Nicole L. Waterland

Development of iGrow: A curriculum for youth/adult dyads to increase gardening skills, culinary competence, and family meal time for youths and their adult caregivers

This manuscript describes the development of a “learn by actively participating” curriculum for youth and their adult caregivers (dyad pair) to increase gardening skills, culinary competence, and family meal time. The curriculum was developed by integrating “iCook 4-H” and Junior Masters Gardener “Health and Nutrition from the Garden”, and “Essential Elements of 4-H Youth Development” curriculums with additional resources for gardening activities from the USDA’s My Plate and garden-based recipes. Expert reviewers (n = 11) provided feedback on the curriculum content, session structure, dosage, age appropriateness, and balance of the three focused areas. Seven family dyads (n = 14) participated in focus groups about understanding of need, interest, barriers, and potential engagement. A 10-week curriculum was developed and named: iGrow. The curriculum is a hands on, active learning program delivered through five, two-hour sessions using a family dyad model. Three main focus areas included gardening, culinary skills, and family conversation/interaction that all focused on togetherness. For the final iGrow curriculum, expert-level content review and feedback from focus group dyad pairs was used to revise the curriculum which further enhanced the approach and balance of the curriculum content. Focus group feedback supported appropriateness, dosage and learning objectives, and content depth. This curriculum has been developed to provide knowledge of gardening and culinary skills with the goal of increased consumption of fruit and vegetables.

Remediation of Flow-Through Trout Raceway Effluent via Aquaponics

AbstractProduction and nutrient removal were assessed for three vegetable crops (kohlrabi, lettuce, and Swiss chard) and two edible flowers (calendula and nasturtium) grown entirely on effluent from a flow-through trout raceway. Soluble nutrient concentrations in the effluent averaged 0.56 and 0.19 mg/L for total nitrogen and soluble reactive phosphate, respectively. Seeds were sown into Styrofoam trays filled with vermiculite and placed directly into the plant growing channels. Lettuce was harvested at 6, 9, and 12 weeks for a total mean harvest biomass of 4.5 kg/m2. Kohlrabi and Swiss chard were harvested at 12 weeks, with a mean harvest biomass of 15.4 and 7.5 kg/m2, respectively. Harvest biomass of kohlrabi was significantly greater than that of lettuce or Swiss chard. Nasturtium flowers were harvested at 9 and 12 weeks, while calendula did not begin to produce flowers until 12 weeks. There were no significant differences in percent removal of total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), nitrate, or phosphate at 6 w...

Evaluation of Lettuce Between Spring Water, Hydroponic, and Flow-through Aquaponic Systems

ABSTRACT Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is an important vegetable crop that can be grown in hydroponic and aquaponic systems. A comparative study to evaluate the efficacy of a cold water flow-through aquaponic system (FTS) to a hydroponic system is lacking. Twenty-seven lettuce cultivars with green or red leaves, in seven subtypes, belonging to four popular types in the Western diet, were grown in spring water or aquaponic or hydroponic treatments. Spring and aquaponic water flowed directly from a spring and a raceway growing rainbow trout, respectively. The hydroponic treatment had nutrients added to a recirculated system. Stand establishment, average yield, and productivity (yield/week) were determined for each subtype or cultivar and compared among water treatments. No comparison among lettuce types, subtypes, or cultivars was made due to inherent differences among genotypes. Total yield and productivity (402.5 g·m−2 and 4.9 kg/tray/week, respectively) in the FTS were lower than those in the hydroponic system (468.9 g·m−2 and 6.7 kg/tray/week, respectively). Average yields of butterhead and bibb subtypes in aquaponics were higher than in the hydroponic treatment. Bibb subtype lettuces performed better in the aquaponic treatment, and average yields of butterhead and romaine, one of the most popular and nutritious lettuce types, were similar to those in the hydroponic treatment. The cvs. Outredgeous in romaine, Winter Density in bibb, Red Sails in leaf, and Red Saladbowl in oakleaf subtypes were recommended for an FTS. Average yields of green lettuces were higher than red lettuces in the bibb subtype in all treatments. Lettuce yield, depending on cultivar, could be comparable to hydroponic or field production based upon yield per area.