School District Dives into Aquaponics; A Progressive Approach to Hard Times

cbarnes10

I am the greenhouse manager for Southeast Island School District (SISD), whose district office is located in Thorne Bay, Alaska on Prince of Wales (P.O.W.) Island. SISD serves roughly 160 students throughout 9 communities; 7 on P.O.W., 1 on nearby Baranof Island, and 1 on the mainland. It’s got to be one of the only school districts in the state, and definitely in the “bush”, that has an employee with that title, “greenhouse manager”. Why would a school district, with tightening budgets, increased high-stakes testing demands, new standards (Common Core), Read More …

Perilla (shiso)-bring out the flavor of sushi

akladybug

What is the Perilla (Shiso)? Perilla is a traditional Japanese herb with refreshing, aromatic, green-frilled leaves. It is called Shiso in Japanese. The plant has tender, flat and soft-textured leaves that are very popular for using in Sushi. It is also known as beefsteak plant. Perilla is a bushing plant. It is also grown as sprouts or micro-greens. As the plant matures, you can pinch off leaves for use which promotes branching and leaf production. I am interested in Asian vegetables and herbs. Every year I grow this plant from seed Read More …

Painting with Plants

kmikulla

That’s right! You can make a painting using the plants grown in your garden or found locally where you live. There are several different ways in which to make the paints, however I tend to focus on watercolors because they are quick and simple with beautiful, subtle results. If you’ve dyed fabric or yarn using natural dyes before the process is similar, but since you don’t need as much dye for painting, the process is done on a smaller scale with minimal equipment. I love doing it on my own, Read More …

Berries of Northwest Alaska

MaijaKatak

As the sun begins to set in August, and us “northerners” finally experience some darkness, the berries of northwest Alaska begin to flourish. The sun sets for about 5 hours now, which is both good and bad. Good, because the berries we gather near the coast are able to turn on the afterburners, so to speak, in terms of growing. They soak up the sun during the day, and rest at night, similar to those of us who are busy all summer long. Bad, because it marks our end of Read More …

Grow your garden in Spanish

lblubin

Date: July 31, 2015 Time: 1-3 hours a week Materials needed: outdoor garden area Student level: Secondary Spanish students intermediate to advanced level Learning Standard: Common Core            Presentational writing Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well chosen details, and well structured event sequences Language Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard grammar and usage when writing or speaking Overview: Plant and grow an outdoor garden to practice tense changes and broaden Spanish vocabulary base. Objectives: By the end Read More …

High Bush Cranberries

etjohnston

High bush cranberries are harder to make use of than their low bush cousins. They have a pit inside of them that makes them less appealing to throw in a batch of muffins or over the morning granola and are, at least to my tastebuds, tarter. Despite these limitations they are all over our neighborhood. Most people won’t reveal their super secret berry picking spots, but for high bush cranberries you can walk along many power-line cuts in Fairbanks for easy access to prime berry picking. In just under 30 Read More …

My Most Awesome Gardening Experience This Summer – Wow, I learned a lot

tlirwin

Wow, I’ve learned so much about gardening this summer. When I started my gardening project this summer for the first time in a very long time I was extremely excited. Being the planner I am, I researched, read books, talked to other gardeners and still came away with several “what was I thinking?” Here are some of my learning curve experiences and thoughts: Start lettuce with transplants instead of seeds. Unless you really do want more than 50 lettuce plants. Instead of planting in the raised beds I think next Read More …

Learning to Love Chickweed

cmichetti

Like many Alaskans I have spent countless summers struggling with chickweed in my garden and lawn. I painstakingly remove plant after plant until I am feeling smug about myself. Then I see “just one more plant” and I delve back in again. It’s almost to the point of needing a support group. This year I decided to try a little reverse psychology on myself and research my nemesis — know thy enemy so to speak — just to see if we could all get along. Common Chickweed ‘s Latin name Read More …

Planning is the first step to gardening success

jmclay

Planning a garden is the first step to gardening success. Like many things in life, I learned this the hard way. The first time I had my own space in Alaska for a garden, I just tilled up some ground, threw in some seeds and hoped for the best. Some things worked great and others failed miserably. Many people I talked to have discovered same way I did that gardening techniques used and varieties grown in the lower 48 states don’t necessarily work in Alaska. Also, our state is so Read More …