Hosted by UC ANR South Coast REC, Cooperative Extension, and the Orange County Farm Bureau, programs that provide agricultural education to an increasingly urban population, local high schools participated in workshops at the UC ANR South Coast REC that were designed to acquaint the students with ag research techniques, careers in agriculture, and the importance of urban ag and water conservation in their daily lives.
UCCE Master Gardener volunteers assisted staff rotating the (82) Students and teachers between workshops focusing on water conservation, mulch: benefits and proper use, crops for large and small spaces: tomato planting and potato harvest, a tour of South Coast REC extension and research projects, and basic IPM. Hands on activities included planting rows of tomato seedlings and harvesting potatoes, in addition to learning proper mulch techniques.
Following lunch, all students were able to bag up the fruits of the labor to share with their families along with various outreach material.