We had the glorious opportunity to spend two, two hour periods volunteering at the SAGE Organic Garden. Here is a short blurb on it:
"The Starker Arts Garden for Education (SAGE) is a 1-acre, organic garden where volunteers grow healthy food for Corvallis' hungry. Last year, SAGE donated 6,675 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables to the South Corvallis Food Bank, Stone Soup, and Community Outreach."
The garden is located at Starker Arts Park off of SW Country Club Drive and SW 45th Place. It is very hard to miss! ;)
Included is the URL: http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
What did we do? At the SAGE garden we observed firsthand the benefits of adding amendments to soil to improve tilth and encourage the growth of microorganisms in the soil. How did we observe this exactly??? We tore out the "end of the season" growth and added it to the giant compost pile. This organic matter will be used in the future as amendments for the soil to increase it's fertility and quality. Our direct work out at the garden included: building compost piles, creating walkways between beds, harvesting vegetables and fruits, moving chickens, tearing out fencing and overall preparing the beds to be "put to sleep" for the winter season.
A rotten tomatillo, one of the many vegetables we helped to pick and clean out of the garden!
Our group leader, Kenny Davis, helping to create new pathways between the beds
As we helped to clean out the vegetable beds after we picked them we moved the plants to the compost pile and covered it with hay, on October 10,th
What role does the soil play? The soil out at the organic garden is why there is a garden there in the first place! It plays every role and producing food.
Could soil management be improved? LOADED QUESTION! Not really though because this garden is implementing "Organic Methods" it is not using harmful chemicals to increase fertility, it is not using tractors to till the soil (reducing compaction), and it is being managed in a way to protect and preserve the soil quality.
Who does this project impact? The residents of Corvallis that aren't as fortunate to eat a hot meal everyday! The food produced at this garden not only support local residents of Corvallis, but it also supports the Food Bank in South Corvallis and Stone Soup, which is a lunch provided by the St. Mary's Catholic Church for underprivileged individuals of Corvallis. Pretty large impact! If the soils doesn't maintain its fertility a lot of people will be out a meal or two.
What did we learn:
Reflections:
Kenneth Davis: This was my first experience with organic gardening, I really learned that its not a only a sustainable way to grow food, but it's a sustainable way to live. This project opened my eyes to the consequences of low disturbance and the effect it has on the soil. When growing up I would till, till, till, till, and till some more. This project showed me first hand that to receive desirable yields from a garden you just have to leave it alone. I enjoyed working with the dirt and it was great to see what a volunteer run project like SAGE can do for the community.
Aly Petrie: From this project I learned that using organic methods can benefit not only the consumer but the soil that it is grown in. The organic farming done at the SAGE garden is done with no tilling and will no pesticides, by doing this they ensure that the soil is preserved to the best of their ability and can be used over and over without harming the soil or depleting the resources that the soil has naturally. I also learned that not all materials can be put into a compost pile because some materials are poisonous and can do harm to the existing soil. Because of this there were certain plants that when we pulled out that where not to be put in the compost pile.
Max Johnson: The SAGE garden was a neat new experience to me because prior to the service learning project I had never experienced organic farming. It was incredibly neat to know that all of the food grown at the SAGE garden is donated away. The experience I had from working at an organic farm was an overall great one; I learned how to determine good and bad plants and how to pick the vegetables that were good enough to give away. After working at the SAGE garden the managers were courteous enough to give some vegetables to take home. After the work was complete the managers left us with something that I found very true, the food always tastes better when oneself grows it. We should support groups like this all around because they do wonderful things for people in need.
Steven Geer:My time at Sage Gardens was full of great experiences. When driving over
to Sage I didn’t know what to expect but knew there was going to be work that
needed to be done. Our garden leader there showed us a bunch of projects that
needed some help and that is were my group and I were there to do and learn
while working in the field. I had never been in a real organic garden before
and it was very interesting to learn you don’t want to disturb the soil,
meaning to do as minimal tilling as possible to get best product out of your fruit
or vegetable. Also I learned that
putting leaves and other mulches into the soil is better than just regular
fertilizer and a lot more environmentally friendly. All in all many great tools
to take with me from these experiences!
Alex Shervey: After volunteering my time at the SAGE garden I now understand what really goes on at an organic farm. It truly seems like a more natural and better way to farm healthier crops. The work we did was all by hand and we didn’t use any kind of mechanical equipment. Organic farming definitely means more physical labor because machines and tilling equipment aren’t being used. I learned a lot about how organic farms run and also a little bit about how to make compost. I definitely feel like my volunteered time was appreciated and I thought it was a great experience.
The main soil in this location is a Willamette Fine-Silty, mixed, superactive. mesic Pachic Ultic Argixerolls. This Willamette soil is a deep soil that has well drained soils that formed in silty glaciolacustrine deposits. This soil is well drained with moderately slow permeability. This type of soil is good for a variety of crops including; berries, vegetables, alfalfa, and grass for seed. The natural vegetation includes wild blackberries, Oregon white oak and Douglas fir.
Benton County, Oregon (OR003)
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Map Unit Symbol | Map Unit Name | Acres in AOI | Percent of AOI |
| 8 | Amity silt loam, 0 to 3 percent slopes | 17.6 | 27.5% |
| 53 | Dayton silt loam, 0 to 2 percent slopes | 1.2 | 1.8% |
| 155 | Waldo silty clay loam, 0 to 3 percent slopes | 14.4 | 22.6% |
| 169 | Willamette silt loam, 0 to 3 percent slopes | 22.5 | 35.2% |
| 170 | Willamette silt loam, 3 to 12 percent slopes | 3.2 | 5.1% |
| 177 | Woodburn silt loam, 0 to 3 percent slopes | 5.0 | 7.8% |
| Totals for Area of Interest | 63.9 | 100.0% | |
Soil Profile
Ap--0 to 6 inches; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) silt loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine roots; many very fine irregular pores; moderately acid (pH 5.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 7 inches thick)
A--6 to 13 inches; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) silt loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine roots; many very fine tubular and irregular pores; moderately acid (pH 5.6); clear smooth boundary. (4 to 8 inches thick)
AB--13 to 24 inches; very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) silt loam, grayish brown (10YR 5/2) dry; moderate coarse prismatic and moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; moderately acid (pH 5.6); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)
BA--24 to 33 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; moderate coarse prismatic and moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; moderately acid (pH 5.8); clear smooth boundary. (7 to 11 inches thick)
2Bt--33 to 45 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) silty clay loam, brown (10YR 5/3) dry; moderate medium prismatic and moderate medium subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; common distinct and faint clay films along pores and on faces of peds; gray silt particles on 20 percent of vertical faces of peds; few very fine black stains; moderately acid (pH 5.8); diffuse smooth boundary. (10 to 26 inches thick)
2BCt--45 to 53 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 3/4) silty clay loam, yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; very few faint and distinct clay films along pores; moderately acid (pH 5.8); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 17 inches thick)
2C--53 to 60 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) silty clay loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) dry; massive; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; many very fine pores; few medium tubular pores; very few distinct clay films along pores; moderately acid (pH 5.9).
What is the answer?...
-Add Organic Matter!-
