What I Did:
To begin the project my group and I agreed on our interest in environmental restoration. We researched and set up a date to visit Tule Ponds and talk to Dr. Blueford about our project. When we asked her what type of work she would like us to do at the pond, she told us that our main focus would be on planting and weeding but she would assign us more specific tasks every other weekend (when we visited ). On the first day I worked on clearing the land of weeds and invasive species that would harm the native plants. I used tools such as shovels, rakes, gloves and bins. After I was finished, the previously green covered area was barren. The next weekend I worked on removing growing lavender and choosing the healthy plants while I discarded the others. I learned to distinguish the healthy from the others by closely looking at the leaves and picking out the green lively ones from the brown and dry ones. I then planted the lavender into healthy soil and packed it in small pots. Over the next few weeks, Dr. Blueford taught us how certain plants were overgrowing and stunting the growth of native species and I worked on removing those. Occasionally I would spend some time creating pathways, shoveling, and placing logs to prevent the children from walking on and killing the growing poppies. Overall my group members and I have made a lot of progress towards our goal to help out at Tule Ponds, together we made two pathways, cleared a large area of land (about a sixth of an acre), and planted dozens of lavender plants.
To begin the project my group and I agreed on our interest in environmental restoration. We researched and set up a date to visit Tule Ponds and talk to Dr. Blueford about our project. When we asked her what type of work she would like us to do at the pond, she told us that our main focus would be on planting and weeding but she would assign us more specific tasks every other weekend (when we visited ). On the first day I worked on clearing the land of weeds and invasive species that would harm the native plants. I used tools such as shovels, rakes, gloves and bins. After I was finished, the previously green covered area was barren. The next weekend I worked on removing growing lavender and choosing the healthy plants while I discarded the others. I learned to distinguish the healthy from the others by closely looking at the leaves and picking out the green lively ones from the brown and dry ones. I then planted the lavender into healthy soil and packed it in small pots. Over the next few weeks, Dr. Blueford taught us how certain plants were overgrowing and stunting the growth of native species and I worked on removing those. Occasionally I would spend some time creating pathways, shoveling, and placing logs to prevent the children from walking on and killing the growing poppies. Overall my group members and I have made a lot of progress towards our goal to help out at Tule Ponds, together we made two pathways, cleared a large area of land (about a sixth of an acre), and planted dozens of lavender plants.
Reflection:
One of the struggles we faced
throughout this project was setting up dates and times when all of the members
of our group were available. We were all free every other Saturday so we
decided to meet at Tule Ponds for about two hours from nine to eleven in the
morning. As a whole, I think the project was successful because we accomplished
many of our goals to make the Ponds more organized, promote the growth of
native plants, and create an environment friendly way to allow visiting
students to get more interested in the cause. Completing the project was
challenging and laborious since we had to physically shovel and plant as well
as transport heavy logs, but it was also incredibly rewarding to see the
progress we were making. It felt great to know that we were doing our part towards
helping our community while working on something that we were passionate
about. The only thing I wish we could have improved upon is the time we spent
on the project. If we were able to devote more time to it, we could have made a
bigger change in the pond; however, we could not do so because of our hectic school schedules.
Effects:
By doing this project we hoped to focus
on how in our industrial society much of the nature around us has been
neglected and replaced for functional use. We aimed to change this by spending time learning about and restoring Tule Ponds. By cleaning up and organizing, we were creating habitats for animals, insects, plants, etc. In addition to this,
we wanted to utilize our project to inspire interest among other students, who
visit the ponds through schools and field trips, to give back to the environment and enjoy the nature in their
community.
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