Course Number: Biology
X 489.6
Instructor: David King
310.722.3656
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
|
|
There will be no
assigned reading from the book, but it really is essential if you are
gardening in Southern California. The most recent edition is not
really necessary, it does have more data in it and with each edition,
Sunset pays more respect to food gardening.
This will be
supplemented by liberal postings on my Garden Notes blog,
http://lagardennotes.blogspot.com/
. I hope to post most of the material in the days prior to the class
when it will be used.
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 the Garden and Small Farm
Author Flint, Mary
Louise
Edition 2nd
Publisher Univ of
California Agriculture & Natural Resources
ISBN 978- 0520218108
|
Title The Resilient Gardener
Author Deppe, Carol
Edition First
Publisher
Chelsea
Green
ISBN
978-1603580311
|
There will be no
assigned reading from these books. 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
|
|
29
September
|
Introduction/12
Points to a Better Garden/Garden Tour
|
|
06
October
|
Plot
Assignment/Seed Starting/SLOLA/
|
|
13
October
|
Timing and
Design/Tools/Intro to SoilsVarietals
|
|
20
October
|
Planting/Seed
Starting in Containers/Sheet composting
|
|
27
October
|
Soil
Preparation/Composting/Vermiculture
|
|
03
November
|
Sustainability and
Food Issues in Modern America/Supplies/Sources/Annuals/
|
|
17
November
|
Planting/Companions/Crop
Rotation in a Small Garden/ Chicken Raising Sherilyn Powell-Wolf
|
|
24
November
|
Perennials/Bulbs as
a part of your food supply/Beekeeping
|
|
01
December
|
Home orchard/Vines
|
|
08
December
|
Planning for
Continuous Harvests/Potluck
|
(Syllabus may be
changed as needed to reflect reality.)
Please note that
November has a few holidays – we will need to ensure that watering
happens to keep the plants alive while we all enjoy the celebrations.
Remember, plants do not take a holiday. We will make a schedule for
watering.
Point Assignment
Structure
-
|
Class
participation (and cooperation)
|
20
|
|
A
grade of A
|
>
90%
|
|
Garden Journal
|
30
|
|
B
|
>80%
|
|
1 page write-up*
|
10
|
|
C
|
>70%
|
|
Planting Project
|
40
|
|
D and
F
|
Failing
|
|
TOTAL
|
100
|
|
|
|
Please note, I try to
grade you on your personal improvement. Cooperation is counted more
than competition in my classes.
Office hours are by
appointment only – please call or email me. I am willing to meet
with you; I want you to learn; I do not want you to 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, we
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. Students should bring in
their own plate and eating utensils so we can have a minimum waste
event. The last class meeting will be a potluck where we will all
share local and fresh food! (That's the point, right?)
The Learning
Garden is open daily, 10 to 5:00 PM, every day except 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 meetings off campus.
Criteria
for your garden plot grade:
You
should experiment and try something you have never done – explore!
Your
plot and adjacent pathways should be cleared of weeds.
Your
plot and adjacent pathways should be well mulched.
Your
plot should be attractive and be growing some food.
Your
journal should indicate you learned something from the plot.
The
person who starts from seed vs. bringing in growing plants, will have
plants not nearly as far along as the others – but 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.
All
handouts (including this syllabus) will be available on the blog
site:
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.
