The Problem
Food insecurity is a large problem in our community. Access to fresh produce during the winter months can be even more difficult for families in need.
Our Plan
Our JCHS Agriculture Club grows many in season vegetable crops and donates the harvest to our on-site food pantry. Our students are interested in bridging the gap in local fresh produce during the winter months by growing lettuces, greens and herbs indoors during the cold months. We will utilize indoor growing spaces such as growing racks with led lighting, and larger window spaces. Responsible growing practices including recycling, composting, succession planting and using reusable containers will all be implemented. The greens will be harvested and donated to the food pantry by our students.
Themes Addressed
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Community
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Compassion
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Food Insecurity
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Recycle
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The Benefit
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People
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Environment
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Here is how the project went:
The JCHS Agriculture Club used our grant award to purchase indoor potting soils, seed starting soils and new greenhouse trays for our project. Our group goal was to successfully start different lettuce and greens, including spinach in our growing rack system. We learned that the high intensity lighting was too strong for the seedlings to stay under for very long, as it forced them into flowering stage before they were harvestable. So, we tried again, and had better results. Our seedlings were planted into window boxes and placed in our staff room windows, where they grew beautifully. The lettuce planters grew successfully indoors, all winter. Our on site food pantry sometimes has trouble sourcing fresh produce for our community members. This project was our way trying to fill that need. We learned that the plants needed a more natural light source, and that we need to double our production for next year. We will also need to plant a second batch of seed about 30 days later to have continuous supplies. Staff members loved this project and have offered up new classroom space to house our planter boxes for next winter. This grant allowed us to pursue our project with the supplies we needed, and we will be able to recycle our greenhouse trays for next year.
Through this project I/we learned:
We learned that led lighting can be too strong for sensitive seedlings, and can force them into a flowering state too early.
What I/we might change:
We will try again next year, and we will start more seed in succession plantings so that we will always have more to plant. The number of window boxes will double.
My/our favorite part of this project was:
Being able to see the students faces when they came in to check on the progress, whether it was good or bad, was a highlight. Staff is also very interested in this project.
Some tips, tricks or fun facts about the project:
We learned to have extra seed started was a must. We needed to replant a few times, so having extra seed on hand was helpful. LED lights can be to strong, and the seedlings needed to be moved into a natural light setting soon after setting true leaves.