YEARLY WORK SCHEDULE:

SEPTEMBER: Applying compost to the garden

OCTOBER: Harvesting pumpkins and winter squash

NOVEMBER: Mulching the garden

DECEMBER: Planning for the coming year

JANUARY: Preparing soil for planting in the greenhouse

FEBRUARY: Seeding in the greenhouse

MARCH: Weeding the garden and starting to build the compost piles

APRIL: Weeding the garden and building compost piles. Adding Bio-Dynamic preps

MAY: Turning the compost piles

What the Program Provides for the kids throughout the year

SEPTEMBER: Apply compost to the field

WHAT TO SEE AND EAT

-- Beans

-- Tomatoes

-- Eggplant

-- Peppers

-- Cucumbers

-- Melons

-- Field preparation for Winter

-- Young seedlings

This is the time of year to distribute the compost pile. We put the nutrients on the soil so they will be incorporated during the winter and ready for plants in the New Year.

ACTION: Kids will actually help the farmer apply and spread the compost with tools and wheelbarrows

PRESENTATION: What has happened since the compost was made

-- Decomposition

-- Why do we need compost

-- What else can be used instead of compost

-- Transportation to truck compost to farm

-- Other ways to build soil (green manure)

-- Animal’s role

-- What happens with out compost

RETURN

OCTOBER: harvest pumpkins, winter squash and potatoes for storage

What to see and Eat

-- Beans

-- Tomatoes

-- Eggplant

-- Peppers

-- Cucumbers

-- Melons

-- Field preparation for Winter

This is the time of year that most all crops need to be brought in before the rains

ACTION:

Harvest squash and store in bins

PRESENTATION:

-- Season Cycles

-- Where does the crop go? Storage, sales, length of storage

-- Counting, weighing, prices, plant yields

RETURN

NOVEMBER: mulching

WHAT TO SEE AND EAT

-- Beans

-- Tomatoes

-- Eggplant

-- Peppers

-- Cucumbers

-- Melons

-- Field preparation for Winter

This is the time to cover beds in the garden with mulch to protect the compost from beating rains and to keep them free of weeds.

PRESENTATION:

-- What will happen to the compost? Worms and soil life

-- How does the mulch help?

-- What do other farms do? Soil erosion, regional effects

-- Other methods of mulching, cover crops, what this means for spring planting

ACTION:

Apply straw mulch by hand around plants in the garden. Will also use pitchforks and wheelbarrow

RETURN

DECEMBER: NO TOURS DUE TO WET WEATHER

This is a time for planning the spring planting

RETURN

JANUARY: preparing the soil for planting in the greenhouse

THINGS TO SEE AND EAT:

-- Oranges

-- Lettuces

-- Carrots

-- Radishes

-- Greens

-- Broccoli

-- Beets

This is the time to sift worm castings and compost and prepare the soil to plant in the green house trays.

PRESENTATION:

-- What do the plants need to grow in the green house?

-- How does compost help the green house?

-- What do the plants and soil cost?

-- Why is it important to sift the soil?

ACTION:

Use sifters to separate the worms and the larger compost. Mix the worm castings together with the compost and other amendments. Wash the flats then pot soil in. Plant seeds

RETURN

FEBRUARY: seeding the greenhouse

THINGS TO SEE AND EAT:

-- Lettuces

-- Carrots

-- Oranges

-- Greens

-- Beets

-- Turnips

This is a continuation of the work done in January with more emphasis on seeding.

PRESENTATION:

-- Where do seeds come from?

-- How do we save our own seeds?

-- Why is it so important to have so many different kinds of seeds in the world?

ACTION:

Seed trays for spring planting and water them in to the green house

RETURN

MARCH: weeding the garden

THINGS TO SEE AND EAT:

-- Lettuces

-- Carrots

-- Herbs

-- Greens

-- Cabbage

-- Turnips

This is the time when all plants -including weeds- come to life! This is the best time of year to weed and start the compost piles.

PRESENTATION:

-- Why weed the garden?

-- Why use compost?

-- How long does the composting process take, and how does it work?

-- How do other farms fertilize their fields?

-- How much energy is used to till weeds?

ACTION:

Hand-weed, use hoes and files to sharpen the hoes used to weed the garden. As the weeds pile up we will move them to the compost site to start layering the pile.

RETURN

APRIL: turning the compost pile

THINGS TO SEE AND EAT:

-- Lettuces

-- Carrots

-- Flowers

-- Greens

-- Dried Fruit

-- Young Seedlings

This is the time to turn the pile to ensure that the weeds are decomposing

PRESENTATION:

-- What is happening in the decomposition process?

-- How are we so dependent on decomposition, and how is it connected to so many other living creatures?

-- Why is the temperature of the soil so important to the seeds?

-- How are soils different?

ACTION:

Using pitchforks, water and shovels we will turn the compost that was made in March. Water is very important in decomposition. At the end we will add the Biodynamic preparations.

RETURN

MAY: planting seedlings

THINGS TO SEE AND EAT:

-- Lettuces

-- Carrots

-- Asparagus

-- Spinach

-- Strawberries

-- Apricots

-- Beets

This is the time to plant the seedlings from February out into the fields.

PRESENTATION:

-- What will the plants look like?

-- How do we handle the babies?

-- What will happen to the plants throughout the season?

ACTION:

Using trowels we will plant the seedlings into the field.

RETURN