Week 3 MTSE Individual Blog

This week, I spearheaded several items on our large agenda which progressed very well. For one, I drafted up a substantial general plan for park maintenance and we executed everything this week. There were also several community engagement/ professional development items that we worked on throughout the week in meetings and as a team. To learn more about what we did this week as a collective, read here. 

Park Maintenance 

• We accomplished a great deal of maintenance tasks this week, ranging from building a lavender “hedge” at the top of the park to building terraces for plants to have better access to water. After last week’s research on if a lavender hedge would be effective for deer management, we decided to test out our optimistic predictions. We will be testing it out on only the top side of the park first to see how well the plants hold up in the climate and soil conditions. I am excited to observe the progress of the hedge and how it impacts the overall natural system and aesthetics of the park. 
• We also accomplished several other tasks including prepping our rain barrels for harvesting. This is an important tool and prime example of how we practice the principle of catching and storing energy. Our goal is to utilize as many natural resources as possible, and through harvesting rainwater we will be able to nourish our plants without using city water. 
• On a smaller scale, we accomplished several tasks including planting luffa seeds, improving the conditions of the three sisters garden, transplanting bushes, and sprinkling marigold seeds as another form of natural deer deterrent. We also began to map out our ideas for dissolving the petal bed structure and making the park much safer to walk around. 

Farmers’ Market

• Last week, I reached out to Deb Martin, head coordinator of the Bethlehem Farmers’ Market to plan a meeting with the team about obtaining a booth. This past Tuesday, we had a very successful discussion and layed out the dates for when we will be at the market. Additionally, Deb asked us to potentially table for local fruit farmers that were unable to find staffing for the market. She noted that there has been a high demand for more produce products, yet barely any booths are showing up to provide any for the Bethlehem community. With our help, we may be able to help provide nutritious fruits and vegetables to the community grown by local farmers, as well as spread knowledgeable information about permaculture!

New Bethany & Bethlehem Area School District 

• I also began to network with local organizations and institutions about potential partnerships with the park. As for New Bethany, they had a sinkhole in December that damaged their gardening spaces. With a lack of volunteers, we are planning to assist with the maintenance of the newly established garden beds. 
• This week, I also began to network with personal contacts who work within the BASD. Students are required to have a certain amount of community service hours in order to graduate. With a sincere need of extra helping hands at the park, we are hopeful that a partnership can be established so students can get credited service hours for helping us at the park! 

Research 

• As for research, I am very excited to begin taking a deep dive into literature surrounding permaculture philosophy, community garden space and policy, Bethlehem’s historic land history, etc. The team is determined to develop a case study talking about community garden spaces and how permaculture philosophy can be implemented, as well as policy within Southside Bethlehem as the demand for green spaces rises. Throughout the upcoming weeks, we will be using our team and individual blog prompts as tools to draft our case study. 

Looking Forward

Over the next two weeks, I will be working virtually due to a scheduled trip to Hawaii. Throughout that time, I will be diving in on understanding permaculture philosophy at a higher level, as well as understanding the critiques of the practice as well. I will also be researching the history of Bethlehem’s landscape, policies around community gardens, and drafting up ideas for the case study. I am also excited to begin breaking down and revamping our website, since a lot of the information is outdated and is in need of being reframed. We have decent website traffic, but we need to make sure what we are publishing is accurate and credible for people to learn from. Lastly, I will be (hopefully) trying to visit a permaculture farm in Hawaii to see how the philosophy is being actively implemented on a larger, profitable scale. Being able to see how permaculture is being used as a business model is a great tool for envisioning the potential future of our project. Also, noting any differences of using the design philosophy due to the difference in climate is worth actively checking out.