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| Ponca City Pioneers Junior Master Gardeners Week 3 |
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| Soils & Water Soil Color, Texture & Structure Touchy Feely & Mud Pies - We learned about soil texture and the properties of different soil types and soil particle by making "mud pies" and testing the texture of different soil samples. Shake, Rattle & Roll - We learnded to identify the amounts of soil particles that make up a soil's texture by adding water to a jar of soil, shaking it, and letting it settle into layers of sand, silt, clay and organic matter. |
| We looked at soil samples under the microscope to identify the different particles of soil - sand, silt, clay & organic matter. |
| Candy Aggregate - We created edible models illustrating that soil is made up of many different components. We added peanut butter to represent clay, m&ms to represent sand, candy sprinkles to respresent silt, marshmallows to represent organic matter, and a few gummy worms to top it off. We spread our "soil" on graham crackers. They were fun to make and delicious to eat! |
| Nutrients The Number's On The Bag - We performed a rhyme to learn how nutrients in fertilizers help plants. The first number on the bag of fertilizer represents the amount of nitrogen, which helps leaves grow strong, and plants stay green. The second number represents phosphorus which helps plants bloom flowers and make fruit. The third number represents potassium, which helps plants grow roots. Bumps Below - We learned that legumes produce their own nitrogen in their root system. They add nitrogen to the soil. |
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| Soil Improvement Making Compost - We learned the recipe for making great compost. Add green stuff, such as grass clippings, for nitrogen; brown stuff, such as dead leaves, for carbon; a little soil, which contains organisms that eat the organic material to make the composting process take place; and a little water for moisture to allow the fungi, bacteria and other creatures to break down the material. Mix it all together, and stir occasionally to allow oxygen to permeate through it. It is "done" when it is a crumbly, brown mixture. Add it to your soil to improve plant growth. Composting Critter Page - We looked at compost under the microscope. We learned about the different organisms that are a part of the composting process: earthworms, springtails, ground beetles, mold mites, etc. |
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| Service Projects - We finished making dried flower bookmarkers. We will give them to someone and tell them about our JMG classes. We also banished more weeds from Cann Gardens this week! |
| Our little JMGers enjoying the class |
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