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farmers market

Feb 24, 2023

Social Studies in the Garden

When I ask teachers what subjects they think can be taught in the school garden, science and math are the standard answers, rarely do I hear social studies. Social studies… 

EdEN logo

Feb 24, 2023

School Garden Scorecard

Below are recent findings from the Austin School Garden Project, research conducted by The EdEN (Education, Evaluation, Nutrition) Lab at the University of Texas. This research project involved over 100… 

soil texture layers

Feb 24, 2023

Soil Texture Analysis Activity

Soil is composed of three major particle types: Sand – Made from small particles of weathered rock. Sand has a dry gritty texture. Sand drains well, but due to the… 

Feb 24, 2023

Soils 101: Soil Additives

Solving the Soil Equation When faced with the question, “What should I add to my garden soil,” I typically respond, “There really isn’t a formula for doing that.” Wouldn’t it… 

Jan 10, 2023

Hydroponics: A Soil Alternative

All of our emphasis on growing healthy soil in this newsletter series has made me think about the role of soil in growing plants. You may be surprised to look at standard… 

compost cake

Jan 10, 2023

Compost Cake

This “culinary” experience isn’t one to complete in the kitchen, but has a direct connection to our food, more specifically, our food waste. “Baking” a compost cake is a great… 

compost

Jan 10, 2023

Soils 101: Building Soil with Compost

The idea of building soil might sound a bit strange. How do you build something that appears to have no real structure? Soil building simply means to improve both the… 

Compost Tea

Nov 14, 2022

Brew Compost Tea

Making compost tea is a fun and easy way to increase the microbe population in your soil and in turn, improve soil health. Compost tea is a liquid produced by… 

soil microbes

Nov 14, 2022

Soils 101: Soil Microbes

Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “A nation that destroys its soils, destroys itself.” We may not know whether he specifically recognized the value of microbes to soil health, but he…