For my challenge, I decided to take steps to become more self-sufficient in my consumption of food. I made my first real attempt at gardening last year and I had some success, but I didn't start my own seeds indoors. A friend supplied me with seedlings she had started and I was terrified they would die before the weather grew warm enough to transplant them
One of my seedlings in the window with a snowy yard backdrop
outside. I managed to keep most of them alive and enjoyed a modest harvest, but I really want to expand my setup this year.
I was inspired by Pam Warhurst's (2012) "How we can eat our landscapes" and figured I could start small with my own backyard by getting rid of some more grass and using the land I am privileged enough to own in a more productive and sustainable way. By starting my own seeds, I can also save money and choose the varieties of food to grow rather than being dependent on what the local greenhouses offer.
I devised what Krebs and Zvi (2016) described as "a non-Googleable question" (p. 21). My original inquiry question was: How accessible is suburban gardening, from seed to table, in terms of cost, time and start-up information?
Note: By the time I needed to submit this curation, my inquiry question had changed to "How accessible is it to start suburban gardening in Zone 6b, from seed to table, in terms of cost, time and start-up information?"
In other words, I was curious to learn whether or not a clueless suburban resident without owning expensive equipment could actually start seeds and have success planting them to produce food to eat in her own backyard.
What were my criteria for success?
It would be easy to say that having food on my plate in a few months might be a good indicator of success, but there are two problems with that. First, the timeframe doesn't work for the scope of this project or even for the course. Second, even if my seeds don't end up on my dinner plate doesn't mean I wasn't successful in learning. Knowing what doesn't work is an effective way to finding out what does work.
Being able to answer my inquiry question with some real-world observations, numbers and personal experience became the criteria for success in my project.
Starting up
Since I was hoping to do this as cheaply as possible, I had to improvise a bit.
A - My sister-in-law gave me about 30 packs of a variety of seeds she'd been gifted from a friend - score!
B - I borrowed a soil blocker from a friend who started her journey with gardening a few years ago. These mean using less plastic than the trays with individual pods for each seedling. They also save space and allow for air-pruning of roots (who knew that was even a thing?!) but cost about $60 and I didn't want to commit to that.
C - I used old food containers so I wouldn't need to purchase seed starting trays.
D - I re-purposed other small items I realized I needed as I went along...in this case, an icing decorator tip which created seed divets in the starting mix.
E - I ripped the written-on pages of an old notebook out so I could turn it into an "observation journal" (which also turned into a seed-starting calendar).
My kitchen table turned into a potting bench.
Next, I had to consider what I can actually grow in the climate where I live. I found out that I live in Zone 6b, so then I needed to consult a variety of sources to see what can grow here during different times of the year. I needed to choose seeds that I could start in February for the purpose of this assignment - I went with kale, lettuce, 2 kinds of broccoli, radish, Chinese celery and threw in some annual flowers as well (I'd learned from a friend's Facebook post that marigolds could deter certain fungi and from a Joe Gardener podcast about specific flowers that would attract pollinators).
It turns out that, in order to make the best use of my garden space, I can transplant most of these to my garden, harvest during spring, and replace the garden space with summer seedlings, then potentially have a second crop of cool-loving veggies. What that means, though, is starting a comprehensive seed-starting calendar and sticking to it. Yikes. It's more commitment than I'd thought.
Sowing and Growing
Lettuce seeds
It took an entire afternoon to sow my first batch of seeds - about 5 hours. Getting the soil blocks right was a trial-and-error affair and individually tweezing seeds into holes took longer than I'd thought it would. Then there was labeling, journaling, figuring out where to put each tray based on the germination needs of each seed type, and the cleanup.
I also realized that I should be doing some succession planting - staggering the sowing of seeds by 2 weeks so I have a continuous harvest over a period of time rather than a lot all at once. I'll need a bigger seed-starting setup; already the dining room table has been taken over by my project for over two weeks and this rate, we'll be eating dinner in front of the TV for months to come!
3/4" soil blocks ready to seed.
It was really exciting to see the little seedlings pop up... but not so exciting to to see that I'd have to "pot up" each one so quickly. I'd used the tiny soil blocker to economize soil and space but that means moving each one to a bigger growing space as it becomes necessary - and for someone with a full-time job, coursework and other commitments, it's an extra step I didn't want to take. I decided to do my next batch of sowing in the bigger blocks. It would require more starting mix but save time... and I value my time! The next weekend was spent with the bigger soil blocker and I liked how they turned out; they do take up more space, though, so that's going to be a challenge.
2"x2" soil blocks will save time and effort
I've also noticed that my seedlings look "leggy"... long stems without much leaf growth. I've learned that this is a result of not having enough light. My meager light source for the seedlings hasn't been doing the job. After a lot of thought, I purchased these lights from Amazon, with a lot of guilt about feeding the Amazon machine in the name of sustainability. I'm reflecting on the ideas of factory farming and organic gardening and realizing it's not a dichotomy for me - I will be doing what I can to be sustainable and forgiving myself when I take the easy way every now and then. For the space in my home, I decided that the best way to use space efficiently was vertically, so I also purchased this shelving unit.
My seedlings starting to get "leggy".
My limited experience has taught me that moving plants is a hassle, so having wheels was a must, and I chose a unit with more shelves than I currently need since I am beginning to see that gardening can get out of hand quickly. I'm fortunate enough to be able to purchase these items, but I know that for many folks this isn't possible. I also understand that they're not necessary, but if I want a tidy home and any free time to myself, coming up with a better storage and lighting system is a must.
Reciprocity - Feeding what will feed me
Lunch for the worms (kitchen scraps)
A few months ago, a friend showed me her latest gardening project - a vermicompost bin. I was curious and she kindly offered to share when the worms had reproduced enough to split. The timing was perfect for this project! All I had to do was set up a system that would accommodate them and be willing to handle the worms; my lovely friend is generous but squeamish when it comes to actually touching the worms.
Vermicompost uses red wriggler worms and shredded paper bedding to turn kitchen scraps such as banana peels, vegetable leftovers and other things I might normally put in the green bin into a rich compost. It is made faster and is more nutrient-rich than regular compost (Seldon, et. al., 2005) and is very expensive to buy. I used this 3-bucket system with buckets that I purchased from Facebook Marketplace for $2 each to create the vermicompost system and after 3 weeks my worms are happily settled in the corner of my kitchen - not sure about my family, though!
I have also set up individual bins for eggshells and coffee grounds so they can be used to acidify soil, add to my compost and deter slugs - a tip from my new favorite podcaster, Joe Gardener.
Summary of Cost
I had wanted to keep costs down as much as possible, but the farther I got with the project, the more I realized that in order to be successful with spring gardening in my climate, some basic supplies are needed. Below is a summary of my costs.
Item
Source
What I paid
Retail for similar item
Initially…
Seeds
sister-in-law
$0
$40
Soil blockers (2 sizes)
friend
$0
$100
Seed trays
Repurposed food containers
$0
(aside from the original purchase)
$24
Seed starting mix
Retail
$20
$20
Vermicompost buckets
Marketplace
$6
$18 for buckets up to $150 for an assembled kit
Red wriggler worms
Generous friend
$0
$25 per pound
After re-evaluating my success and wanting to continue long-term…
Lights
Amazon
$87.96
$87.96
Shelving
Costco
$78.19
$78.19
Larger seed trays
Kent
$12.35
$12.35
My lights arrived today!
Light is non-negotiable and I only have a small amount of south-facing space indoors that provides enough sunlight, so purchasing lights is a good investment if I want to keep doing this, which I do.
Space is at a premium, so the shelving will be helpful and will prevent my family members from getting annoyed at seedling trays and small pots scattered through the house.
The chart above doesn't account for the time I invested, though. A breakdown of my time is included here:
Task
Time investment
Browsing online sources for background information
It's a big time commitment to learn how to start planting from seeds and actually have success. The good news is that there is LOTS of easily accessible information available for anyone wanting to garden in any zone, with any kind of space constraint. The other good thing is that after some initial costs, it's not that expensive in terms of money or time. Supplies get reused, seeds can be collected and saved, and knowledge doesn't go away... it grows over time.
Reflection On My Deep Learning
I made several connections with the readings on deep learning. First of all, partnerships are important. I had to text, call, or meet with several different people to get advice, borrow supplies or ask questions. These people served as the mentors Fullan & Langworthy (2014) discuss and they also provided me with feedback when I sent pictures of what I was doing or how my seedlings were progressing. Their expertise was so valuable; even though I'd done lots of reading, watching and listening using the digital tools at my disposal, having folks in my community who were willing to share information with me that was relevant to my growing zone, available resources and personal disposition was a gift. It put me in mind of Mayer-Smith et. al.'s (2007) idea to connect youth with community elders to grow food together. With today's access to information, I think we sometimes forget what a rich resource we have in local experts. Not only is partnering with people in our communities a good way to learn, it strengthens the community itself. I have since been introduced to and joined 2 local Facebook growing groups and am attending a seed and tool swap next weekend. This shows that the combination of real-life interactions as well as the use of technology has supported my deep learning. I watched so many Youtube videos and listened to several fantastic podcasts to help me figure out what I was doing. I also found an app for my phone called Sowing Calendar that will make planning and journaling easier. When used appropriately, technology really does accelerate the learning process and helps us support our and maintain our partnerships (Fullan et. al., 2014).
In terms of my success criteria, I think I can answer my inquiry question with real-world observations, numbers and personal experience:
A red wriggler worm cocoon from my vermicompost bucket
I've spent a little over $200 and in subsequent years I'll only need to spend about $40, so it's expensive to start but fairly cost effective after that
There's a wealth of information available for novice gardeners
local gardeners tend to be passionate and want to help others become food growers
planting, tending and growing involves patience, anticipation, hope, excitement and satisfaction. And sore arms.
I have more than 100 seedlings that are being "hardened off" for planting outdoors in the next 2 weeks
Some of my worms have doubled in size and they are reproducing; I have spotted cocoons and babies
I want to keep doing it... all of it!
I decided to use Fullan et al.'s (2014) Emergent Roles of Teachers and Students (p. 13), with me as the student, to reflect on my deep learning for this project. The checklist is below:
Deep Learning Role
(framework suggested by Fullan et. al)
How I did this in my project
Build trusted relationships with teachers and peers; seek good mentors
Finding and connecting with gardeners in my community and on social media
Explore own interests and aspirations in learning goals and tasks
Deciding what to plant based on my eating habits and preferences
Develop capacity to define learning goals, tasks and success criteria, partnering in the learning process
Creating and refining inquiry question, deciding on what determines success
Reciprocal teaching and learning from and with peers and teachers
Engaging with community gardeners to get advice and share my experience
Develop capacity for reflection and perseverance in the face of challenges; provide high quality feedback and encouragement to others
Replanting seeds that didn’t germinate; trying different soil block sizes and germination conditions; deciding to invest in lights & shelving & committing to the expense
Feedback to others will happen as I engage with classmates’ projects
Provide feedback to teachers and peers on what is working in one’s own learning; build mastery of the learning process and one’s own progress
Continued contact with mentors using technology when needed
Develop intellectual and attitudinal dispositions towards creating new knowledge and doing things with it in the world
Creating the blog post to summarize the assignment
This will continue as I engage with other classmates’ projects
Continuously discover and create digital learning tools and resources to explore new content, concepts, information and ideas. Use these tools to create new knowledge, to connect with peers and experts throughout the world and to use new knowledge in the world
References
Fullan, M., & Langworthy, M. (2014). A rich seam: How new pedagogies find deep learning. London: Pearson. Chapter 1-5.
Joe Gardener. (2022, April 19). Organic Gardening: Grow like A pro with Joe Lamp'l: Joe Gardener®. joe gardener® | Organic Gardening Like a Pro. Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://joegardener.com/
Krebs, D., & Zvi, G. (2016). Introducing genius hour to your class (Chapter 2). In The genius hour guidebook: Fostering passion, wonder, and inquiry in the classroom. New York: Routledge.
Lamp'l, J. (2018, November 1). Bird-friendly yard: Audubon society recommendations: Joe Gardener®. joe gardener® | Organic Gardening Like a Pro. Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://joegardener.com/podcast/create-bird-friendly-yard/
Jolie Mayer-Smith , Oksana Bartosh & Linda Peterat (2007) Teaming Children and Elders to Grow Food and Environmental Consciousness, Applied Environmental Education and Communication, 6:1, 77-85, DOI: 10.1080/15330150701319529
TED (Ed.). (2012, September 24). TEDxMasala - Dr Vandana Shiva - solutions to the food and ecological crisis facing us today. YouTube. Retrieved March 11, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ER5ZZk5atlE
Decolonizing Outdoor Education Reflection and Goal-setting I recently read Decolonizing Education: Nourishing the Learning Spirit , but Marie Battiste, who is from Mi'kma'ki, the unceded land on which I live with gratitude. There were three main points provided regarding decolonization that I took away: first, to acknowledge colonial and racist practices, next, to acknowledge the richness of Indigenous knowledge, and finally to learn it respectfully without appropriation (p. 69). I know that there are many colonial and racist practices that I am a part of in my role as a classroom teacher. Simply existing as a school with brick walls and desks in classrooms is colonial in nature. Using numbers to "grade" students is unfair and perpetuates inequitable power structures, especially when learning is done and assessed by reading and writing alone. Using biased resources such as textbooks, videos or even my own personal experience or perspective as someone of settler o...
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