This is a weekly look at what is happening in the school garden to assist teacher educators engage their students in agriculture.  It can be used by garden students of all ages however!

Have you been using the Growing Teachers Throughout the Seasons guidebook to assist you with your growing?

Want to learn what Growing Teachers Throughout the Seasons (GTS) is?  Check out the Guidebook HERE and the 20 Online Modules HERE!  It is a great way for a teacher to learn how to engage their kiddos in agriculture in a data driven and teacher tested method based on the academic calendar. 

MODULE ALERT! –> OSU migrated the modules to a new online platform.  They are now live and can be subscribed to.  Unfortunately there is a $10 cost to access the modules due to the new migration. 

We are looking for ways to mitigate this and have started to populate a location on the Farm to School Website that is free.  CLICK HERE to access that site. 

If you have next week off, take this week to make plans for your plants!  You can take the Aerogarden home with you if needed and make sure to water the outside plants this Friday before you leave.  Have a safe and restful Thanksgiving holiday. 

Let’s take a look at this weeks weather:  

Outside in the raised beds:

There are some tasks we are looking to get started outdoors this week if possible.  Some action items for those who are using GTS:

• This month is planting spinach and kale outdoors.  After our cold start to the week, if you still need to plant, there will be better planting days around mid-week. If you have not had a chance to plant, I recommend you still get some seeds in the ground.  Getting seeds started is the goal now as they will grow over winter for January and February harvest. 
• Add a little fertilizer prior to seeding the raised beds so that the spinach and kale can use that to grow. 
• Make sure to water the seed bed until your seeds germinate.  Kale germinates quickly, usually in a few days, spinach can easily take a week until you see germination.
• Make sure you have your season extension garden cover and low tunnels good to go as we need them for the cold overnights. I recommend you use the cover this entire week and likely for the rest of the winter. 
• Otherwise we have some good growing weather this week!
• You may be getting a harvest now,  Send me pics of your produce!! Make sure to let the season extension garden cover thaw before you try to open the cover to water or to harvest. Around mid-day is best.  Then replace the cover. 

I got some questions about the hardening off process.  There is a great video that I linked below, in the online GTS modules.

If you have any transplants that need to go outside,  wait until mid-day to put them out,  water them in deeply, then cover the raised bed with season extension garden cover.

Inside in the Aerogarden:

It is time to get some herbs started in the Aerogarden! Make sure you have seed pods and fertilizer.  Any CCS teachers who need supplies should contact Katie.

Aerogarden has some great information on planting on their website.  CLICK HERE for their product manual website.

Click here for the Aerogarden planting guide for herbs –> herb_tending_and_harvesting_guide

• You should be starting to get some good growth in the aerogarden.  Make sure that you are checking the water level regularly, and add water when needed.  Make sure to check on Friday before you leave for the weekend.
• Harvest frequently to keep the plants under the light canopy!

Inside under LED lights.  

We should have Bok Choy growing under the lights right now. They can be transplanted into the raised beds or you can mature them under the lights. Check out the transplanting video above for guidance.

If you are still starting seeds under the lights, then make sure you have all of the pots, seed starting mix, lights, cord and timers needed for indoor planting.    I have a video below that will help you with direct sowing seeds in pots.

• Even though the video shows kale being planted, the technique is the same for bok choy.
• Remove the humidity dome after germination.
• Thin to one seedling per pot as shown in the video.

Are you getting ready to harvest?  Here is a video for safe harvest and storage.

Let me know what questions you have!  Make sure you engage your kiddos in the process. Looking forward to a wonderful Ag in the Classroom season!

Want to see what others are doing?  Check out the Columbus City School gardens at ccs_growing_teachers on Insta!