Community Gardens

           
              In this week's lab we visited a community garden located behind Centenary United Methodist Church that is sponsored by the Macon Roots Organization. One of its founders,Mark Vanderhoek, told us a little about the work that some of the residents of Macon as well as students of Mercer are doing in the garden. We learned about the advantages of having a community garden and what has to be considered in the planning of it. A community garden can be very helpful in the world of environmentalists and environmental scientists because gardening is environmentally friendly. More people raising crops helps to balance the negative effects of over population and pollution from factories if people mainly eat the food they grow. When the participants of a community garden finally find a garden site they must make sure the soil is not contaminated and that the land and soil they plan to use will be fertile enough to grow their crops. For this reason, it would probably be a good idea for one to know the twelve soil orders of the world and how to recognize them so he or she can determine whether he or she needs to build wooden boxes like those shown in the picture above to avoid contamination .

Plant Identification

Ilex Opaca (Ilex Holly)

 Betula Nigra (Birch)

Magnolia Grandiflora

Platanus Occidentalis (Sycamore)

Castanea Mallissima (Chinese Chestnut)

Phlox Subulata

Ruellia Angustifolia (Mexican Petunia)

Loropetalum Chinense

Zinnias Elegans

Brugmansia Arborea (Angel's Trumpet)

Liriope Spicata (Monkey Grass)

Colocasia Esculenta Illustris (Elephant Ear)

Cycas Revoluta (Sago Palm)

Rhus Radican (Poison Ivy)

Nandina Domestica

Clam Watching

                During this lab we focused on measuring the dispersement of clams based on the speed of the currents in the Ocmulgee River. We also looked at the amount of live clams found at different depth levels. In the first picture, the white numbers represent the number of live clams found in each particular area at level one. The number of clams found in level two is shown in red. The speed of the current around a certain area is shown in blue and the high foliage is represented in green. The second picture shows the elevation from riverbank to the riverbank on the opposite side.

Butterflies :)

I am not much of an animal person but I have always
been interested in butterflies. I guess what attracts me to them is their different color patterns and my love for bright colors. I know a few basic things about butterflies. I know they start off as caterpillars that eat and shed their skin constantly until they are ready for metamorphasis. Once the caterpillars wrap themselves up in the sticky silk they produce from their mouths and go through complete metamorphasis they break through their cocoons as fully grown butterflies.

Isarithmic Map