Meeting with CETDEM (11/1/11)

Two representatives from CETDEM came to our school to further assist us in the establishment of our Organic Vegetable Garden. The meeting was joined by Puan Yeo, our teacher advisor. The main agenda of their visit was to survey the spot we had in mind for the location of the vegetable garden, which was initially a spot behind Block D, where there was a large plot of unused land. The problem with that spot, however, was the fact that it hardly received any sunlight, whereas the plot of land beside our school’s surau did. Hence, it was decided that our vegetable garden would be situated beside our school’s surau.

Once we decided on the location of our vegetable garden, we determined the size it would be. Taking factors such as the availability of land and the amount of vegetables we would plant into consideration, it was decided that our vegetable garden would span between 5.2m x 4m and 6m x 4m. The garden would consist of two walkways sandwiched between three garden beds.

After deciding on the size of our garden, the representatives then told us about the measures we would have to take before planting anything in our vegetable garden. We would have to remove the grass from our garden site until the top layer of soil is exposed, and keep the removed grass to be used later on as ‘sabut’, which would hinder the growth of weeds. We would then have to use a hoe to loosen the soil of our garden site, before covering the loosened soil with a sheet of plastic or any other form of waterproof material which would prevent water from coming into contact with the soil. After completing these first few stages of the establishment of our vegetable garden, we would have another meeting with CETDEM to talk about what we would have to do next in order to make our vegetable garden a success.

CETDEM also suggested that we write sponsorship letters to hardware stores to attempt to garner sponsorship for the tools we would require for the setting up and maintenance of our vegetable garden. We should also start collecting dry leaves to be used later on as ‘sabut’ for our vegetable garden.

As the meeting came to a close, we exchanged contact details with CETDEM so as to contact them should we have any enquiries. The manner in which this project would be carried out would be a world of difference as opposed to the way we carried out our Herbs Garden project, because unlike the way it was with the Herbs Garden project, we had the aid of people well-equipped with knowledge in the field of organic farming. We learnt many things from these people, such as techniques we should apply in loosening soil and the best way to plant different vegetables. We managed to gleam many bits of useful information from the CETDEM representatives, and are truly blessed to have their help.

CETDEM meeting (4th of January)

On the 4th of January, a few of our members attended a meeting with two representatives from CETDEM, an organisation devoted to organic farming. Their names were Miss Tan and Miss Schan, and the meeting was held in the CETDEM office in SS2. The topics discussed at the meeting were based entirely on our proposal of our Organic Vegetable Garden, which we had sent to CETDEM.

Miss Tan started the meeting off by commenting on our objectives of establishing the Organic Vegetable Garden, and suggested that we add yet another objective, to understand the importance of organic farming and organic food, to our initial list of objectives. She suggested a list of plants we should plant in our Organic Vegetable Garden, consisting mainly of hardy plants which could survive more than two years. These plants include 4-angled beans, Small cucumber, Fuyaumak, Japanese ginseng (wild),  New Zealand spinach,  Brinjal, Cili Padi, Papaya Tree, Banana Tree, Sweet Potato,  Purple Spinach,  Cekur Manis,  Serai ,  Citronela, Cabbage (takes 3 months to grow), Bayam and Kangkong.

Miss Tan also suggested a few activities we could carry out to make organic farming transcend the boundaries of merely being an environmental obligation into the realms of it being fun and interesting, such as visiting farms and home gardens, organizing organic cooking competitions and organic vegetable treasure hunts, and performing eco music related to the process of establishing the vegetable garden.

She also touched on the steps involved in establishing the vegetable garden, and decided on a few dates during which she will aid us in conducting meetings and planting activities related to the vegetable garden in our school.

No	Activity	Date & Time
1	Site viewing and Measurement of plot	11th January, Tuesday 2.30 pm
2	Talk on Organic Farming to all TER members	26th January, Wednesday 2.30 pm
3	Compost Making and Planting of fruit trees	10th February, Thursday 2.30 pm
4	Building the plot for the vegetable garden	17th February, Thursday 8.00 am
5	Placing green manure and compost for the garden	17th February, Thursday 2.30 pm
6	Planting of vegetables	17th February, Thursday 2.30 pm

      We also discussed the items we would require to establish our vegetable garden, which included four bags of compost costing between RM45 and RM50 a bag, Vegetable seeds/seedlings, Gardening tools (Cangkul, spa    Composting bins- 2 (RM40 per bin), Goat dung, Cow dung, and chicken dung costing RM5 a bag, Compost frame,  Polybags and Bamboo Sticks.

Members would also be required to collect a few items two days prior to the compost-making activity, including:

1.       Grass

2.       Dried Leaves

3.       Fresh Leaves

4.       Sugar Cane Residue

5.       Cempedak Skin

6.       Banana Peels

7.       Soya Waste

8.       Coconut Waste

We are all very eager to get started on our Organic Vegetable Garden!

About our Vegetable Garden Project

Abstract of Vegetable Garden Project

The SMK (P) Sri Aman Toyota Eco Rangers Club has decided to establish a vegetable garden as a part of the school’s green projects. The Sri Aman Vegetable Garden will be one of the few new gardens in Sri Aman that will be established by students of our club. This Vegetable Garden Project will be carried out by the club members in collaboration with CETDEM as the present club has no experience in establishing a Vegetable Garden.  CETDEM will be hopefully collaborating with our club in the following aspects:

                                           

1. Guiding us to prepare a full landscaping project paper on the Vegetable Garden for presentation purposes
2. Assisting us in the planning of the Vegetable Garden which includes (The vegetables we will be planting, the type of soil suitable for the garden, the steps to establish the garden, the cost of establishing the garden and etc.)
3. Supervising us from time to time during the period of establishing the garden
4. Sponsoring us with the seedlings of the Vegetables which needs to be planted
5. Continuously advising us to maintain the garden

The Sri Aman Vegetable Garden will consist of fast and easy– growing vegetables. The vegetables planted here should also be long lasting and will continue growing once harvested. The harvesting period for all the vegetable in the garden should be during the same period. The vegetables that are harvested will be sold to the school and the community to raise funds for the Environmental Club. This garden will also be a fully organic garden and no chemical fertilizers will be used in the garden. The plants will be fertilized by bio enzyme and compost. Labels with information on the vegetables will also be put up for every species of vegetable planted for learning purposes.

Objectives

1. To enhance gardening skills among Toyota Eco Ranger Club Members
2. To reduce the impact of global warming on the environment via planting vegetables
3. To increase the awareness among Sri Amanians on the importance of preserving and conserving the environment
4. To raise funds for the club as the vegetables can be sold to the school canteen vendor, students and teachers
5. To create a fully organic garden in Sri Aman
6. To educate Sri Amanians on the various species of vegetables
7. To allow students to carry out research on plants using the vegetables planted as specimens

Establishing Process

1. Having a meeting with CETDEM Project Coordinator, Miss Tan to discuss about the project paper and few other aspects on the garden
2. Preparing the project paper and obtaining approval for the budget from the school
3. Preparing the plot of land by working up the soil and adding in top soil
4. Getting contractors to help build a brick-based frame for the garden and a shade
5. Obtaining the seedlings of the vegetables and start to plant them
6. Putting in compost and bio enzyme to fertilize the plants
7. Watering the vegetables daily and maintaining the garden

Suggestion of plants

1. Sawi
2. Kang Kong
3. Lettuce
4. Bayam
5. Parsley
6. Chilly Padi
7. Okra
8. Onion

Conclusion

We, the members of the Toyota Eco Rangers Club hope that the Vegetable Garden Project will be a huge success and we hope to obtain full support from the school and CETDEM.