Feed the World alumni educators Donna Meller of Pettisville High School and Jeff Jostpille of Fort Jennings High School presented at the recent BGSU NWO Symposium. The workshop begin with the Slake test, demonstrating the action of soil integrity and structure against the infiltration of water.
Next, they moved on to nutrient holding capacity and testing, and addressed the nutrient content of each soil type and how that relates to crop growth. Participants calculated texture with the use of soil columns and soil triangles.
The workshop concluded with a reflective discussion as to how these three elements work together to provide a growing medium for crops. Teacher Kathy Meier received a free soil testing kit.
You can see these soil lessons here.
Jostpille and Meller said that the workshop went well and that the participants were very engaged. The FTW booth also got a lot of traffic, exposing a lot of pre-service and current teachers to the science of agriculture! Those who stopped by loved the seed necklace take-away and were interested in the upcoming workshops. Want to know about them yourself? Visit our events page!