Plant Anatomy

Another week has passed, and the weather in Florida is becoming less and less miserable. It's actually somewhat pleasant in the evenings, which makes gardening far more enjoyable. In class this week, we discussed the anatomy of plants by breaking them down into basic plant parts. First, there are the roots, which are underground and are responsible for anchoring the plant, absorbing water and nutrients, and storing food. The stems support the leaves and flowers, and also transport water and nutrients. Leaves are tasked with the all-important job of photosynthesizing in order to provide power to the plant. The fruit of plants house and disseminate seeds, which are the reproductive units of plant.

Using this information, the table below shows which part(s) of our plants that we are using/eating:

Out in the garden this week, I saw major growth in several of my plants. Unfortunately, since the pesticides used in our gardens restrict us from eating anything until November, I was forced to throw away many of the vegetables that were close or ready to harvest. The pictures below show a large zucchini and many beans that suffered the fate of the compost bin.

I also noticed some Anaheim peppers starting to emerge!

My remaining time in the garden was spent weeding, fertilizing (with our new, weaker 6-6-6 fertilizer that allows us to use more at a time), and setting up stakes and trellis for my tomato plants. I will have pictures and more details about the stakes and trellis next week!