Growing Plants Growing Pains

Morning Assembly never fails to start the day with a good laugh!

Note: after reading, make sure to watch today’s video about the F.A.R.M. on our YouTube page! https://youtu.be/DJybkog1mXY

If you’re a camper from an urban area (and many of our campers are), there is a good chance you’ve never had the opportunity to grow food from a seed and harvest it. Some of our boys have never seen a chicken in real life, let alone learned how to care for them and collect their eggs. The F.A.R.M. program at camp lets boys experience both of these things, learning more about where food comes from and how to care for plants and animals along the way.

F.A.R.M. stands for Food, Animals, Repurposing, and Manpower. These four areas are what make up the program: we have 15 raised beds for planting vegetables and flowers, a flock of 23 chickens, lessons on recycling or reusing compost in our black soldierfly larvae tub, and plenty of opportunity for manpower to improve the garden, clean the coop, or build new features. Though it is one of our newer programs at camp, it has quickly grown, both in size and popularity among campers.

Boys are able to help plant, care for, and harvest the many vegetables that grow in the garden area. Currently, the carrots, cilantro, mint, and lettuce are ready to harvest, while the tomatoes, peppers, and snap peas all have small vegetables on them that will be ready very soon! Today the boys harvested and snacked on some of the carrots, which are multicolored with purple, red, and orange hues since they are “dragon carrots.” Meanwhile, the watermelon and squash have small fruits beginning to show, and the eggplant, pumpkin and corn are just starting to sprout. This session, the boys have already planted beets, turnips, and radishes, so they will be able to see those sprouting before long.

Today at the F.A.R.M., they were making “seed bombs” with assorted flower seeds. Farm Manager, Zeb, was showing the boys how to mix clay and potting soil into a ball, flatten it into a pancake, place seeds in the middle, and roll the sides back up to encase the seeds in a ball of soil. Zeb explained how these “seed bombs” started in urban areas where vacant lots sat dormant and there was a lack of greenery in these city environments. People created “seed bombs” as a way to throw seeds over a fence into a vacant lot, where rain would crack the dirt balls open and eventually turning the spot into a flower bed. This was referred to as “guerrilla gardening,” and though we are lucky to be surrounded by greenery at camp, it is still a fun way to spread flowers throughout the property.

Ben F. was one of the boys at the F.A.R.M. today, but his goal was to make one giant dirt ball of seeds instead of several tiny ones. “I’m gonna throw this in the empty lot next to my house!” He exclaimed, though the little seeds will most likely start sprouting here before the month at camp is up. The boys made 30-50 of these “seed bombs” in various sizes, which means we now have 30-50 potential flower packages to spread around camp. In fact, Sarah, one of our cross country counselors, plans to take the little seed packages on runs with the boys, so they can throw them during their trail runs. The flowers are native to this area, and will not only add to the beauty with their future blooms, but also show boys that gardening can be both fun and relatively easy.

After the morning activities, Spencer stayed during free period to help clean the coop. We have two hens who are currently laying eggs, Queenie, a Rhode Island Red, and Inky, an Australop (Besides our Brahma chicken Fancy Nancy, who laid a fancy purple egg last session if you remember). Three more of our young hens (called pullets) are about 17 weeks old, and since chickens start laying eggs at 18-24 weeks, soon we’ll have more than twice the amount of eggs we have now! The other 18 pullets are between 8 and 13 weeks, so all 23 of them will be laying this time next year. Spencer didn’t have to volunteer his free time to help care for these hens, but by taking the time to help out, he demonstrated his Servant’s Heart, one of the four pillars of the Falling Creek Code. Every week all the shavings in the coop get cleaned out and replaced with fresh shavings, so Spencer’s help was much appreciated.

We’re already over halfway through our first week here in Main Camp and ready for all the fun that is ahead, whether it’s at the F.A.R.M. or in one of the many other activities at camp – ready, set, grow!

More Highlights From This Thursday:

• Tristan led us in Morning Watch, speaking about sportsmanship and using examples from dodgeball and the all-camp-games. He also explained how sportsmanlike behavior is part of the Moral Compass in our Falling Creek Code.

Sportsmanship on display at the tennis courts

• Coleson earned Ranger in Woodworking

• We celebrated three birthdays today! Douglas, Kaito, and Miguel. It was also Gavin’s birthday, but since he is out having fun on a trip today, we’ll celebrate with cake when he returns!

• Evening Program: Tribal Night – Cherokee and Catawba played games on the field and at the gym, while Tuscarora and Iroquois enjoyed tribal campfires. Iroquois opted for a change of scenery and headed up to Smith Pond by the old apple orchard on property. They even brought s’mores supplies, and enjoyed their campfire as a small group, while discussing the theme of the week in more detail: joy.

Hanging out with the “mane” attraction at the barn!

Running the play in flag football!

Shredding the trails today at Rocky Knob MTB Park in Boone, NC