This week the youth were exposed to lots of important farming knowledge. Our lesson topics included Agroecology and organic certification, crop rotations, pollinators, and their importance to growing food. They also learned about Integrated Pest Management (IPM) which means they are ready to take care of plants in a healthy and responsible way, getting to know how to tell apart beneficial insects and pests, and which types of pest control are more effective and appropriate for each situation. The apprentices worked on the computer to create their own planting calendars and played a game to match pictures of native plants with their names and facts about them, and we were impressed because they did really well! Finally, they helped the farm crew with our weekly harvest, starting seeds in the greenhouse, laying down tarps in the orchard to smother invasive weeds, and turning our compost pile. No need to say we were very busy this week, but we finished the week with learning about healthy eating vs unhealthy foods and even made time to cook and enjoy a delicious meal together. The youth prepared and cooked some zoodles with beet sauce themselves. Can’t wait for what next week has in store for us.#growyourown#nrf#SAP#SYAP#urbantilth#richmondca
