past week:
Monday:
On Monday, we learned how to harvest lettuce and arugula - we had so much! We also learned how we process our produce to sell to local farmers, members of Iroquois county, and Illinois. In the afternoon, there was even more harvesting, this time strawberries and turnips! To end off the day we planted some Silphium integrifolium, which is a perennial plant in the sunflower family native to the Great Plains and other parts of North America. Because it doesn’t spread and uses water and nutrients at different depths in the soil, Silphium is a strong candidate for intercropping systems and aids in providing soil protection and carbon sequestration -super exciting!
Tuesday:
On Tuesday, some of the cohort members accompanied our on-site researcher Claire, along with a research team from UIUC, to learn the basics of soil sampling and placing plot markers out in the fields. Their specific research is focused on measuring and studying the effects that basalt application has on plant productivity and growth. (Hey, we do basalt soil application at Zumwalt Acres!) Our mushroom team got to work cleaning up the mushroom grow tents, as well as starting a straw soak to prepare for mushroom inoculation later in the week. We got to planting some Kusa squash, leeks, and beets in various areas of the farm. After some mulching in our newly-established tomato bed, we set up a drip-line system for our three-sisters bed. In a three-sister growing structure, which is based on Indigenous knowledge and practices, beans, squash, and corn were all planted in the same mound as a sustainable planting technique. These varieties all help one another grow as well as add to long-term soil fertility! (which we love to hear)
Wednesday:
Halfway through the week! This day was a busy one, and the first super hot day of the week. In the morning, a few of us got an “Intro to Soil Ph” led by Claire. We observed how she prepares and tests soil samples for pH, and packages them to send off to our partner lab at Yale University. Here is a quick breakdown of the process: we take a dry soil sample ,sift it using a sieve, weigh out 10 grams in a test tube, add 10 mL of water to the test tube and shake. Then, we wait an hour, and pH. After that we add 10 mL of calcium chloride and shake. Then we wait another 15 minutes, and take the pH again. We repeat this process for every single sample, so having some jams playing in the background is essential! While mushroom inoculation occurred, others were staring a huge task out in our Across The Road (ATR) area of the farm. We began to clear up and prepare a huge bed where we aimed to plant many varieties of squash and watermelons. We started by pulling out any large plants and weeds in the area, and mulching the entire area with straw. Finally, some direct seeding and transplanting occurred with carrots, onions, peppers and cucumbers - yum!
Thursday
Our ambitious ATR project continued into Thursday, and took the entire day! We successfully finished mulching the area, dug holes to expose the soil with 1-foot diameters, direct seeded all the squash and watermelons, and finished setting up a drip-line watering system! It was hard work, but so rewarding to see how much progress we made in only two days transforming this into a fully functioning garden bed. Those not involved in that project were busy planting catnip - we have two cutie-pie farm cats - and horseradish, as well as some much-needed weeding around the farm. After the workday was finished, some of us traveled to Monticello, IL to attend an event hosted by The Land Connection and the Savanna Institute! We experienced a walking tour of the Memorial 4H Demonstration Farm to engage in meaningful learning and conversation about the benefits of incorporating trees into conventional grain systems to support water quality, carbon sequestration, soil health, and wildlife habitat. It was a great opportunity to learn and connect with other Illinois farmers and those in the agricultural sector! - we of course had to stop at Don’s for some much-needed ice cream after a long day out in the sun
Friday
Woohoo, it's Friday! Although the morning started off cold and cloudy, the skies cleared up and the sun came around, bringing renewed energy. We began the day with a thorough walk around the farm, identifying any areas needing attention or repairs. We also made sure to water extra around all the newly planted crops. Our marketing team did a sweep of the farm for harvest-ready plants to fill orders. The mushroom team continued their work with another round of inoculation. Afterwards, we all took a field trip into the surrounding fields to get hands-on experience in soil sampling. We split into two groups, where we used a GPS to locate our sampling sites and set up quadrats for sampling. At each site, 20 core samples were taken, so 5 samples from each quadrant! Later in the day four people went back out into the fields to continue taking samples, which also included augmented sites. At these sites, in addition to the 20 core samples, a series of 10, 5, and 1 samples were collected within the quadrat structure. Others finished up the day mulching and direct seeding carrots.
What an eventful week it has been! We have accomplished so much together and are learning and growing as a cohort. Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on new adventures next week. Until then, have a great weekend!
Best,
Malia :)
