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Impact Report

For plan Plant Management Systems: Urban Horticulture (Doña Ana County)
Date October 25, 2010, 7:38 pm
For Objective Short-term Show short-term objectives
Impact Report Urban Horticulture: As the urban population in Dona Ana County continues to rise there are fewer acres being devoted to traditional agronomic crops. Dona Ana County continues to experience a diverse influx of new residents from all over the United States. These new residents, along with those already here, have created a surge of interest as to what can be grown in Dona Ana County either ornamentally, or as sustainable food crops. The agent of Dona Ana County is taking on the task of developing new programs to meet the needs of his constituents. This agent was involved in activities within his county, and as a result brought not only research based information to the public, but also knowledge of the role and purpose of the Extension Service. Based on my advisory committee and the partnership with Dona Ana County, extension urban programming is being focused more on school and community gardens. This push is due to the ever shrinking rural community we now live in. People living in society today are becoming less attached to their land and growing their own food and more dependent on processed foods from manufacturers. While processed food may not be bad, it has left us vulnerable to a society which cannot feed itself. One of my objectives in urban horticulture is to work with my community on educational endeavors to bring food production principles back into the schools by the establishment of school gardens. Through the establishment of school gardens in elementary and middle schools, principles of soil cultivation, plant growth and care, and nutrition can be taught to our youth. Through these teachings valuable lessons will be taught and instilled in our youth that will carry over into the adult years and hopefully lead to a better quality of life for generations to come. This past year saw a new school garden being installed at Hermosa Heights Elementary School. With a grant from the Rio Grande Basin Initiative of $2400, Master Gardener Volunteers, School and Teacher help, and donations from the community the garden became a reality. Putting in a new school garden is not an easy accomplishment due to bureaucratic and legal red tape. The project of installing the gardens along with an irrigation system and timer took four months to accomplish, this can be added to the eight months it took to propose the garden and have the school system approve the project. It was great to see the garden finally become a reality even if it was after the school system had been let out for the summer. This garden project was the second such garden established in this district, the first began with Conlee Elementary School in 2008. Results from the gardens at Conlee Elementary School are still being gathered. However, early observations indicate a change in school children who participate in the gardens. The gardens are being used as an outdoor teaching lab where children learn the life processes of plants. Speaking with teachers I have learned that these children seem less agitated in class, have developed more interest in science, and are beginning to change their eating habits for the positive, i.e. eating more fresh vegetables and fruits. This same process is being implemented now at Hermosa Heights Elementary School and in the future at other participating schools. In April 2010 I partnered with Bertha Silva of the ICAN, (Ideas in Cooking and Nutrition), program to provide an educational opportunity for the La Mesa pre-kindergarten classes. I provided a working demonstration of how to plant sunflower seeds, cultivate them, grow the seedling, and then harvest the sprouts for consumption. The ICAN program used the sprouts to teach the children how to harvest the sprouts, prepare them, consume them, and how tasty and healthy these sprouts are for them. The purpose of these educational opportunities is to instill within our youth at a young age the ideas, principles and health associated with producing your own produce. Community Gardens have been established in the Mesquite Historic District, Chaparral Community Center, Anthony, Vado and elsewhere. These gardens are important for communities, however, unlike school classrooms direct information can be difficult to monitor because those that participate are scattered throughout their own communities. Community gardens serve as insurance that those who participate in them are getting a healthier selection of produce to choose from and this will translate into healthier participants. Since March 2010 I have been working with the Anthony Youth Group, Aurora Martinez, and Dan Darbyshire on growing vegetables at the new 14 acre Agricultural Business and Training Center facility located in Anthony, NM. There is a lot of enthusiasm from the youth participating in this project who want to learn how to become farmers. Youth range in age from 14-19 years of age, and there are about 15 youth participating in the program at present. A new hoop house style greenhouse is scheduled to be built on this site in order to extend the winter growing season, the original date for construction was November 5, 2010, however, due to scheduling problems at the facility this date is being postponed until spring 2011. In July 2010 I worked with the Youth Conservation Corp in Chaparral, NM to provide several educational lectures/powerpoints for the youth. My contact was Wendy Kent, Executive Director for the YCC. I provided information on plant propagation and native plant selections as specified by the YCC to 12 youth participants. I also discussed business opportunities on growing native plants to these youth participants. Several of the youth expressed an interest in beginning a native plant nursery. This past year I worked with Dr. Michael Patrick on presenting a Farmers Market Workshop in January 2010. I was asked to present a lecture on season extension using a hoop house style greenhouse. I gathered information for a powerpoint and presented the information to about 85 people in attendance. The remainder of the programs dealt with vegetable and fruit productions geared toward the smaller farmers market gardens. The workshop was a great success and this is where the greenhouse project for the Anthony Youth Group began. Prior to this workshop I worked with Del Jimenez, Ag Agent from Acalde, NM, and Jeanine Castillo, NMSU Small Farms Coordinator to build a hoop house style greenhouse at Jeff Graham’s organic farm here in the Mesilla Valley. The construction involved recruiting volunteers, providing food and water, equipment, and the building expert, Del. The hoop house went up in one day and was a great success. This was the first time I was involved in the construction of this particular style of greenhouse. Since the building of this greenhouse there has been several requests for construction projects of this type in other locations of Dona Ana County. Some of the other events and programs I provided throughout the year were: Cotton Production Filming for KRWG-TV’s ‘Road Trip’ PBS series; Honey and Pistachio products filming for KRWG-TV’s ‘Road Trip’ PBS series; High School Job Fair at Las Cruces High School; Lunch and Learn monthly lecture series held at Branigan Library in Las Cruces, NM; National Night Out, providing activities for families to share together for this Las Cruces city event; the Southern NM State Fair to showcase agriculture in Southern NM; the Green Infrastructure Conference to find solutions for storm water runoff and rainwater harvesting; and providing teaching assistance for the Pesticide Applicators Workshop. DONA ANA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER PROGRAM: MASTER GARDENER PROGRAM (2009-10): This is perhaps one of the agent’s most important programs. Ordinary citizens are encouraged because of their love of plants to enter into the MG class where they undergo intense training in horticulture. Because of the expertise and education provided by Extension Specialists and other noted individuals, these ordinary citizens are transformed into a volunteer force for the promotion of urban horticulture and agriculture. While a lot of effort is needed by these individuals to learn and assimilate all that the course provides, they seem to do it with a joy in their hearts. The class encompasses varied citizens from those who have no more than a high school education, to retired Professors of Agriculture. The one thing they have in common is a desire to learn and help others. This course provides both learning, and community outreach. As a requirement for MG certification the class must first complete the 14 week course work and then fulfill community service requirements. This community service, directed by the agent, provides a larger conveyance of the extension service through its MG’s participation in community events. MG’s provide an invaluable resource in volunteerism at many of our larger events, including the Chile and Pecan Conferences. MG’s also provide a huge service through our office by way of the MG hotline to answer community questions about gardening. Their contribution allows the agent time to meet other obligations while still directing the MG’s activities. It is clear that the Master Gardener program benefits this community through its outreach. Residents living in Dona Ana County are knowledgeable that if they have a question regarding horticulture, a good source for information is the Master Gardener organization. This speaks highly of our office and its training of the public, we help our citizens grow, who then go on to help others in their community, this in turn leads others back to our office for training, who then go out to help others grow in their community, etc., etc., you see, the circle of knowledge keeps growing ever outward, that is this agents mission and objective. This past year Doña Ana County Master Gardeners contributed over 5,067 volunteer hours towards helping the people of Dona Ana County. Based on the national volunteer hourly wage rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of $20.85, these volunteer hours translate into $105, 646.95 dollars. This is also equivalent to hiring three full time employees at a living wage salary, or seven minimum wage employees. Under the direction of the Dona Ana County Agent the Master Gardeners have also improved their MG Newsletter to become more of a small magazine with important educational information than simply a letter of informational facts.