Ocean County Soil Conservation District offers a variety of outreach programs to the local community, including schools, scouts, garden clubs, environmental groups, and the general public. Our programs bring awareness to the importance of healthy soil and clean water, build connections to our native landscapes, and inspire stewardship of our local watershed. In July, OCSCD’s Education Outreach Coordinator, Becky Laboy, teamed-up with educators from several other conservation-focused organizations to provide soil workshops for kids, adults and families in the Barnegat Bay watershed.
Healthy Soil is at the Root of Your Garden was presented in partnership with Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority as part of their Weekend at the Reservoir community education program series. The Brick Reservoir offers a perfect backdrop to draw attention to the importance of healthy soil and clean water for a healthy garden. The reservoir holds 1 billion gallons of water, pumped from the Metedeconk River, which provides water to over 100,000 local residents. The Metedeconk River is fed by a 70-square mile watershed that traverses seven municipalities in northern Ocean and southern Monmouth counties.
To kick-off the workshop, Shari Kondrup, Watershed Education and Outreach with BTMUA introduced participants to the Metedeconk River watershed and discussed how excess nutrients from lawn and garden fertilizers can enter our waterways and pollute the system.
Ms. Laboy dug into several soil topics including how water reacts and responds to different soil texture types, such as sand, silt and clay. She explained the important role of soil biota (worms, millipedes, pill bugs) in building soil health for productive gardens. Participants learned how to take a soil sample and send it to Rutgers Soil Testing Lab for analysis. The key takeaway was “healthy soil and clean water are key for a thriving garden”. Download a plethora of informational resources put together by Ms. Kondrup. Visit OCSCD’s website for additional soil resources. For information about educational programs offered by BTMUA, please contact Shari Kondrup, skondrup@brickmua.com.
Kids Soil Exploration was presented in partnership with Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve (JC NERR) as part of their Creature Feature summer educational program series for kids. This 90 minute program included a trail walk on the preserve where the kids uncovered some of soil’s mysteries, such as the layers called horizons, the organic matter contributed to soil by trees, shrubs, and other vegetation, and some underground inhabitants such as roly-polys and earthworms. They collected soil samples from different locations in the maritime forest and salt marsh for further analysis.
Back in the classroom the young soil scientists used hand lenses and their senses to explore their samples. They analyzed the soil texture by pouring it through a tower of soil sieves, which separated the gravel, sand, silt and clay particles. In addition, Ms. Laboy’s worm bin offered the young scientists a chance to meet some soil creatures up close!
For more information about JC NERR’s Creature Feature program, or other summer 2024 programs for kids, families and adults, please contact JC NERR Education Coordinator, Kaitlin Gannon, gannon@marine.rutgers.edu.
Soils 101 was presented in partnership with Long Beach Township Marine Education & Research Field Station as part of their What’s Happening Wednesdays summer educational program series for the public. Adults, families and kids enjoyed this hands-on soil exploration! We dug into several soil characteristics including composition, color, and texture. Using sets of soil sieves and the Soil Texture Triangle, participants were able to determine the classification of their soil sample. The results: sand! What else would you expect at the beach!
Over the summer, the LBT Field Station hosts several public programs for families, kids, and adults, including Kids Corner, Terrapin Tuesdays, What’s Happening Wednesdays, Natural Wonders of Holgate, Speaker Series, ALO Family Program and Follow the Shell Fridays. For more information please contact fieldstation@longbeachtownship.com.
Ocean County Soil Conservation District would be delighted to team-up with your organization to provide an education program about soil, water conservation, native plant gardening or related topics. Contact Becky Laboy, Education Outreach Coordinator, to set-up an education program for your group! education@soildistrict.org (609) 991-1534.