Class Syllabus for Modern Backyard Food Production

UPDATED 25 September 2011

Course Number: Biology X 489.6  

Instructor: David King

Redacted....

There are no prerequisites for this course, although some experience with gardening will prove useful.

All classes meet at The Learning Garden on the Venice High School campus where it can be hot and cold by turns – but reliably MUCH COOLER than other parts of Los Angeles. For your own comfort, please bring a sweater or coat to every class meeting. We will have access to a classroom for really rainy days; class will meet regardless of the weather. Expect to get wet or cold as we will be outside whenever possible.

The production, packaging, and transportation of food are large contributors to our global carbon emissions. Throughout the Los Angeles Basin, food gardens have sprung up to produce local healthy and nutritious fruits and vegetables while contributing energy and financial savings in difficult economic times. Using the history of growing food in the city in times of need as a template, this course explores how homegrown food can reduce your food budget and address environmental concerns. Participants each have a small plot for growing food where they can experiment with new ideas and enjoy their harvest. Topics include fruit trees, vegetables, and berries that do well in our climate as well as often overlooked food-producing perennials and how to grow food in modern city lots where the "back forty" describes square feet and not acres.

Textbooks Required:
Title Sunset Western Garden Book Author Brenzel, Kathleen Norris (Editor) Edition Feb. 2007 Publisher Sunset Books ISBN 978-0376039170	Title: Growing Food In Southern California Author King, David Edition October 2011 Publisher Wobbly Press ISBN Not yet available - but by class meeting two!  Price unknown this second...

Textbooks, Recommended:
Title The Kitchen Garden Author Thompson, Sylvia Edition First Publisher Bantam Books ISBN 0-553-08138-1 *(She has a companion cookbook that is worth investigation too!)	Title Heirloom Vegetable Gardening Author Weaver, William Woys Edition First Publisher Henry Holt ISBN 0-8050-4025-0 Impossible to find – out of print
Title Pests of Landscape Trees and Shrubs: An Integrated Pest Management Guide Author Dreistadt, Steve H. Edition 2nd Publisher Univ of California Agriculture & Natural Resources ISBN 978-1879906617	Title The Resilient Gardener Author Deppe, Carol Edition First Publisher Chelsea Green ISBN 978-1603580311

There will be no assigned reading from these books, except Growing Food In Southern California. The rest of the literature as references, will prove invaluable to any serious student in this field. There will be bibliographies describing other books as the quarter progresses, I am a ferocious reader and not at all shy about suggesting books I like.

Course Schedule:

DATE	TOPIC
25 September*	Introduction/History of Food Gardening/Introduction to Soils
02 October	Tools/Garden Tour/ Plot Assignment
09 October	Timing and Design
16 October	Soil Preparation/Composting
23 October	Sustainability and Food Issues in Modern America
30 October	Supplies/Sources/Annuals
06 November	Planting/Companions/Crop Rotation in a Small Garden
13 November	Perennials/Bulbs as a part of your food supply
20 November	Home orchard/Vines
27 November	Planning for Continuous Harvests

(Syllabus may be changed as needed to reflect reality.)

* Please note the first class meeting will be truncated to two hours. The instructor has been chosen for an award and we need to end before three in order for him to get there! We will choose to extend two classes for one hour or four classes for half an hour in order to make up instructional time. The class will choose the manner in which we will make up the two hours.

Point Assignment Structure

Class participation	20
Garden Journal	30
1 page write-up*	10
Planting Project	40
TOTAL	100

* A sample one-page write up is the final page of this syllabus.

Office hours are by appointment only – please call or email me. I am willing to meet with you; I want you to learn and not struggle. Please do not hesitate to call me, rather than try to talk to me in class when I can't really give you undivided attention. Extra points are available if you need to earn more credit.

Every week, Pamela Nears and or myself will prepare some seasonal food to eat. There are no places to buy food while in class and we are here for four hours. Students are encouraged to bring in food to share with the class at all meetings. The last meeting we will have a potluck where we will all share food cooked – local and fresh! (That's the point, right?)

The Learning Garden is open daily, 10 to 5:00 PM, every day but Monday and Tuesday. You are welcome to come here and work on your plot or just come and hang out. It's always best to call ahead to make sure I'm here as sometimes I have errands or chances off campus to earn money.

Criteria for your garden plot grade:

1. You should experiment and try something you have never done – explore!
2. Your plot and adjacent pathways should be cleared of weeds.
3. Your plot and adjacent pathways should be well mulched.
4. Your plot should be attractive and be growing some food.
5. Your journal should indicate you learned something from the plot.

The person who starts from seed vs. bringing in already growing plants, will have plants not nearly as far along as the others – but still stands to make a better grade if they have experimented with growing from seed – I am more interested that you LEARN in this class – just doing what you already have done doesn't teach you anything. We are all gardeners here, if we don't have patience yet, we soon will. Cultivate patience with your plants while in The Learning Garden. At the very least, indulge me until I have assigned your grade.

All handouts (including this syllabus) will be available on a blog site:

http://lagardennotes.blogspot.com/

In fact, it will have your assignment for next week. Please do this before you come to class.

BEETS Beta vulgaris

Botanical Information: Chenopodiaceae, Goosefoot family 4 to 8” tall Biennial	Growing Season: Spring, Fall and Winter
	Seed to Harvest: 8 weeks or more
Spacing: 3” on a side	Seeds store: ~4

Choice Varieties: Chioggia, Burpee's Golden,

Cotyledons:

Description:

The sweet roots of beets are often over- looked because of their 'earthy' taste. The problem with most beets on dinner tables these days is that they've been out of the ground for a very long time – the earthiness overtakes the sweetness. These two beets, the Italian Chioggia and the Golden Beet from W. Atlee Burpee Co. breeding program in the late 1800's, are among the sweetest vegetables in any garden!

Starting the seeds: Direct sow in the garden, a short row every week or so all through the cool season

Growing: Keep the moisture as even as possible. Mulch the beets as soon as possible – don't cover their leaves, but bring the compost as close to the plants as you can without covering the leaves. Cut off the leaves of any that are too close together – throw the baby leaves in salads. Do try to give them enough space to make an edible root, an inch or so for those who want baby beets, two or more for larger roots.

Harvesting: Pull roots as you need them. Beets do not have to be pulled all at once and will hold in the garden for a few weeks – longer if it's cool out.

Preparation and Using: Beet greens can be used just the same as chard – they are, in fact, the same species, one bred for a root and the other for its leaves. They taste pretty much the same and can be cooked the same or used raw in salads.

Today, most folks don't realize that American sugar was beet sugar until the mid 1900's when we switched to 'pure cane sugar.' The roots, though, should be just par-boiled enough to get the skins to slip off. Slice them into convenient slices and sauté in orange juice until slightly al denté. This is a wonderfully sweet side dish. Cut red beets into heart shapes before sautéing and serve on Valentine's Day or another significant holiday for your love.

Problems: Not much in our climate, although snails will eat the baby leaves as they emerge.