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Soil Unit 2013
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helpful to human beings but also is
home to billions of organisms. Did
you know there’re over a billion
organisms in a teaspoon of soil?
Soil also regulates carbon and
greenhouse gasses. Soil is one of
the things that we need to survive.
One of the world’s main problem
is topsoil degradation. Soil loss is
the wearing away of the ground
surface as a result of the move-
ment of wind water or ice
The implications of this are terri-
fying topsoil loss could mean the
end of the human race, because
our source of food would be gone.
In the future a huge food source
would be cut out, and we wouldn't
be able to eat; so we would even-
tually die out
Many studies now show that top-
soil degradation is happening due
to human activities. This following
information that is going to be
shared is a secret in the Soil Pre-
servers Association. One of the
ways to prevent topsoil degrada-
tion is to compost and add organic
matter.
Root Fungus is a type of fungi that
live in the roots of plants. They
This year’s organism of the year is
Root Fungus! When you think of
fungus you probably think of
fuzzy mold. Little do people know
that fungus, specifically root fun-
gus, mycorrhizae, is one of the
most important organisms to keep
soil healthy. Why is this a big deal,
it’s just dirt you might ask? The
incipient to everything is soil. Why
is soil important to the life on
earth? Soil sustains life; it grows
food for almost every organism on
earth. If there was no soil the food
webs would collapse because
there wouldn't be nutrients for
plants, which would later affect
the animals. Soil is home to plants,
if we didn't have plants we would-
n't have firewood, paper to write
on, oxygen to breathe. We would-
n't be able to eat anything, we
would starve and die. Soil is one
of the main reasons we know so
much about history, it preserves
precious artifacts. If there was
never soil forest wouldn’t exist.
Which means no wood, no build-
ings, wood toys, fire or furniture.
Soil also makes a sturdy platform
to build buildings on. Not only is it
however are pretty different from
decomposing fungi. One of the
differences is they don’t have
chloroplasts. What also makes
them special is they don’t make
their own food they get their food
from the organisms they eat. They
help the soil because they take
carbon from plants directly to the
soil. The more carbon in soil the
more organic matter, which will
help prevent soil loss. Root Fungi
also are a big reason plants flour-
ish because the fungus brings in
more water and nutrient minerals.
This year we voted Root fungi as
the organism of the year because
of it’s helpful contributions it
makes towards the worldwide
problem of soil loss.“The miracle
of the seed and the soil is not
available by affirmation; it is only
available by labor.”
Organism of The Year:
Root Fungus
Barbaric Yawp I battle this problem in life or death. Whether to stand out And bravely yell out my barbaric yawp across the world. But what would be left of me? The last pieces earth did not take back from me, The last alive part of my body Soon to be delivered to the earth as nutrients. How could that be?
-Kamryn G.
to see, and the consensus was that it
would be passive, with no playing fields,
parking lots or restrooms, but, no one
was sure what direction the development
should take. It was suggested by Betty
McKenney, that it be a water wise, Medi-
terranean climate garden. Pasadena Beau-
tiful Foundation and the Mediterranean
Garden Society provided valuable sup-
port. Neighbors of the soon to be garden
donated funds, plants, and outdoor furni-
ture to get the garden up and running. In
July, 2005, the first plants and trees were
planted in Arlington Garden. Since then,
At the corner of Arlington Drive and Pasa-
dena Avenue, this Caltrans site has sat
vacant for 40 years, awaiting the construc-
tion of the 710 freeway. This is Arlington
Garden. Arlington Garden is Pasadena’s
only dedicated public garden. It is a three
acre botanical garden that changes with
the seasons. It all started in 2003, when
Caltrans and the City started to talk about
what to do with the three acre vacant lot,
home to only two mature oaks, a jacaran-
da, a California Pepper, and five different
varieties of palms. The community was
asked what development they would like
the McKenneys have planted nearly 400
trees and a huge variety of plants that will
thrive in our Southern Californian climate.
Sequoyah School, PHS Interact Club,
Mayfield Senior School, and Westridge
School for Girls have all performed com-
munity service in this oasis. It is a part of
Westridge’s curriculum and is visited
every year. This garden has grown so
much from that vacant lot; it has earned
mentions in the LA Times and the Pasade-
na Star News, and the Quarterly and Ar-
royo magazines.
History of The Arlington Garden by: Virginia W.
In the midst of life we are death. Earth to Earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust -Book of Common Prayer, Burial Service I am being buried I see nothing but darkness I can feel the moist soil surrounding my body The worms start to nest in my ear canals My skin starts to disintegrate as the colonies of fungi start to consume my skin Rats start to burrow in my rib cage I am now a home Above me I can feel footsteps They make the ground shake and scare the animals I can hear them praying for their lost ones I wish I could comfort them Tell them I’m happy I am now a home
~Grace A
בית עכשיו אני
לכדור הארץ כדור. מוות אנחנו החיים באמצע
לעפר עפר, אפר אל אפר, הארץ
- קבורה שירות, תפילות ספר
להיקבר אני
חושך רק רואה אני שהקיפה הלחה האדמה את להרגיש יכול אני
שלי הגוף את שלי האוזן בתעלות לקנן מתחילות התולעים
של כמושבות להתפורר מתחיל שלי העורשלי העור לצרוך להתחיל פטריות
שלי הצלעות בכלוב להתחפר מתחילות חולדות בבית אני עכשיו
צעדיו את להרגיש יכול אני מעליי
את ולהפחיד לרעוד הקרקע על עושים הםהחיים בעלי
שאבדו לאלה מתפלל יכול אני אותם לנחם שיכולתי לוואי
שמח שאני להם תגיד בבית אני עכשיו
אולדריץ גרייס ~
The Quad Tree
Kamryn G.
The historic oak tree on the Quad has been around since even before Westridge. As we all know,
Westridge was built in 1913. But what you might not know is that Westridge was also built
around that oak tree. Unfortunately, due to condition that the tree is in, the tree will soon be cut
down. All of our history is behind that tree! The witness of everything since the beginning of this
school. The tree has been in this condition for many years now. When we put in the grass, it
caused overwatering to the tree from the sprinklers.
Barbaric Yawp
First came the Earth,
And with it, the tiniest unicellular organisms,
From some of those,
Tall, imposing trees grew,
And from some,
Humans grew.
Soil was there at the time of the dinosaurs,
At the time of the Neanderthals,
At the smallest of tribal battles,
At the biggest of wars.
Soil has been through it all,
And will be here for much longer than any human,
It will see many more wars,
And more battles,
To come.
It will be here as long as the Earth,
And we are all descended from it,
It saw the beginning of us,
And it will see the end.
~ Virginia
My life as a Tree Someone plants a small seed in rich silt They water Me everyday In a week after trying to push I sprout out of the ground First comes one leaf then anoTher Before long I’m a little tree NotHing is around me As it rains I grow biggEr BefOre long I’m 6 feet tall Life is greAt 20 years later builders start to come I’m scared I don't Know what will happen There is now a lawn around me This isn’t what I'm used to Other trees are being planted Am I going to survive? There is now a sprinkler system I’m getting over watered I don’t have long to live I am dying slowly....
Grace A
harmony that you have to be
hard pressed to create. It’s so
beautiful that it seems almost
endless, as if you could get
lost if you walked there
enough. You could visit it for
an hour every day for a
month, and still not have dis-
covered all of it. The garden
is beautiful and mysterious. It
is ever changing and amazing.
Another memorable part was
the tree walk. Although it was
only part of a rotation, it was
still very interesting, to me. I
learned a lot about trees, like
how to tell if a tree is healthy
or not. Or, to do your home-
work before you plant a tree.
How to take care of a tree and
Dear Reader,
This magazine holds so much
effort and work. We have
worked hard to make it the
best possible experience for
our readers. This magazine is
a tribute to the Soil Unit and
all who helped with it. We
learned a lot and put it to use
in this.
In the Soil Unit we learned so
much. My most memorable
part was the Arlington Gar-
den. It was beautiful and in-
formative. It is such an oasis,
a space that is separated,
somehow, from the rest of the
world. All of the flowers,
trees, plants, birds, create a
help it if it’s dying, and how
to identify what kind if tree it
is, with a leaf and a book. I
loved walking around campus
and seeing the trees.
The Soil Unit was amazing
and I count myself lucky for
being able to experience it. It
was a great week and was re-
ally fun.
Letter from the editor by: Virginia
Dear Reader, I have learned so many things after a week of being taught about soil . Before this Unit I did-n’t think about how important soil is. Little did I know that the incipient to everything is soil. Why is soil important to the life on earth? Soil sustains life; it grows food for almost every or-ganism on earth. If there was no soil the food webs would collapse because there wouldn't be nutrients for plants, which would later affect the animals. Soil is home to plants, if we didn't have plants our life would be in danger. Soil is one of the main reasons we know so much about history because it preserves precious artifacts. If there was never soil forests wouldn’t exist. Which means no wood, no buildings, wood toys, or furniture. Soil also makes a sturdy platform to build buildings on. Not only is it helpful to human beings but also is home to bil-lions of organisms. Did you know there’re over a billion organisms in a teaspoon of soil? It also regulates carbon and greenhouse gasses. Soil is one of the things that we need to sur-vive. One of my favorite my favorite things I did this unit was when we planted the herb gar-den outside the commons because I know it will help the Westridge community. When I was gardening in different locations of Westridge I could tell the difference between soils. Overall I really enjoyed this unit because of all the interesting things that I didn’t know be-fore. When I heard that we were doing the Soil Unit I was confused because I didn’t think soil was important except for walking on. Now I realize how wrong I was. Grace A
Dear Reader,
Over the course of two weeks, we went on
adventures around Pasadena and the
school. We learned about soil and how im-
portant it was in our life. How the bud of
life sprouts from soil. Through this maga-
zine, we hoped 5to accomplish our goal of
teaching you what we have learned our-
selves. We have improved our magazine
for you, adding fun poems, stories, and
pictures! One of our adventures we want-
ed to tell you was planting, and making our
compost bin. In one day, we planted flow-
ers, herbs, and fruits, in pots. Then we
made a worm compost bin. We went
through struggles with the icky nematodes
for you! We hope you enjoy this magazine!
Kamryn G.
Letters From The Editors
Above me there is a tile sun,
It glows with yellows and reds,
Framed with blue, blue sky.
Somewhere,
A bird chirps,
Loudly and clearly.
The orange blossom next to smells sweet,
And it is sweltering,
It is as if its petals are on fire.
Each individual apricot frond,
Is layered with silk.
The slate stones on the walk,
Are ashen and smoky.
It is late afternoon,
And there is no shade to be seen,
The bright sunlight surrounding me.
I am in my own little, idle world.
~ Virginia W.
Above Me I hear black and white birds pecking at trees It sounds as if someone is knocking on a win-dow begging for entrance I see palm tree fronds swaying gently in the wind The sun is shining through the fronds glaring in my eyes The sky is a magical blue scattered with wispy clouds So perfect you might think it was a painting I can faintly hear footsteps from across the garden As I look towards the horizon a tiny tree This tree has thin branches that dance with the rhythm of the wind The tree is a light green like a tree frog I can smell the aroma of the purple flower that is lightly brushing my cheek I can feel it getting darker as I enter the shad-ow of a bush As I walk I stop and feel a plant waxy like a banana peel When I turn to my right I see a tree that looks like a skeleton At the base is a blanket of purple flowers Enjoy the simple things in life, for those are the greatest
~Grace A.