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Background

Students from Engineering 305: Appropriate Technology Spring 2018 semester will being working on a front yard garden in Eureka, California with the Cooperation Humboldt group.

“Cooperation Humboldt exists to help develop a solidarity economy across the North Coast. We identify, support and nurture cooperative economic efforts that help people meet their needs without exploiting or oppressing anyone, without being exploited or oppressed by anyone, and without destroying Mother Earth.”

Problem statement

The objective of this project is to provide the surrounding community with access to local, freshly grown food. The goal is to provide access to fresh food by making a front lawn into a food garden for all to enjoy

Project Evaluation Criteria

The following criteria will be used when considering the best possible design for the project. This criteria was developed by the students working with Cooperation Humboldt.

Literature Review

Intro to lit review...

Filtration

Filtration is important in keeping a rainwater catchment system clean. Screens are used for preventing large debris from entering either the storage tank or conveyance which includes gutters or downspouts (Grafman 2017[1]).

Types of filtration

There are multiple types of materials, shapes, and sizes that can be used for the screen. A few are included below.

Expanded metal sheet screen

Expanded metal sheet usually comes with openings in the shape of diamonds. It is economically friendly and has a strong structure since the metal is stretched instead of having holes punched through (Adame 2013[2]). This type of metal sheet can be difficult to handle and install.

Wire Mesh screen (welded)

Made from different alloys such as steel, stainless steel, brass, and copper. This type of screen comes in all shapes and sizes allowing for versatility. This type of mesh is easy to handle and install, but can be costly (Metal Supermarkets 2016[3]).

Wire Mesh screen (woven)

Woven wire mesh screen can be made from steel, stainless steel, brass, copper. Woven wire mesh gets its name from the wire threads it has that are woven at right angles. This type of wire mesh is easy to handle and install, and durable. The woven type of wire mesh can be costly, but easy to maintain (Metal Supermarkets 2016[3]).

Perforated sheet metal screen

Perforated sheet metal comes in different shapes and sizes making it versatile. Made from sheet steel with round holes punched through. The outer area of the sheet is not surrounded with punched holes so it can retain stability. Its structure is not as strong as that of expanded metal sheet (Adame 2013[2]). Sheet metal screens with punched larger holes cost more than the ones with small holes.

Cold withstanding edible plants

A few vegetables that can withstand cold weathers include hardy vegetables, half hardy vegetables, and tender plants. Hardy vegetables are good at withstanding cold frost and can be planted in Spring. Some hardy vegetables are spinach, kale, mustard, turnips, onions and peas. Half hardy vegetables can be planted two weeks before a frost is over, and some vegetables include carrots, beets, parsnips, celery, and lettuce. Tender plants can grow in areas with cold weather if transplanted. Tender plants include cucumbers, beans, sweetcorn, pumpkin, squashes, tomatoes, and some pepper plants (Singh and Davidson 2016[4]).

Designing a replicable garden

Sprouting Education, a 2011 group of students from the Engr 215 course at Humboldt State University, worked with Locally Delicious to create a garden that is functional and can be easily replicated at other schools. The final design included a rainwater catchment system, kiddie pool gardens, and a pallet garden with a greenhouse top.

The pallet garden with the greenhouse top was a success in this project. Children were able to easily access the plants without having to remove the top. Sprouting Education used clamps and a wooden dowel into the design to easily roll up the top and make the plants accessible. For the rainwater catchment system, Sprouting Education used a barrel for the storage, a spigot and hose to access water, and a cut out window screen for filtering out large debris (2011[5]).

References

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  1. Grafman, L. (2017). To Catch the Rain. Humboldt State University Press, Arcata, CA.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Adame, E. (2013). “What's The Difference Between Expanded Metal And Perforated Metal? .” ADAME Expanded Metal Solutions, <http://www.adameemsolutions.com/News-Events/whats-the-difference-between-expanded-metal-and-perforated-metal.html> (Feb. 17, 2018).
  3. 3.0 3.1 Metal Supermarkets (2016). “Difference Between Perforated Metal, Expanded Metal and Wire Mesh.” Metal Supermarkets - Steel, Aluminum, Stainless, Hot-Rolled, Cold-Rolled, Alloy, Carbon, Galvanized, Brass, Bronze, Copper, <https://www.metalsupermarkets.com/difference-between-perforated-metal-expanded-metal-and-wire-mesh/> (Feb. 18, 2018)
  4. Singh, D. J., and Davidson, J. (2016). Growing Vegetables in Your Garden - Tips for Planting Vegetable Crops Outside. Mendon Cottage Books.
  5. Sprouting Education. (2011). “Locally Delicious school garden.” Locally Delicious school garden - Appropedia: The sustainability wiki, <http://www.appropedia.org/Locally_Delicious_school_garden> (Feb. 16, 2018).
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