SOILUTIONS

I grew up in the deep south, where when I look around in the fall, I see pools of cotton and corn. In a school with many clubs, all fighting for the appeal of the few students attending our small town school. I saw my family, and my town experienced agriculture, and I desired to experience agriculture as well.

I am constantly involved in Career Development Events, which are competitive events to explore careers in agriculture. I have been in Land Evaluation, Forestry, Floral Design, Floriculture, and Nursery Landscape. I am currently studying for a Nursery Landscape CDE. I spend after school hours learning the identification of plant species, nursery practicums, and knowledge exams. In the spring, I will be performing in the Forestry Field Day CDE.

I started a business along with a couple of peers, from our love of Floral Design. Our flower shop Lavender Honey, supports a local wholesale florist. Floriculture is the third largest U.S. agricultural crop. We participate in a farmer’s market in a nearby city. We also grow our wildflowers, and ferns used in our arrangements. I spend many weekends creating floral arrangements for our school, and community.

Over the month of January, I have also been working on a presentation to inform local farmers on ways to help treat damaged soil with low microbial population. Cotton significantly degrades and depletes soil quality. To support the growth of the cotton industry, we must support the nutrients in soil. In my southern region, cotton is grown unendingly, with cotton bales lined up for acres. Over the years, farmers have tilled and worked the soil to a breaking point, and as much as fertilizer, crop rotation, and animal grazing will help, the issue needs to be solved from the root. By reviving the microbes in the soil, the lacking soil nutrients are restored. A perfect way to do this is by applying prebiotics. Probiotics is the healthy bacteria in the soil providing nutrients, and prebiotics is medicine/food for probiotics. By applying prebiotics, the crop yield will grow, with decreased erosion, and restored soil fertility. Use the code JASMINE for 10% off at checkout, and to support the cotton industry in Georgia agriculture.

Jasmine Lopez
Mitchell County, Georgia