{"id":200,"date":"2022-04-22T19:46:45","date_gmt":"2022-04-22T19:46:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.evergreen.edu\/foodag-portfolio-2022-dewitt\/?p=200"},"modified":"2022-05-08T01:04:29","modified_gmt":"2022-05-08T01:04:29","slug":"week-5-lovely-lady-lavender","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.evergreen.edu\/foodag-portfolio-2022-dewitt\/week-5-lovely-lady-lavender\/","title":{"rendered":"Week 5: Lovely Lavender"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Monday, 4\/25<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A wonderful sunny day of community, lavender, and lots of weeds!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today was by far my favorite day in the Herb Garden this quarter. With both Sarah Dyer and Beth away from the farm, I was in charge for the morning, so I took this opportunity to lead some wonderful hands-on work within the garden. But first, I led a brief orientation of the space since my knowledge of the area and the plants has grown quite a lot in just this quarter alone. It felt really cool to be able to identify every plant within the garden almost by sight alone; now that spring has arrived and things are growing again, I have really been able to home in on my identification skills which is something I am quite proud of myself for. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Four new lavender plants!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Today was also a very exciting day because it was the first day that we have been able to plant something new within the Herb Garden: four new lavender plants! I feel very prideful around this as well; not only has this class been giving back to the garden through weeding, but now we have given back through the addition of new plants that will hopefully grow tall and strong for future students to enjoy and learn from. I am excited to nurture these plants throughout the rest of my time at Evergreen, I know that since my hands helped to plant them within that soil, I will have a deeper connection with them than with any other herb in that garden. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the community building of today really brightened my morning. I don’t know why I have felt so disconnected from my peers throughout this entire year, but today was the day where I felt the closest with all of them. We were chatting and laughing and sharing stories the entire time; it was wonderful to feel the garden come alive with the joy of community paired with hands-on work and care. I also feel like the connection my peers were able to make with this space today was stronger than before as well; one of my classmates remarked to me, “This is relaxing. I never thought I’d enjoy the smell of dirt.” It warms my heart to know that people are growing and learning in this beautiful area that has gone neglected for so long. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

SCARF Budget Meeting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This evening contained the Student Activities Budget Proposal Meeting, which I ended up having a larger role in than originally expected. With support from Maleah Upah, a presentation of our proposal was put together and we worked together on sharing it with the S&A Board. I covered the budget for the Community Gardens and Herb Garden and Maleah took charge on the Demeter’s Garden budget, which is our biggest priority due to safety issues getting in the way of any work getting done. Overall, the presentation was received well and we are now anxiously awaiting to hear how much money our club will be receiving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesday, 4\/27<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A friend in the Community Gardens!<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Instead of joining the rest of our SCARF volunteer crew at the Organic Farm, a small group of us met in the Community Gardens to support Sarah Dyer and have a chiller afternoon of work. We weeded a particularly “jungle-like” bed within our class plot, filling a wheelbarrow to overflowing, before planting a mix of onions and carrots, as well as some lovely nasturtium plants bought from the farm. It was nice to take a breather during a stressful week, to connect with close friends and work at our own pace on a simple task. I was appreciative of Sarah’s invitation to help out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n