Fandom High School

"Apologies for missin' last class, but there was a problem in the dungeon I needed to take care of," Senshi said once everyone had shown up. "But that's okay, because it's this week that's the important one. That's right, it's time to harvest what we've been growin'! Now, when it's time to harvest, be careful not to break, nick or bruise them. The less you handle your vegetables, the longer they'll last in storage. For things like carrots an' radishes, loosen the soil around the root with your hands, then pull roots from the ground by their stem and greens. For the salad greens and the spinach we planted, you want to use scissors to cut as close to the main stem as possible without disrupting the main stem or the root ball. Probably best to leave about one to two inches of the newly cut lettuce leaf stem just to be safe and don't cut the smaller leaves at the base of the plant."

He smiled at the class. "See, nice and easy. Grab some colanders - better than bowls so you can rinse the veggies and the water just runs out - and some sharp scissors and start harvestin'! I'll take any vegetables that nobody wants. No reason to let 'em go to waste, but I do suggest that you make a nice salad with them. Nothin' like fresh veggies you grew yourself, I can tell you that."

"Now that the seedlings have sprouted their first set of true leaves, it's time to start thinnin' 'em out. The first little leaves that emerge after a seedling sprouts are the cotyledon, or the seed leave. These often don't look anything at all like smaller versions of the plant's mature leaves. The second set of leaves are the true leaves, and are a little more recognizable, and when you see 'em growin' in, it's time to think about thinnin'. Thinnin' plants just means checkin' over your beds an' removin' any plants growin' too close to the others, which will give the rest a chance to grow better and stronger. Overcrowded plants often grow leggy, which means they basically grow too tall and thin in their search for more water or nutrients, and show signs of stress. Plants that spend too long all stressed out will never produce as well as plants that grew up with plenty of room to grow. This is especially true for root crops. They're extra sensitive to havin' anythin' too close to them, especially other roots."

Mood, little plants. Who doesn't become stressed when they're too closely surrounded by others?

"When you're lookin' for which plants to trim, go for the ones that look skinnier and spindly if you can, and try to keep the healthier and stronger-lookin' ones. If they all look the same, go for the one that frees up the most space for the rest; it's all about doin' your best to give the rest of 'em a fightin' chance. To thin most plants, cut the target seedling across the stem as close to the earth as you can with a pair of sharp scissors or a knife if you're comfortable with that. Don't try to pull the seedlings up completely, as movin' the root systems can damage the underdeveloped roots of other neighborin' seedlings. The exception to that room is when you're thinnin' root veggies, like carrots, radishes, and potatoes, when you do have to remove the whole plant. For that, you grip the stem firmly as close to soil level as possible, while holdin' down the soil firmly with your other hand. Gently pull the plant directly up, while trying not to disturb the soil and any neighborin' plants. And then, once all your plants seem healthy and have room to grow, you're done.

"Now, thinnin' may seem like a terrible waste of good plants, but if you're growing for the kitchen in many cases you can use the thinned seedlings productively. Many edible plants produce shoots with an intense flavor that packs the mature taste into a few tiny leaves. So if you're thinnin' pea shoots, for example, use the snipped seedlings in a salad for a burst of sweet, grassy flavor. The same goes for many herbs, salad leaves, brassica shoots, and lots. If you can eat the mature leaves, then you can eat the thinned shoots too. But take care over tomatoes, potatoes, chillies, and other members of the nightshade family - their leaves and stems often contain. traces of toxins, even at the seedling stage, and so don't be tempted into an experimental nibble. Some other plants can be replanted somewhere else where they have more room to grow, too. Maybe even turn themselves around and become the healthiest plan you've got. Lastly, for all non-edible seedlings, remove the thinnin's to your compost rather than leaving them to rot in place, as some of the more vigorous species can re-root if left on the soil surface."

And that lecture over with, he shooed them off to their garden plots with scissors and knives to begin thinning. "Don't forget to check if they need more water!" he called after them. "It's still been really got, so I'd be surprised if they didn't!"

Class was once again meeting at their garden plots and the first thing Senshi did was hand out canteens of water and straw hats, much like the one he was wearing.

Still over his helmet, yes.

"In heat like this, it's important to stay well-hydrated," he told them, "and try to keep as cool as possible. Sunhats like this will shade your eyes and will also keep your face and neck out of the direct sunlight so you're less likely to burn. If you start feelin' dizzy or headachy, and weirdly cold and clammy, sit down and drink more water, real slow. If you start gettin' confused or you feel like you're gonna pass out, just call out and we'll get you to the healing mages as fast as we can."

Yeah, he was still a little confused about how things worked.

"Otherwise, we're gonna start talkin' about plantin' today," he continued. "I got a bunch of different, fast-growin' seeds for you here: radishes, salad greens, carrots, and spinach. So first, you're gonna feel your soil. Hopefully it's still cool, soft, and kinda damp from all that compost we added last week. If it is, that's great. Otherwise, water it just enough till it gets soft and a bit damp. We don't want it waterlogged. Now, for radishes, Sow the plump seeds very thinly, spacing 'em about two and a half centimeters apart. I guess that's called an inch here?" Weird. "Sowin' small batches every few weeks until the very end of summer will get you a continuous crop. For the mix of salad green seeds, sow 'em real thin into drills spaced around 15 to 25cm apart - 6 to 10 inches, I guess? Cover the seeds back over then gently pat the surface of the soil down around 'em. Gently. For the carrots, sow the seeds into drills spaced about 15cm err...6 inches? apart, cover back over with soil, and water. Again, a whole lot, don't wash the seeds away. And then for spinach, you're gonna wanna find the shadiest spot in your garden - or at least keep 'em out of direct sun, or they'll grow so fast they'll be bitter. Make rows about 30cm apart, which is something called a foot?, and then set the seeds an that inch amount apart. Once you've got the seeds all planted, water 'em carefully, and then come back and get yourselves your--" he gestured to a pile of what looked like black fabric.

Because it was, it could just be built into garden plot cover to keep your tiny plants from burning in the heat. So sow your seeds, set up the covers over your garden plot, and then feel free to head out of the sun and into somewhere cooler.