Today I started my internship at the organic farm on campus at The Evergreen State College. Beth Leimbach, the assistant manager at the organic farm has agreed to be my field supervisor. I enjoyed learning and working with Beth last year as a student of The Practice of Organic (POF) program. Beth sets high standards and expectations, I feel working closely with her will be a great benefit to my hands on learning goals.
We spent most of the rainy day inside the heated greenhouse, setting up for the incoming POF students. My first duty involved prepping seed flats and 72 count seed trays for planting. Last year I spent some time as a student filling trays and seeding. Working as an intern allows me hone my skills until the action feels natural. Beth is methodical in seeing that trays are evenly filled and watered to ensure successful seed germination. After filling the trays and planting the seeds we placed them on a heat mat that controls the temperature by placing an attached probe in the seed trays. Beth explained that the heated mat speeds up the germination process.
Later we transplanted hundreds of tomato starts from seed flats 72 count seed trays. By the end of the afternoon I felt quite proficient in my abilities, thanks to the use of a chopstick to gently lift the seedlings out of the tray and push the delicate roots into the soil.
