Declining farmland availability in a rapidly growing society requires space-efficient cultivation techniques. Campus gardens serve as a model for sustainable farming methods. The two-acre Rhoades Property garden at UNCA was analyzed for potential maximum production. Calcined clays that increase soil cation exchange and water-holding capacity are expected to increase yield. Two calcined clay amended beds and one standard soil (control) bed were planted with comparable planting schemes of tomatoes, tomatillos, eggplants, and various peppers that received the same amendments, pruning, and watering. Summer harvest yields were calculated for total fruit volume and mass, as well as root mass per bed. Data were analyzed using SAS, ANOVA, paired T-tests and a Tukey post-hoc test. Near significance was found for eggplant weight by harvesting date (p=.059). Comparisons of volume/weight per vegetables and amongst variety of vegetable were insignificant. We would like to continue to test for statistically significant difference in production, but will extend the experiment to include biochar.
