Teaching Farm Visit

 Hello! Today I'll be sharing my experience visiting the teaching garden at UF! 

The first fruit that we talked about was muscadines. Being from Kansas, I'd never heard of muscadines before. I wish I would still be in Florida by the time they are in season!


I also saw blackberries in this area! At first I thought they were raspberries because of the color since I've never seen a blackberry plant before.


I had a lot of fun seeing the blueberries! They brought back memories of when I went berry picking with my mom and brother when I was little. Even though we live in an area that wasn't part of the blueberry region we learned about, there was still a u-pick blueberry patch about 45 minutes from our house that we went to each summer. When we went picking we never learned about the different phases of blueberries, from when they are green and red to when they are dark blue. 


Another crop I've seen on a farm before is sunflowers! Sunflowers are the state flower of Kansas, and my family actually took family photos on a sunflower farm years ago. 


In the tent, I saw chilis, cucumbers, strawberries, and the beginning of pineapples. I thought it was really cool how cucumbers grow, and it was interesting learning how plants are supported with strings attached to the top of the structure holding them up.



In the greenhouse, I was most interested by the hydroponics! I remember learning about hydroponics for the first time in a book I read in middle school, and just this past summer I wrote a blog for my internship that featured a section on hydroponics.


Overall, I really enjoyed my visit to the teaching garden! Despite living in a farming state, I haven't actually been to many farms, and it was really interesting to see the process behind the foods I buy in the store.





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