Sherilyn Williams (left) and Melissa Demit try to remove the outer leaves from a purple cabbage.
“We wanted to get the kids here and have them see the whole process,” teacher Cassie Thacker said. “We wanted them to experience something they may not have experienced before.”
Since the students are studying subsistence, health, and wellness, she and teacher Sheryl Meierotto decided the harvesting effort with UAF Research Professional Jeff Werner was perfectly timed.
Werner, who is also the Alaska FFA advisor, thought of the idea while forming a new FFA chapter at the school. Many of the students involved in the harvesting effort will also participate in FFA activities.
Werner was thrilled to have assistance pulling in the crops and preparing the demonstration garden for next year, but he also said the students learn scientific agricultural principles such as soil composition and crop yield at the same time. Werner and SNRAS Professor Meriam Karlsson have planted the fair garden for two summers, trying to show fair attendees what crops grow well in the Fairbanks area.
The food from the garden was taken to Effie Kokrine School to be preserved and processed. The plan is to serve it to elders at the Alaska Federation of Natives convention in Fairbanks in October. Herbs are being dried for tea; potatoes, turnips, pumpkins, and cabbages will be stored; corn, zucchini, and kale will be frozen; and green beans will be canned. As they took the crops from the garden the students weighed, photographed, and measured them.
“We want them to know where their food is coming from,” said teacher Meierotto. “It’s very important for sustainability that you know how to grow food and what is involved in preparing food, everything from soil to planting to watering to harvesting and canning.”
Fair Manager Randi Carnahan visited the garden briefly to thank the students. “It’s great for the kids,” she said. “I’m happy that this is more of a working garden now instead of a visual one. It’s a great visual during the fair but it has a purpose. And these kids get to see the fair after it’s over in a different light.”
Werner said the new FFA chapter at the Kokrine School will focus on cultivating sustainable methods while emphasizing the traditional component of FFA – developing leadership skills in young people. FFA is dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education. The Kokrine chapter is the newest of nine across the state from Kodiak to Fairbanks.
The school is also offering a new natural resources class this year. With the school’s interest in agricultural and natural resources education Werner is confident the garden program may continue in the future. “This could be an ongoing partnership,” he said. “It’s a good project for the school and it gets them outside doing something for others. And there is all sorts of fun science going on here.”
Jeff Werner (left), students, and teacher Cassie Thacker dig up potatoes at the fair garden.
Further reading:
"Fall harvest teaches horticulture for a cause for Fairbanks students," Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Sept. 8, 2010, by Molly Rettig
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