Sustainable Foods and You! Weekly Garden Update

So this week in the garden we were finally able to harvest and take home some of our vegetables! I was able to take home some green ladybug peppers, four eggplants, two teacup squash and one Joe Parker green pepper. When I got home, I cooked up the eggplant by dicing it and breading and frying the pieces then served with tomato sauce and mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

I have some sick plants that have either been taken over by caterpillars laying their eggs, or have been infected by some disease. But the good news coming outta my garden this week is that i discovered carrots that i had planted which I thought all died!

Class Discussion: Sustainability within Food Crops and Consumers
This week we talked about whether or not we eat organic foods and how likely we would be in the future leraning just what it means when something is "certified organic"or "made from natural products" etc.

I do not go out of my way to eat strictly organic foods, however I am not adverse towards eating any type of food and am very open to what I do choose to eat.

Following below is a description of the four general categories of multi-ingredient packaged organic products:

• 100% Organic = 100% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• Certified Organic = 95% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• Made with Organic Ingredients = At least 70% of ingredients are certified organic, excluding salt and water.
• No Label Claims = Less than 70% of ingredients are certified organic.

A major basis for organic gardening is the use of abundant quantities of organic material applied to the soil. Usually, it is in the form of animal manures, plant manures, cover crops, compost, or mixed organic fertilizer. Organic gardening differs from "conventional"gardening mainly in the areas of fertilization and pest control" (Organic Vegetable Gardening

James M. Stephens, page 1 of Fact Sheet EES-327, "Organic Fertilizers and Soil Amendments"). So, organic gardener prefers to use natural and organic materials and methods, and avoids using practices and synthetic chemicals that may be detrimental to his health or environment.

plant anatomy and what we're eating

We had a very talkative discussion in our last class about local vendors of organic or fresh foods. One place that I learned about was the UF student run butcher that is on campus in the Animal Sciences building. These animals are raised by students and provide a wider selection of meats that are otherwise hard to come by. Other food stores in Gainesville include the Co-Op, farmers market that meets on Wednesdays in downtown Bo Diddley plaza, as well as Mother Earth and Wards.

Also in our discussion we asked the question if whether or not it would be  sustainable to feed cows corn verses vegetable feeding in florida. The answer is no because corn in not widely crown here in Florida despite the large number of cattle here throughout the state.

Plant Anatomy -

There are two systems that make up the anatomy of most plants; the shoot system and the root system. In the shoot system there is the stem, nodes and internodes, the blade of the leaf buds and auxillary buds. The root system is made up of several lateral roots that stem from the primary root.

Stems:

• support leaves and flowers
• facilitate the transport of water and nutrients
• examples of stem plants include potatoes

Roots:

• anchor the plant
• absorb water and nutrients
• food storage
• examples
• beets, carrots, and turnips

Buds:

• Cabbage and brussel sprouts

Leafs:

• photosynthesize (solar panels of the plant :)
• convert CO2, water and sunlight into sugar and oxygen
• examples: lettuce, spinach, basil, onions, garlic and celery 

Flowers:

• califlour, squash flowers, artichoke, broccoli 

Fruits:

• House and Disseminate seeds
• examples: tomatoes, cuccumbers, eggplant, pumpkins, beans and peas, and peppers

Seeds:

• sexual reproductive part of the plant
• monocot and dicot seeds
• examples: scallions and palm trees

Today in the Garden!

This week I am continuing to remove several weeds and reshape my beds to counteract erosion and my plants falling over.

In class we discussed the different kinds of pests in the garden:

• Insects/Nematoads
• Weeds
• Diseases
• Vertebrae Animals

A pest is an organism that can cause injury of loss of your plant(s). There are two types of insects that have been classified as pests according to how they ingest plants. There are chewing insects like caterpillars and beetles and sucking insects like whiteflies and aphids.

There are always beneficial insects as well such as wasps, lady beetles, mantis and dragonflies.

We also discussed the different ways to control pests. Through mechanical and cultural practices, resistant species of plants, insecticides and biological control with insect predators or parasitoids, you can control the health and longevity of your crop.

I finally have some vegetables showing!

Below are some Ladybug Peppers, Eggplant, Juliette Tomatoes, Zucchinni and Scallions!

Garden Update - A little Late - October 8th

  

 Here are some pics of my awesome peas and beans that are growing magnificently! The thiner more stringy ones are my pea plants and the lrager-leafed bushier plants are my Royal Burgundy beans and they sprouted up so fast and so nicely. I had a hard time in the garden this week trying to weed two weeks worth of plants but once I finished my garden plot looked great and I can start to see my hard work pay off!!!!

I finally have some great purple and yellow flowers on my eggplants! That means that soon I will begin to have some great little eggplants sprouting from the flowers.

Unfortunately, insects and pests have gotten to some of my squash, peppers, eggplants and tomatoes. I can see small bite marks from chewing insects like caterpillars and diseases leafs and silver strays from bugs like leafhoppers or aphids and whitefly. 

Signs of New Life and Unwanted Pests!

This week I had to do a lot of catch up because I neglected my plants from the previous week. There were tons of weeds of all different types as well as some rocks and large pieces of wood in between my plants. I assume that all the rainy weather we have had in Florida, as well as the shifting fall climate, is the cause for all the displaced earth and appearance of gravel and sticks. However, after a much needed weeding and re-fertilizing my plot is as good as new!

My tomato transplants have seemed to taken nicely as well as my six eggplants! The eggplants have a deep purple center in the stalk and look to be relatively healthy. That was until I started to see the signs of some pesky pests! 

Signs of New Life!!! This little guy is one of my small carrot sprouts!

Houston, We Have Lift Off! - My First Day of Planting

This week, we have started to learn the different ways plants and crops are actually made. Plants may be grown from seeds or transplants, which are germinated seedlings that are grown in a controlled environment and then moved to be planted in the ground as a baby plant. To help understand the pros and cons of both here are some things to keep in mind when choosing to plant:

Seeds (Pros) - cheaper, easier transportation, 

come in bulk

Seeds (Cons) - chance of "dead" seeds, 

environmental/pest factors

Transplants (Pros) - greater control, selective breeding, 

greater yield/chance of living

Transplants (Cons) - more expansive, needs greenhouse 

and special attention, chance of not surviving when planted 

In my garden beds, I transplanted 4 tomato plants, 6 eggplants, and 4 various kinds out of peppers. My other plants, I have begun to seed. Things like carrots need to be placed just about 1/2 of an inch under the ground and in rows to allow for multiple healthy carrots to grow. Other plants can be planted about 1 in into the ground and be fine with watering and fertilizer.

Until next week, here is a photo of what my plot looks like now, hopefully be this time next week we will start to see some sprouts!

First Look at The Garden - Here's My Garden Plot Plan!