What I Learned during my SWIHA Externship

For those of you who don't know, SWIHA stands for Southwest Institute of Healing Arts and it is the school I am currently attending. My focus is in Urban Farming and Holistic Nutrition. As part of the course, I had to learn how to put into practice some of the knowledge and techniques I've acquired through the program. It has been fun, challenging at times, and very supportive not only to helping me integrate the material but also helping me build skills for sharing my wealth of knowledge!


Some of the things I learned through the Externship:


How to grow bountiful Organic Raspberries!
How to Build a Compost Bin
Why is Composting Good for Me and The Earth
How to Build a Worm Bin (Vermicompost) and Why I'd want to
Plant Identification including Pacific Native Edibles
Identifying Edible Flowers
How to create a video with pics to share knowledge
How to promote my self and my business


I am very grateful for this experience as it has helped me gain more confidence in sharing what I know. It also has pushed me to organize knowledge in a way that is presentable via online (through videos and blogging). I really enjoyed all of the projects I undertook. I had a challenging time documenting what I was doing due to technical challenges but it all worked out in the end and it made me see how useful current technology is (iphones/internet) for sharing.


I look forward to sharing more information through Youtube and blogging along my journey in Permaculture, Organic Gardening, etc. The more we all know about growing food (and finding it in the woods) the better!

Plant Identification

SWIHA Externship: 2.5 hours


One of my favorite things to do when friends come to my home is to take them around and share my garden and land, pointing out the native edibles and medicinal plants that many don't realize are safe to consume. I also like sharing my garden with other gardener/farmer folks because I always learn something new! There's nothing more humbling than showing an experienced gardener your crops and having them say "wow, I've never seen a tomato plant grown like that" because the pruning was, well, a little uneducated.


SO, I decided to create a video sharing some of the Herbs, Native Medicinal/Edibles and a few of my fruit/vegetable crops. Some of them have added info that I felt you'd want to know. As time goes on, I'll be making videos that identify specific plants including key identification features,  their properties and potential look-alikes. Thank you so much for checking out my video and I hope you are inspired to GROW!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AbY6JRS5XQ&feature=youtu.be

Making A Worm Bin is Easy!

SWIHA Externship: 5 Hrs. Total  (2 hrs. Research, 1 hr. Building Bin, 2 Hrs. Video)




Building a Worm Bin has been on my list of things to do for our home. We have a Regular Compost Bin in the garden but I would like to have the Worms help build nutrient dense soil to amend my greenhouse, herbs and houseplants as needed. We have a 36 ft. greenhouse that is always looking for extra nutrients and I'm so happy to say I now have a Worm Bin!


Here's a quick video on How To Make a Worm Bin with tips on keeping your worms happy and alive! I collected my worms from a huge pile of mushroom compost. Enjoy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGE3SZLHfnQ&list=UUEr2kYeb_ganVeWkj-cH00A