Service Learning Reflection

Although I did not take any pictures I did have a great time working with the children within the day camp. It would be a bit hard to take picture with 25 - 50 children between the ages of 5 - 11. The last day I spent with the kids, we went to Onslow Beach and spent a good amount of time in the water where I was able to catch a few sand fleas and teach the kids about them. We also had a scavenger hunt, I can say I am an expert at finding shark's teeth.
Well all and all it was a good experiences interacting with children in nature. We learned a lot and had some great times. 

PERSONAL JOURNAL #5 - Exit Reflection on Accomplishmen

Honestly, I went into this class with a horrible perspective. I was angry about having to take this course only because I felt it was below me (being a senior) and I hate spending money for a course to teach me to appreciate the world. Anyways, I ended up enjoying aspects of this course. Although I already had an admiration and understanding of nature and wildlife, I feel because of this course I spent just a little more time contemplating nature and thinking about more than just the pretty colors of the nature. haha 

Well anyways, I enjoyed this class, I wish I would have been able to take it on campus so that I could do class field trips and actually discuss things with more people, but I did overall enjoy this course and getting a closer and deeper understanding of the area surrounding me.

Agricultural Field Trip

Agricultural Field Trip – Mike’s Farm

LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR AGRICULTURAL ENVIRONMENTS

• Identify sustainable agricultural approaches.

• Define agricultural challenges faced by rural farmers around the world and identify possible solutions.

• Describe appropriate technologies and techniques and distinguish what is appropriate from what is modern

Well, I had a very hard time finding a sustainable farm, so on top of visiting a local farm I did a lot of local related research.

I learned that some of the sustainable resources that are most important to local farmers are learning about soil classes, plant and animal sciences, traditional gardening skills, biological pest management, greenhouse design, sustainable livestock management, and agricultural marketing.  One of the most important learned technique is biological pest management. This is because pests are one of the largest challenges for famers, and without the use of conventional pesticides the battle is mostly trial and error to see what both works best and is cost effective.  

Also, speaking to locals here I have learned that most people feel we are in a draught that is worse than anything they have seen over at last the decade. Water shortage is another challenge that people of the agricultural sector face. Whether they raise livestock or grow produce water is a necessity.

Mike’s Farm is a small family owned restaurant, store, and farm.  Although this farm used to be self-sustaining its main purpose now is an educational resource, as well as a family owned and oriented business. 

The history of Mike’s farm is posted on their website, while I spoke to the family, I will take a few things from their pages to keep the integrity of their history.

   "Jess L Lowe, a native of Ozark, Arkansas, came to  Camp Lejeune as a young man serving in the Marine Corps.  While there, he met a local girl named Lucille Bryan. At the close of World War II, they were married and decided to settle in Lucille's home community of  Back Swamp, North Carolina . In 1945, the couple purchased a small farm next to her home place.

      On the small tobacco farm, Jess and Lucille raised four children. On the farm one would find corn, tobacco, and a garden full of vegetables to feed the family. There were also a variety of farm animals such as cows, chickens, pigs, and of course the family pet bulldog named "Bull."

    Tobacco was their main crop and when it came time to "put in" tobacco, neighbors helped each other. While everyone was working in the fields, Lucille was in the house preparing the barn day dinner for all the barn hands. Generally a dinner consisted of fried chicken, ham, butter beans, potatoes, collards, homemade biscuits, and tea. Most of the food came right from the farm.

      As the years went by and the kids grew, everyone ventured out into public jobs and stopped working on the farm.  However, in the mid 1980's, Mike and his wife Theresa began working the farm again as a side job, growing this time, not
tobacco, but Christmas trees. Eventually, they both left their public jobs and diversified the farm into other areas. A small gift shop was added and over the years has expanded with a full service bakery. Customers can enjoy a cup of coffee or hot apple cider while watching the bakery workers make homemade cakes, pies, cookies, and fudge.

      The farm, which is now called "Mike's Farm," offers educational school programs for children as well as an animal petting area. A Christmas light show attracts folks near and far, along with group campfire cookouts and hayrides.

      It has always been, and still remains to be, the intent of Mike's Farm to create a place with a warm wholesome family atmosphere for all of their customers. With this is in mind, a restaurant was also added to the farm, just like the home place that Jess and Lucille created for their family years ago in the farm community of Back Swamp."  http://www.mikesfarm.com/

So their history is a very interesting one. After eating at the restraint, picking a pumpkin over the winter, feeding the animals at the petting zoo, shopping, and enjoying myself I can say that I did learn a lot and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

 Educational Hay Ride!

The Ladies before dinner

LLAMA

A Lander Remembered

Since I do not life in Southwest Florida I am going to discuss to areas. One, North Carolina, where I live now, and two, Northwest Florida, where I am from. The reason I want to write about both is because I do not know that much about North Carolina and I feel I can not give adequate examples, but I spent 21 years living in Northwest Florida So I can give first hand examples

Richlands, North Carolina has grown a lot just over the past two years that I have been here. There are constantly houses going up and farm land and forest being torn down. I live in a rural area, around my home there is about 150 acres of woods, these woods are home to many animals which I have had close encounters with. I assume these encounters are because of the destruction of their homes. The first year we lived here there were quite a few issues with alligators in places they do not belong such as beaches, private residences, and swimming areas. This year, we are the third highest in the United States for shark attacks. Lovely.

Anyways, about my home. Over the past twenty years there has been a clear build up. It is easy to see the changes while just driving through. Many of the roads have been updated or completely upgraded. There has been a complete build up of all the surrounding areas including, Destin, Sand Destin, Fort Walton Beach, and Navarre. Although these are great for the tourism, I hate it during the summer. I hate that for 6 months my home is infiltrated by multiple tourists, who drive like idiots and think they own the world because they are tourists. haha.

The houses being built here in Richlands, North Carolina directly impact me because of traffic. All of these new homes and families are expected to use the same roads but with an increased population. The hardest thing is school buses, in my area school buses do not have bus stops but instead stop on the main roads at almost every house, which makes driving very tedious.

Back home, they are finally updated roads, which helps alleviate a good percent of the traffic. Along with the roads the shopping has improved.

My fear is that there will be no habitat for the wildlife. I love animals and would have to see their future destroyed by humans naivety and greed.

I believe some of these changes are beneficial or would be beneficial with certain changes or adaptions, but the purpose of all to many of these large changes are solely for financial benefits to the creator rather than of ecological standpoints.

The world is constantly changing and whether the changes are good or bad is up to us and our education measures. What I mean by this, is we must make sure the future generations both admire and love our natural assets because once they are gone, they are gone for good without human advocates for nature nothing will last.

I am not sure how to support my argument with resources other than to use how different places have changed in just the time taught about. For example, the everglades... They are not what they were, and yet they are still ever changing because of loss of environment, care, and financial assets.

Honestly, I am sure there are things I could do that would make a small impact, but I feel most of the things I can do to greatly impact the future are out of my price range. Currently, there is no way for me to utilize public transportation, or any means of "green" traveling, so that is out of the question. I try to use locally grown produce, along with produce that I grow myself, but that can only be done to a point I am learning. Currently, I supply my own eggs, tomatoes, peppers, and a few other veggies.

I would love to utilize a wind or solar power source, but the cost is not effective for us, especially since we are military and never know where we are going to be the following year. We did by a more economical vehicle than we were previously driving and it is now my primary driver.

I know there are some things I can do, and I am sure over time I will get better about the other things I miss on, but all and all I think I do well. I admire the environment and do my best to learn about it and learn how to preserve it.

Smith, Patrick D. A Land Remembered. Englewood, FL: Pineapple, 1984. Print.

READING # 17: Love It or Lose It: The Coming Biophilia Revolution.

I am not sure how if I think it is a revolution, it seems more like a use of common sense portrayed into a hypothesis.  Biophobia is the fear of living things which is taught with the coming of age. People are taught to fear deadly snakes, spiders, sharks, and large predators in their habitat and sometimes outside of their habitat. Where as, biophilia is the love of nature. This is something that is not as natural for some people, but it is for most. This is a interesting topic, and one that feels almost natural.

10 questions partially answered

The ten questions I came up with are:
1. Before our neighborhood was built it was all family farm land, why when builders create subdivisions do they trash the rich soil and bring in sand?
2. Since there is "wet lands" behind my across the street neighbors home, how come the only thing I see growing is tall grass (over seven feet tall).

 Unbeknown to me there is actually marshy plants growing in other areas of the wetlands, the grass which is supposed to be harvested for hay just grows with or without water and since we are in a drought it is the only thing growing well.

3. Therefore, what constitutes it as wetlands?

But this statute defines“coastal wetlands” as “marshland,” a much narrower classification than in the federal definitions of“wetlands.” The statute considers as “coastal wetlands” any salt marsh or other marsh subject to regular or occasional flooding by tides, including wind tides (whether or not the tidewaters reach the marshland areas through natural or artificial watercourses), provided this shall not include hurricane or tropical storm tides. Salt marshland or other marsh shall be those areas upon which grow some, but not necessarily all, of the following salt marsh and marsh plant species: Smooth or salt water Cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), Black Needlerush (Juncus roemerianus), Glasswort (Salicornia spp.), Salt Grass (Distichlis spicata), Sea Lavender (Limonium spp.), Bulrush (Scirpus spp.), Saw Grass (Cladium jamaicense), Cattail (Typha spp.), Salt-Meadow Grass (Spartina patens), and Salt Reed-Grass (Spartina cynosuroides).

G.S. 113-229(n)(3).

In 1996 the legislature also created the nonregulatory North Carolina Wetlands Restoration Program (NCWRP) specifically for the restoration of wetlands and stream corridors.20 From 1996 to 1998 the Wetlands Restoration Program prioritized the state’s river basins and sub-basins and is charged with using appropriated funds and funds received from wetlands mitigation requirements to attempt to reestablish critical wetlands.

In 1996 DENR promulgated rules for its review of projects affecting wetlands. These rules were based on general legal authority: G.S.143-214.1, directing and empowering the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) to classify and apply standards to state waters; G.S. 143-215.1, requiring permits for sources of water pollution; and G.S. 143-215.3, the general rulemaking power of the EMC to implement articles of the General Statutes regulating air and water quality. However, a great deal of disagreement about the adequacy of DENR’s legal basis for these rules remains. How this disagreement is resolved has become increasingly important since 1996 due to successful attacks on the federal wetlands regulatory program.21

4. What kind of animals are in my immediate area, I know there are many hybrids, for example wolf-coyote, are they my only "dangers".

Bobcats, Black bears, Deer, Foxes, Coyotes, Snakes, Birds of Prey, and many other critters!

5. I have this strange spider at my house, it looks like a small tarantula, he is furry but the size of a nickel, I noticed he eats other spiders, what is he?

Daring Jumping Spider

6. What are these nasty yellow flowering weeds that smell like turnips and why does everyone have them in their yard? (picture will come later)

7. How many inches are rain are needed to properly sustain life here, for example maintain creek levels for fish and animals, maintain vegetative growth for food and beauty, and keep shade?

8 . Where does the skink that frequents my garden reside daily?

 He actually lives in the plant and under stuff around my gardens, he is a five lined skink

9. Why is poison ivy so difficult to kill?

Poison Ivy round up is amazing stuff, lol.

10. How do yard chemicals affect our high water table?

Personal Journal #4 - My Personal Land Ethics

Honestly, I do not feel like my land ethics have changed very much, I have always been a very nature aware person. I would hate to live in a city where no nature can be seen. I understand that we are slowly destroying out planet with our wasteful tendencies, but there is only so much that can be done when the resources are not available. I love nature and I am aware of what I can do to help, I feel like that is all that can be asked of me.