New job opportunities for teens at MPG Ranch

Over the last three years, teens living  at the Tom Roy Youth Guidance Home have had the option of working right out their back door at the Youth Farm.  This year in addition to working at the Youth Farm, the teens have a new job opportunity, this time on a ranch.  MPG Ranch, located in Florence promotes conservation through restoration, research, education and information sharing. This spring, I am excited to say that MPG Ranch is also teaming up with the Youth Farm to provide jobs for teens.

The MPG Spring Youth Crew will be charged with helping to control weeds, pruning the old orchard, assisting in the construction of a mobile chicken unit, and anything else MPG ranch might find for us.

One of the crew members offered to do a little writing for this blog as a part of her experience.  So I am happy to introduce Tori, this week’s guest blogger.  She’ll give you a little more of the flavor of what went on there on Saturday.

Today the Tom Roy Home went to the MPG ranch.  Our crew went to a couple of parts of the ranch and pulled a weed called Hounds Tongue.

Hounds Tongue is a plant with a tall stalk that has little balls of little thorns on it. We pulled the weed because it is an invasive species that gets stuck to animals fur and then they spend time trying to get it off instead of trying to find food for the winter.

Plus, it’s just annoying. When it gets stuck to you, it gets stuck to everything, it stays there until you or an animal picks it off.  Of course if you get it off where it can grow, then it plants itself right there makes more thorny seeds,  animals or humans walk by the seed head sticks to you and it starts all over again.  So with it being such an annoying weed we were glad to help get the seed heads out of the way of the wildlife.

If you would like more information about the Youth Farm and our goings-on, please check us out atwww.gardencityharvest.org and www.Youthhomes.com, and check out more blog posts!