My name is Liz and I have lived in Alaska my entire life. I graduated from UAF in 2013 with my accounting degree and have been working professionally for 10 years. I have a husband and 2 young kids. I am currently 3/4 of the way through to becoming a CPA which is why I am enrolled in this 2 credit class (to meet credit requirements for lisencing).
Not only do the 2 credits meet my final credit requirements, I also have a love of gardening. My family has a high tunnel and large garden in Nenana that utilize each year. I also have a small garden and greenhouse at my home in Fairbanks. The fruits and vegetables that we plant nourish our entire and extended family for the entire year. Last year, I ended up growing over 120 pounds of jalapenos (these were jarred, frozen and dehydrated for use during the winter months)!
Each spring, I am in charge of planting our starts. This year, I planted well over 500 seed starts (both flower and vegetables) which we used to plant our garden, high tunnel, and distribute to family and friends. I also like to dabble in exotic plants. One I am particularly proud of is my successful growing of a Hawaiian pineapple plant which I grew from the crown of a Hawaiian pineapple that I brought back to Alaska! Its a great conversation starter and its been fun to watch it grow! I have also been successful at growing cacti and a lemon tree from seed. I find a lot of therapy out of growing plants. I love to just sit in my greenhouse, get grounded and breathe in the fresh air. Im really interest in learning about the medicinal uses of flora in Alaska. I have added a photo of my family’s high tunnel thats located in Nenana. We planted brussel sprouts, pumpkins, tomato, green beans, jalapeno, bell pepper and cucumber this year.
Welcome Liz,
wow, I am jealous that is an impressive high tunnel greenhouse, and congrats on that amazing harvest last year. Glad this class is serving several purposes for you and that you will be able to complete all degree requirements for your CPA licensure. I am curious if you see any difference in performance of the plants in the tunnel as compared to last year. Plants planted outside seem to be much slower this year due to the colder temps late in the spring. I too love ‘watching’ the garden grow, it is so soothing. We have one transplant from Arizona that we successfully grow here in Alaska. It is a high elevation (from Antelope Valley) cactus Opuntia pinkavae Parfitt. We grow it in a pot and bring it inside in the winter, but it is lowing the summers outside. It has not flowered yet, but we are hopeful it will some day. The flowers are amazing. This species was named in honor of my major professor Dr. Don Pinkava at Arizona State University by one of his students Bruce Parfitt.