Motivation
Observations gathered from the needs assessment trip in August and further questions regarding their diet seems to suggest that some communities may benefit from fresh produce. Some communities have balanced diets consisting of rice, beans, cereal, milk, meats, bread, tortillas, and fruits - while others have less balanced meals consisting of rice, beans, oats, and bread. Research has pointed out that carbohydrate-rich and starch-based diets often cause micronutrient deficiencies.
One of the solutions that Anna suggested was implementing a small community garden for growing vegetables. Research has suggested that a community garden would:
Improve food security [1]
Increase intake of vegetables
Increase physical movement through garden maintenance
Reduce risk of obesity and related diseases
Improve access to fresh produce
Reduce their cost of food
Improve mental health [2]
Progress
Our team juggled different approaches to this idea and decided to run a trial in our own backyard to gauge how quickly vegetables grow and how simple or not the process is. To carry out the project, we needed containers and quality soil. We've received donations for over 30 pots from local gardening stores.
On October 20, Anna and I picked up some free soil in Escondido via a generous contact. Nearly 20 gallons were shoveled into a tub. Unfortunately, the soil (more of dirt) was sandy and lacked nutrients for growing plants. In order to convert the dirt into nutrient-rich soil on a budget, we generated a homemade compost bin and added earthworms. We will soon mix it with the dirt and add fertilizer to complete the process.
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