Organic Garden

In ‘Food,’ a STEM course, my classmates and I are studying ecology. We are focusing on the importance of plant nutrients, and how the different cycles work together. We also watched a TED talk by Ron Finley. What he’s trying to do is make south Central Los Angeles a more beautiful place with gardens. He encourages everybody to garden. He wants people to grow their own produce because stores in that area lacks fresh vegetables and fruits. If we take action by growing our vegetables and plants in a garden, it will inspire others to do the same.

My house is located in a somewhat busy neighborhood in Chicago. Since that is the case, I have chosen to construct a raised bed. By doing this, my crops will not interfere with the soil. It is also easier to transport the raised bed if we ever need to. The garden I designed will be 20 inches in height, 48 inches in length, and 48 inches in width. The volume will be approximately 46,080 cubic inches. My garden will be big enough to hold 10 different plants that I plan on growing. In order for my plants to grow healthy and survive, I will need 16 different nutrients. The three most important macronutrients (big nutrients that help the plant) are Nitrogen (N), Potassium (K), Phosphorus (P).

My classmates and I collected dirt and performed a soil sample. A soil sample is a test conducted on the soil to see if the soil has enough nutrients, and if not substitutes such as fish meal, a organic fertilizer can be added to make the soil healthier. Before doing the soil sample, I noticed that my dirt was very moist and seemed ‘alive’ to me, rather than dead. When I did the soil sample my hypothesis was right. My soil turned out to be sufficient in phosphorus (K3), sufficient in potassium, and surplus in Nitrogen(N4). I think my soil was surplus in nitrogen because, where I collected my soil there are small plants living there. This means that the plants are alive and releasing nitrogen into the soil.

Since my garden is sufficient in Potassium (K3), Phosphorus (P3), and surplus in Nitrogen (N4) I will not be adding substitutes into my soil because my soil is ‘alive’ and healthy. I believe my soil is healthy because there is plenty of sunlight hitting the plants in that area. There are currently plenty of plants growing that look healthy. Lastly, there is also a gardener that is one of my neighbors, she often takes care of the plants from time to time.

I will be planting broccoli with rosemary because it improves broccoli flavor, as well as, other crops. Broccoli loves calcium so pairing it with a plant is a good combination. Also rosemary keeps pests from the vegetable. I chose to plant carrots and lettuce together because flax produces an oil that protects the root of a vegetable like carrots from some pests. Beans and maize are good together because beans are good for heavy nitrogen users like corn (maize). Beans are Nitrogen fixers that add nitrogen back into the soil. The plant uses it up it is replaced at the end of the season when plants die. I chose beetroot and garlic because beetroot is good for adding minerals into the soil. It also provides garlic with better growth and flavor. Lastly, I chose basil and tomatoes. Basil repels flies and mosquitoes, and improves growth and flavor for the tomato.

My biggest takeaway from this action project was how important soil is. I never would have thought soil was so important to plants, especially the nitrogen cycle. I knew plants needed soil in order to survive but I did not know how dependent they are on soil. I think this action project was very informative about soil, and I am glad we studied it. I will implement my garden during the summer time when I have more time to care for a garden bed. I think by having this garden it will make my neighborhood a little prettier and hopefully inspire others to construct one too.

This is a sketch of my organic garden. The calculations are below.

citation(s):
"Companion Planting." Companion Planting. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014.