#ipro 497

[ufarmiit]

does anyone listen? did anyone learn?

Came to the farm to find more compost on the beds; a lot of the work done on this past Thursday has been compromised.  

Under the read more is a transcript of the instructions I sent to the class about a basic understanding of the farm.  I think after tomorrow everyone should have a better understanding of how to properly care for the farm...I hope.  

UFarmIIT Maintenance Guide

  Reminders:

The HH (hoop house) doors need to be OPENED in the morning, and CLOSED at night. The doors should not be closed during the day during consistent appropriate temperatures. The excessive heat KILLS the plants (you can literally see them wilting) and there needs to be a movement of air through the HH during the day. This is simple science.  

  Mulch (or woodchips, located in the large pile just outside of UFarmIIT) should be spread flat, and walkable around various places in the UFarm; THEY SHOULD NEVER BE PLACED INSIDE THE BEDS

  DO NOT step in beds EVER; I have found obvious human footprints in the beds (note: you may notice “stomped” portions of the earth, but that is an attempt to eliminate rodent holes on my part)

  Composting: when buckets are filled with compost, refuse or other materials THEY MUST BE EMPTIED IN THE PROPER AREA, and the EMPTY bucket returned to its proper place in the HH

  Plastic: the plastic used to cover the crops is intended to protect the plants in COLD weather, so this coming Monday it is supposed to get down just to freezing, so we need to make sure the HH doors are CLOSED and secure, while we cover the newly seeded beds outside with plastic. When it is close to 70 degrees Fahrenheit you are KILLING the plants by keeping the plastic on, and the HH doors closed in the middle of the day.

  Do not plant/remove/add material from the beds without the supervision of the UFarm group or an instructor (this does not apply to weeding or removing trash, this applies to composting, seeding, etc.)

  A simple rule: if you DON’T know how to do it DON’T do it!

Duties to be completed (as of April 13):

clean, and organize HH, and reconcile with material inside of Idea Shop

  remove palette table (may be up-cycled or used in a different area of the farm)

  black bins in HH: NOT for storage, remove and organize material inside so they may be used for harvesting

  red hoops need to be taken out of HH and stored in a PROPER place (ones on outside seeded beds should stay due to impending weather)

  spread mulch AROUND THE PERIMETER of UFarm (the pile outside is ALL that’s left until after May 17) other places: ENTIRE east side of UFarm, even out mulch under shade structure.  do not put mulch on top of other mulch for the heck of it, it needs to cover grass or dirt or concrete.  FINISH an entire section before moving onto another. (this applies for most things at the farm)

  remove trash from SW corner of farm

  fix entrance doors ASAP

  organize wood on north side of farm (btwn farm & ASA)

  organize/fix compost area in SE corner

  other various tasks that you are qualified for, and will help UFarm THRIVE

  Sample Timeline of Duties @UFarmIIT:

9AM:

arrive @UFarmIIT

sign into UFarm Log (now located in the podium outside)

open & secure Hoop House (HH) doors

doors should be as flat against the HH as possible, using wood & cements blocks

toolbox

code: any combination of the #s 25690

remove watering wand/handle

remove hose from HH

1. attach to spigot, 2. unfurl hose & attach watering device 3. turn on spigot

watering

keep running water OFF beds until you’ve adjusted it properly, and then water beds, moving the water over the beds gently and not drowning the plants

return hose to HH, and watering handles to tool box

weed

compost

mulch

clean trash

organize HH/toolbox

etc. various farm duties

LOCK toolbox after replacing all tools removed

LEAVE HH doors open

sign out of UFarm Log

leave UFarm

  12PM:

arrive @ UFarmIIT

sign in to UFarm Log

toolbox

do watering

perform various farm duties

weed

compost

mulch

clean trash

organize HH/toolbox

etc.

LOCK toolbox after replacing all tools removed

LEAVE HH doors open

sign out of UFarm Log

leave UFarm

  6PM:

arrive @ UFarmIIT

open toolbox

do watering

perform various farm duties

weed

compost

mulch

clean trash

organize HH/toolbox

etc.

LOCK toolbox after replacing all tools removed

CLOSE & SECURE HH doors

sign out of UFarm Log

leave UFarm

[ufarmiit]

Deadly poverty

Homicide is just one of many killers plaguing Chicago's poor black neighborhoods

This Chicago Reader article was also required reading; it is about the correlation to poverty and health risks.  It's no surprise that the systematic oppression of people of color, (including lack of access to medical care, affordable and proper housing, benefits, and education among other numerous disparities) especially in Chicago, have all culminated in death. The lack of these necessities contributes to a much higher rate of stroke, diabetes-related issues, and heart disease in those that live at or below the poverty line, according to the article. 

These poor black neighborhoods that are subjected to complete isolation from the rest of Chicago, due to divisions like food deserts, and lack of access of necessities, and transportation are brushed off as part of the "Southside of Chicago" or the west side.  Many Chicagoans are willing to brush off 50 percent of our population and lump it into the poor black neighborhood stereotype.  

People like that perpetuate the stereotype of the "po' black 'hood," while not realizing that they system has failed an entire groups of people, and countless generations. A lot of those same people refuse to acknowledge compliance in those institutions, and their own benefits from the system.  

It takes numbers and studies and countless dollars to conduct these studies to finally convince the ruling elite that there are problems, and they aren't fictitious.  The human-power and money that went towards this study could have been used trying to fix those access problems and lobby for change, even people volunteering in those neighborhoods; those things make an actual difference!