♪ ♪ >> GULF WINDS BLOW THROUGH CANOPY ROOFS ALL THE WAY TO THOMASVILLE.

♪ THE NATIVE NAMES WRITTEN ON THE LAND EBB COE THROUGH THE RED CLAY HILLS.

♪ WHERE THE SCENT OF LONGLEAF FLORIDA PINE REACH UP ON PAST THAT GEORGIA LINE.

♪ STROLL THROUGH TALLAHASSEE TOWN OR SOUTHERN APALACHEE BOUND -- ♪ TAKE THE LOCAL ROUTES AND JOURNEY DOWN THE ROADS WE CALL OUR HOME.

♪ TAKE THE LOCAL ROUTES AND JOURNEY DOWN THE ROADS WE CALL OUR HOME ♪ >> WELCOME TO "LOCAL ROUTES."

I'M SUZANNE SMITH WITH WFSU PUBLIC MEDIA.

WHEN WE STARTED THIS PROGRAM SIX YEARS AGO, WE KNEW THAT INCLUDING THE WORD ROUTE IN OUR TITLE AND PRONOUNCING IT LIKE ROOT COULD BE CONFUSING.

BUT FOR US IT WAS THE PERFECT SYNERGY FOR THAT WORD.

NOT ONLY WOULD WE TRAVEL DOWN OUR OWN LOCAL ARE ROADS EXPLORING THE UNIQUE ASPECTS OF OUR COMMUNITY, BUT WE'D ALSO DIG UNDER THE SURFACE OF OUR STORIES TO EXAMINE OUR HISTORY AND THE DEEPER MEANINGS.

OUR FIRST STORY TODAY REALLY BLENDS THESE TWO INTENTIONS.

IF YOU LIVE IN TALLAHASSEE, YOU'VE PROBABLY DRIVEN ALONG NORTH MONROE BY LAKE ELLA, AND IF YOU'VE DRIVEN BY LAKE ELLA, YOU'VE PROBABLY SEEN THE STONE COTTAGES AROUND THE WATER.

DO YOU KNOW WHY THEY EXIST?

FWFSU'S MIKE PLUMMER LOOKS AT THE HISTORY BEHIND THESE RECOGNIZABLE LANDMARKS.

>> MANY OF US DRIVE BY THEM EVERY DAY AND HAVE DONE SO SO FOR YEARS.

BUT IT RECENTLY OCCURRED TO ME THAT I DIDN'T KNOW THE STORY BEHIND ONE OF THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE LANDMARKS IN TALLAHASSEE.

I'M TALKING ABOUT THE COTTAGE SHOPS ON LAKE ELLA.

THIS CHEERFUL WOMAN IS MS. BRIDGET CHANDLER, AND SHE NOSE THEIR STORY AND WAS KIND ENOUGH TO SHARE.

IT BEGINS BACK IN 1925 WHEN A GENTLEMAN NAMED GILBERT CHANDLER SR. WAS TRAVELING THROUGH TALLAHASSEE WITH HIS WIFE AND FOUR YOUNG CHILDREN.

THEY WERE LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO PITCH THEIR TENT FOR THE FIGHT.

HE ENDED UP STAYING FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.

>> HE PITCHED HIS TENT THAT FIRST NIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE GOVERNOR'S MANSION.

THAT WAS ALLOWED.

SO THE NEXT MORNING HE THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, THIS MIGHT BE THE RIGHT PLACE FOR ME.

>> HIS FIRST ENDEAVOR WAS ON SOUTH ADDALS AT LEAST -- ADAMS STREET.

IT WAS CALLED THE TALLAHASSEE AUTO CAMP.

THE CONCEPT WAS WOODEN PLATFORMS TO PITCH A TENT ON.

THIS KEPT CAMPERS A OFF THE GROUND, A WELCOME INNOVATION FOR TRAVELERS IN THE 1920s.

IT OFFERED MEN'S AND WOMEN'S PUBLIC RESTROOMS AND HOT WATER SHOWERS, A LAUNDRY AND A STORE.

AFTER THREE YEARS OPERATING THE TALLAHASSEE AUTO CAMP, GILBERT CHANDLER KNEW HE WAS ON TO SOMETHING.

IN 1928 HE BOUGHT 5 ACRES A MILE NORTH OF DOWNTOWN ON BOTH SIDES OF MONROE STREET WHICH GAVE HIMMED ROAD FRONTAGE ON BOTH SIDES.

TODAY'S LAKE ELLA PROPERTY WAS PART OF THAT PURCHASE.

HERE HE BUILT FOUR NEW COTTAGES, A COMMUNITY SANITARY BUILDING AND A STORE AND ALSO MOVED TEN OF THE CABINS FROM THE OLD AUTO CAMP TO HIS PROPERTY.

THIS WAS NAMED THE TALLAHASSEE TOURIST CAMP.

>> AND ACROSS MONROE STREET THEY HAD A HOUSE, AND THAT'S WHERE THEY LIVED.

>> OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS, CHANDLER ADDED NEW COTTAGES, DEMOLISHED THE OLDER CABINS AND ADDED PRIVATE BATHROOMS TO THE UNITS.

HE ALSO TOOK A SHOT AT ROADSIDE ADVERTISING.

>> IT WAS THE GUY FROM ROCK CITY AND THE GUY FROM BURMA-SHAVE WHO TOLD HIM THAT IF HE WOULD PUT UP HIGHWAY SIGNS, HE WOULD FILL UP THOSE COTTAGES EVERY NIGHT.

SO HE DECIDED HE WOULD DO THAT.

AND HE WENT OUT ON THE ROAD AND PAID PEOPLE TO LET HIM PUT UP A SIGN ON THEIR PROPERTY.

AND SO THE FIRST DAY HE CALLED HIS WIFE ABOUT 4:00, AND HE SAID HAVE YOU HEARD ANY COMMENTS ABOUT THE SIGNS?

SHE SAID, HAVE I EVER.

WE HAVE BEEN, WE HAVE BEEN FILLED UP FOR HOURS.

EVERYBODY WHO COMES IN IS MENTIONING THOSE SIGNS.

SO HE HAD FOUND THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG.

IT WAS THE HIGHWAY SIGNS AND ADVERTISEMENT.

>> IN 1936 AFTER A MOTEL SCOUTING TRIP TO THE WEST COAST, CHANDLER GOT BUSY BUILDING NEW, MODERN COTTAGES ON THE MONROE STREET PROPERTY.

THIS WOULD BE THE TALLAHASSEE AUTO COURT.

TWO YEARS LATER HE CONSTRUCTED LAKE ELLA MOTOR COURT.

IN 1943 AND '44, HE BUILT 30 TWO-ROOM KITCHEN AND APARTMENTS WHERE THE ORIGINAL TALLAHASSEE TOURIST CAMP SAT WITH THE AGREEMENT HE WOULD ONLY RENT TO SERVICE MEMBERS FROM DALE MABRY FIELD.

>> HE COULDN'T GET A PERMIT BECAUSE IT WAS DURING WORLD WAR II.

SO HE WENT TO THE CONGRESSMAN FROM HERE AND TOLD HIM, YOU KNOW WHAT HE WOULD LIKE TO DO, AND HE SAID, WELL, LET'S SEE BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S NOT ENOUGH APARTMENTS IN TALLAHASSEE TO HOUSE THE FAMILIES OF THE GUYS WHO ARE AT DALE MABRY FIELD.

SO LET ME CHECK INTO THAT.

IS SO HE DID.

AND THEY SAID, ABSOLUTELY, THEY WOULD GIVE HIM A PERMIT TO BUILD APARTMENTS.

>> WHEN THE ARMY AIRFIELD CLOSED IN 1946, THE 30 APARTMENTS WERE CON EVENTERRED TO 58 MOTEL ROOMS EACH WITH A BATH AND OFFICE.

THIS WOULD BECOME THE TALLAHASSEE MOTOR HOTEL.

>> HE WAS IN THE PROCESS OF BUILDING THESE, AND THERE WAS A FREIGHT TRAIN GOING THROUGH TOWN, AND IT WAS DELIVERING TO SOMEWHERE IN FLORIDA A BOXCAR FULL OF GEORGIA MARBLE, BIG PIECES OF GEORGIA MARBLE.

WELL, IT TURNED OVER HERE IN TALLAHASSEE AND SPILLED OUT ALL THE MARBLE.

SO IT WAS FOR SALE BECAUSE IT WAS TOO EXPENSIVE TO LOAD IT BACK ON.

SO HE BID ON IT, HE GOT THE MARBLE, AND HE PUT THOSE ALONG THE COTTAGES.

>> THE COTTAGES STILL STANDING TODAY ARE WHAT'S LEFT ARE OF THE TALLAHASSEE MOTOR HOTEL.

IT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN MIND THAT AT THE TIME NORTH MONROE WAS STILL A TWO-LANE STREET BUT WAS ALSO A MAJOR U.S. HIGHWAY.

U.S. 27 AND U.S. 90 WERE CONCURRENT FROM HAVANA TO TALLAHASSEE.

U.S. 90 WASN'T REROUTED FROM QUINCY UNTIL 1950.

IN 1957 CHANDLER EXPANDED THE TALLAHASSEE MOTOR HOTEL.

IN 1960 HE ADDED THE LUXURIOUS TALLAHASSEE DINING ROOM AND LOUNGE.

I-10 IS WOULD NOT BE COMPLETED THROUGH THIS AREA FOR ALMOST TWO DECADES, BUT AFTER IT WAS THE DECISION WAS MADE TO TURN THE COTTAGES INTO SHOPS.

AND IT TURNED OUT TO BE A GOOD MOVE.

THEY'VE BEEN IN DEMAND EVER SINCE.

FOR WFSU PUBLIC MEDIA, I'M MIKE PLUMMER.

>> THERE'S A LOT OF HISTORY IN OUR COMMUNITY AND A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO ARE INTERESTED IN UNCOVERING IT.

WFSU IS PREMIERING A BRAND NEW DOCUMENTARY BY LOCAL FILMMAKER VALERIE SCOON ABOUT THE INVISIBLE HISTORY OF MIDDLE FLORIDA.

HERE'S A PREVIEW.

>> THE PAST IS VERY MUCH A PART OF THE PRESENT.

>> WE'RE TALKING ABOUT GENERATIONAL POVERTY HERE.

>> THE WEALTH DISPARITIES THAT WE HAVE AND OUR TOLERANCE FOR INEQUALITY, OUR TOLERANCE FOR VIOLENCE IS INTIMATELY CONNECTED TO SLAVERY AND WHAT COMES AFTER SLAVERY.

♪ ♪ >> AFTER THE PREMIERE THE FILM WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR A LIMITED TIME ON WFSU.ORG.

YOU'LL FIND A LINK TO THE DOCUMENTARY ON OUR LOCAL ROUTES WEB SITE.

PLUS, WHILE YOU'RE THERE WATCH A CONVERSATION WE HAD WITH VALERIE SCOON, THE DIRECTOR OF INVISIBLE HISTORY, PLUS OTHER HISTORIANS FEATURED IN THE FILM.

>>> EXPLORING OUR LOCAL HISTORY IS A NATURAL FIT FOR WFSU PUBLIC MEDIA.

WE GO BACK A WAYS AS WELL.

IN FACT, LAST YEAR, IN 2020, WE CELEBRATED THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF OUR TELEVISION STATION.

DECADES BEFORE WE MOVED OUT NEAR INNOVATION PARK IN TALLAHASSEE, WE START OFF IN DODD HALL ON FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY'S CAMPUS.

TODAY OUR OLD STATION IS THE WORK MEISTER READING ROOM, BUT BACK THEN IT WAS WHERE EXPERIMENTS IN EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION WERE UNDERWAY.

YOU PROBABLY KNOW ABOUT FRED ROGERS AND HIS NEIGHBORHOOD, BUT HERE IN FLORIDA BACK THEN IT WAS ALL ABOUT MISS NANCY'S STORE, AN EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM BROADCAST LIVE FROM THE WFSU STUDIO TO ACROSS THE ENTIRE STATE.

DEVON BITNER LOOKS AT THE HISTORY OF THIS PROGRAM AND ALSO EXPLORES THE STORY OF THE WOMAN AT ITS CENTER.

HER REAL NAME IS NANCY TR ARE IBBLE BENDA.

>> MY EARLIEST MEMORY ASSOCIATED WITH MISS NANCY IS OF ONE OF MY FRIENDS SUDDENLY SAYING ABOUT 4:30, MAYBE 4:45 IN THE AFTERNOON, I GOTTA GO HOME NOW, I GOTTA WATCH MISS NANCY.

AND I'D NEVER HEARD OF MISS NANCY, SO I SAID WHAT'S MISS NANCY?

HE GOES, WELL, IT'S A TV SHOW.

A FEW DAYS LATER I TURNED IT ON TO CHANNEL 2, THE CHANNEL IT WAS ON, AND JUST HAPPENED TO CATCH THE BEGINNING OF IT.

SHE WAS WALKING WITH UP TO THE STOREFRONT, AND I THOUGHT, WELL, THIS IS DIFFERENT.

AND I WAS FASCINATED WITH THE FACT THAT HERE WAS THIS PROGRAMMING THAT, YOU KNOW, WAS MEANT FOR ME, SO I JUST KIND OF MIGRATED INTO WATCHING THE SHOW EVERY DAY.

>> LONG BEFORE MISS NANCY MADE AN IMPACT ON '60s KIDS LIKE MICHAEL MARTINEZ, SHE WAS BORN NANCY TRIBBLE IN DeLAND, FLORIDA, IN 1930, AND A LONG LIFE OF EDUCATING AND ENTERTAINING STRETCH OUT BEFORE HER.

THE FAMILY MOVED TO TALLAHASSEE IN 1940, AND AS A TEENAGER TRIBBLE STARTED SWIMMING AT NEARBY WAKULLA SPRINGS.

>> SHE WAS VERY, VERY TALENTED FROM THE GET GO.

SHE WENT INTO SWIMMING QUITE YOUNG AND WAS WITH NEWT PERRY AT WAKULLA SPRINGS.

AND THEN WHEN THE WEEKIWACHEE MERMAIDS WERE FORMED IN WEEKIWACHEE SPRING, SHE WENT DOWN THERE.

AND SHE WAS STILL A TEENAGER.

SHE WAS STILL IN HIGH SCHOOL THEN.

SHE WENT TO HOLLYWOOD TO GET PREPARED TO DO THE SWIMMING SCENES IN A MOVIE, MR. PEABODY'S MERMAID.

I THINK THAT WAS HER SENIOR YEAR IN HIGH SCHOOL.

>> AFTER GRADUATING FROM FSU, THE NOW-MARRIED NANCY BENDA BEGAN HER CAREER AS AN EDUCATOR.

AND THOUGH SHE STARTED TEACHING AT THE FRONT OF THE CLASSROOM, SHE QUICKLY CAUGHT ON TO A NEW ADVANCEMENT, TELEVISED EDUCATION.

IN 1962 SHE AUDITIONED TO TEACH A NEW TELEVISED SOCIAL STUDIES COURSE AND WON THE ROLE.

ROETT BRAYSON, WHO WAS THEN A WFSU CAMERA OPERATOR, RECALLS HOW THE PROGRAM, A NATION'S STORY, CAME TO BE.

>> IT CAME UPON ME TO APPLY FOR A NEW JOB THAT THEY ESTABLISHED WITH NANCY BENDA.

THEY WANTED TO DO PUPPETS AND NANCY TEACHING FIFTH GRADE SOCIAL STUDIES.

AND SHE HAD COME FROM THE LEON COUNTY SCHOOL SYSTEM.

SO I MET WITH HER AND MET WITH KEITH CARLSON WHO WAS GOING TO BE THE DIRECTOR OF THE SHOW.

AND WE AGREED THAT I WOULD WORK ON THERE AND PRODUCE PUPPETS.

SO AS TIME WENT BY, THEY GOT THIS IDEA WE COULD DO ANOTHER SHOW, IT WAS SO POPULAR THAT WE DEVELOPED THE IDEA OF MISS NANCY'S STORE DONE LIVE, 30 MINUTES A DAY, 5 DAYS A WEEK.

AND SHE WOULD COME IN THE STORE AND EACH DAY WOULD HAVE A KIND OF A THEME TO IT OR THE OTHER.

THERE WERE THREE MAIN CHARACTERS THAT I DID ON THE SHOW, PROFESSOR ALTON WAS IN A THEATER ENVIRONMENT WITH A CURTAIN THAT OPENED AND CLOSED.

THEN THERE WAS THE DRAGON IN THE LIBRARY.

NANCY WOULD PULL BOOKS OUT, AND THE DRAG OREGON WOULD COME OUT OF A HOLE IN THE WALL.

AS I RECALL THERE WAS A SIGN ABOVE THE HOLE THAT SAID QUIET, BECAUSE IT WAS A LIBRARY.

AND HIS NAME WAS DUY BECAUSE OF DEWEY DECIMAL SYSTEM.

HE WAS DUH BY THE DECIMAL DRAGON.

THEN TO THE LEFT OF THAT WAS A BRICK WALL.

THERE WAS A POT-BELLY STOVE BESIDE THE BRICK WALL, AND IN THE BRICK WALL A SECTION CAME OUT, AND A CHARACTER NAMED VINCE LIVED THERE.

AND HE WAS A HIPPOPOTAMUS.

HE ALWAYS SAID TO NANCY IS HE DIDN'T HAVE MUCH WORK.

NANCY WROTE THE SCRIPTS IN COLLABORATION WITH KEITH AND ME.

THEY WERE VERY LOOSE, AND WE IMPROVISED A LOT OF IT.

WE WOULD REHEARSE THE SHOW MAYBE 4:00, WE WOULD HAVE A CAMERA REHEARSAL, CAMERA BLOCKADE.

WE WOULD TAKE A BRIEF BREAK, AND THEN WE WOULD DO THE SHOW LIVE AT 5:00.

A LIVE PERFORMANCE IS PRETTY EXCITING.

>> SHE NOT ONLY HAD ANIMALS AND PUPPETS ON THE SHOW, BUT SHE WOULD HAVE PEOPLE COME IN, YOU KNOW, LIKE SOMEBODY WITH THEIR GUITAR AND SING SONGS OR COME IN AND DO SOME READING, THAT KIND OF THING.

IT WAS A REALLY GOOD SHOW.

>> ALTHOUGH THE PROGRAM BROUGHT IN HIGH RATINGS, FUNDING RAN OUT AFTER 19 MONTHS, MISS NANCY'S STORE WAS CANCELED.

>> MY FELLOW ACTOR FROM FLORIDA STATE, SAMMY KILLMAN.

[AUDIO DIFFICULTY] >> AND IT WAS, I REMEMBER THAT WAS, THAT WAS A BIG THING IN HER LIFE AND, AS I RECALL, IN THE LIFE OF WFSU.

BECAUSE IT WAS NUMBER ONE PROGRAM.

>> I WAS THINKING ABOUT THE SHOW YEARS AND YEARS AGO AND SAID I THINK I'LL CONTACT WFSU AND -- [AUDIO DIFFICULTY] I FOUND THAT THEY HAD HAD THEM, BUT THEY HAD DESTROY THEM ABOUT TWO WEEKS BEFORE I MADE THAT CALL.

I JUST MISSED IT THAT CLOSE TO HAVING A RECORD OF THE WORK I HAD DONE THERE.

>> ALTHOUGH MISS NANCY'S STORE WAS NEVER REVIVED, IT DIDN'T GO DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT.

PLEAS FROM CHILDREN AND PARENTS ALL ACROSS THE STATE BEGGED FOR SOME WAY TO KEEP THE SHOW ON THE AIR.

>> -- THAT OTHER KIDS WERE AS FASCINATED AND DEVOTED TO THE SHOW AS I WAS.

AND I CAN IMAGINE, I KNOW HOW DISAPPOINTED I FELT WHEN I KNEW I COULD NO LONGER SEE THE SHOW.

THEY MUST HAVE FELT EQUAL DISAPPOINTMENT, IF NOT EVEN STRONGER.

IT WAS GROUND BREAKING IN A WAY THAT IT STAYED WITH ME.

>> EVEN AFTER MISS NANCY'S STORE WENT OFF THE AIR, MISS NANCY DEVOTED HER LIFE TO EDUCATING CHILDREN.

SHE ACTED AS THE DIRECTOR OF EQUAL OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS AT THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION UNTIL RETIRING THE IN 2003.

AND SHE WORKED CLOSELY TO ENFORCE TITLE IX IN FLORIDA'S PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

FOR MANY DECADES BEFORE HER PASSING IN 2015, NANCY WAS A MEMBER OF THE -- CLUB OF TALLAHASSEE, A WOMEN'S RIGHTS ORGANIZATION, AND THEY REMEMBER HER DEVOGUES TO EDUCATION AND SERVICE FONDLY.

>> IT WAS FOUNDED IN 1980, SO ABOUT 41 YEARS OLD.

AND NANCY, I BELIEVE, WAS A CHARTER MEMBER OR JOINED VERY SHORTLY AFTER THAT.

SHE WAS PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL CLUB 2008-2009, BUT IT -- WAY BEFORE THEN HAD A SUBSTANTIAL MARK ON THE CLUB.

SHE WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN HER ROLE AT DoE WITH EQUALITY IN SPORTS AND GETTING LEGISLATION PASSED IN 1993 HERE IN FLORIDA AND WORKED AT MAKING THAT LEGISLATION ACTUALLY WORK IN PRACTICE FOR MANY YEARS AFTER THAT.

REALLY TIL SHE RETIRE FROM DoE.

>> SHE WAS A GO-GETTER, AND SHE WAS ALSO VERY FIRM IN HER BELIEF WITH REGARDS HOW THINGS MUST BE DONE TO IMPROVE THE LIVES OF WOMEN AND GIRLS.

SHE WAS A VERY QUIET PERSON, VERY RESERVED BUT VERY EFFICIENT AND VERY FORWARD-THINKING.

>> SHE WAS A FIERCE FRIEND, AND WE MISS NANCY.

>> SHE LIVED A VERY COLORFUL LIFE, BUT SHE NEVER BRAGGED ABOUT THOSE THINGS.

YOU HAD TO DRAW OUT OF HER TELL ME ABOUT THE MERMAID, TELL ME ABOUT BEING UNDERWATER ALL THE TIME WITH A BREATHING TUBE.

SHE HAD A FASCINATING LIFE AND LIVED LIFE FULLY.

YEAH, THAT WAS WHO SHE WAS, FOR SURE.

>> I VIEW WHAT NANCY BENDA DID AS A PIONEERING EFFORT.

I THINK SHE DOES DESERVE CREDIT FOR LAYING THE GROUND WORK FOR SHOWS LIKE MR. ROGERS.

I WISH MISS NANCY'S STORE HAD SURVIVED AND BECOME SOMETHING LIKE THAT BECAUSE IT WAS BOTH A SIMILAR AND DIFFERENT FORMAT.

>> WHILE MISS NANCY'S STORE WAS SHORT 46 LIVED, NANCY'S LEGACY LIVES ON IN THE MEMORIES OF THOSE WHO TUNED IN TO HER PROGRAM.

FOR WFSU, I'M DEVON BITNER.

>> IN APRIL OF 2021, THE UNITED STATES RULED AGAINST FLORIDA IN A CASE THAT SOUGHT TO HAVE MORE WATER FLOW INTO THE APALACHICOLA RIVER FROM GEORGIA.

IT WAS A BLOW TO ADVOCATES, BUT WORK STILL CONTINUES ON THE RIVER AND BAY.

WFSU PRODUCER ROB DIAZ DE VILLEGAS HEADS DOWN THE APALACHICOLA RIVER DELTA TO SEE MORE ABOUT ONE SUCH PROJECT.

[BACKGROUND SOUNDS] >> PERFECT.

>> THERE'S SAND IN THE SLEW, AND IN OTHERS LIKE IT ALONG THE APALACHICOLA RIVER.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE RIVER AND FOR APALACHICOLA BAY?

♪ >> WE'RE HEADING UP THE EAST RIVER WITH A TEAM AIS SEMIBLED BY THE APALACHICOLA RIVERKEEPER.

>> THE EAST RIVER'S ONE OF THE FIRST RIVERS THAT TAKES OFF OUT OF THE APALACHICOLA AND RUNS OUT OF THE DELTA AND FEEDS INTO EAST BAY.

EAST BAY'S THE PRIMARY NURSERY AREA OF APALACHICOLA BAY.

>> HOLD THAT REALLY QUICK.

[BACKGROUND SOUNDS] >> THEY'RE TAKING WHAT'S KNOWN AS A -- >> SO WE'RE WITH USING A CORE AND GOING DOWN INTO THE SEDIMENTS WHERE WE'RE ANTICIPATING REMOVING THEM, AND WE'RE CHARACTERIZING THAT MATERIAL.

>> THAT PUTS US AT 211 OF SAND AND IT LOOKS COARSE.

FORMICA, LARGE FOR FOR FLEXES.

>> IT'S ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY SAND, VERY CLEAN.

>> AS RETIRE RIVERKEEPER DAN EXPLAINS, CLEAN SAND ISN'T NATURALLY FOUND IN SLEWS.

>> THE BACKWATER SWAMPS, SOIL IS TYPICALLY VERY GUSHY AND VERY SOFT MUD, OKAY?

AND GUSHY, THAT'S A TECHNICAL TERM.

>> THAT GUSHY STUFF IS A VITAL SOURCE OF NUTRIENTS FOR THE RIVER AND BAY.

IT'S CREATED WITHIN A VAST NETWORK OF WETLANDS IN THE APALACHICOLA FLOODPLAIN.

>> JUST THE MAIN CHANNEL OF THE APALACHICOLA IS 106.5 MILES.

THERE'S OVER 400 MILES OF THOSE SLEWS AND TRIBUTARIES.

THEY COME OUT OF THE RIVER, RUN SO FAR DOWN THE RIVER FLOODPLAIN PICKING UP THE NUTRIENTS AND THE ORGANIC MATTER, BRINGING IT BACK INTO THE RIVER.

>> IS AND FROM THERE INTO APALACHICOLA BAYMENT THE THING IS, DECADES AGO THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS DREDGED THE RIVER TO MAKE IT DEEPER FOR BARGE TRAFFIC.

PLACES WHERE THE FLOODPLAIN CONNECTS WITH THE RIVER.

>> OVER THE YEARS THE HEADS OF THESE SLEWS HAVE BEEN CUT OFF FROM THE MAIN STEM, AND IN LOW FLOWS, FLOWS BELOW THE BANKS OR THE BERMS OF THE RIVER, THOSE FLOWS ARE NO LONGER GETTING THROUGH INTO THE SWAMP OR TO THE BAY LIKE THEY DID IN THE PAST.

AND THAT CAUSED THOSE SWAMPS TO DRY OUT OTT.

IT'S IMPACTED THE TUPELO TREE AND A LOT OF THE OTHER SWAMP SPECIES OF TREES.

AND UP HERE IT'S THEORETICALLY REDUCED THE INFLOW OF FRESH WATER INTO THE UPPER EAST BAY.

>> KEN AND HIS TEAM ARE WORKING ON OPENING UP THREE SLEWS; TWO IN THE UPPER RIVER AND ALSO THE EAST RIVER DOWN HERE, THE DELTA, WHERE STORAGE CHANNELS WOULD LET MORE WATER INTO THE FLOODPLAIN BUT ONLY IF THAT WATER'S AVAILABLE.

>> SO THE RIVER WILL FLUCTUATE ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.

IT'S THE SAME IN THE BAY AS IT IS IN THE FLOODPLAIN.

IT LOOKS TO BE WENT AND DRY AND WET AND DRY.

WHEN YOU FIX IT AT A DROUGHT STAGE, IT PUTS SUCH AN EXTREME STRESS ON THE SYSTEM.

WHAT HAPPENED IN THE DROUGHTS OF 2008 AND 2012 IS WE HAD THIS FLATLINE FLOW OF, LIKE, A 5,000 CFS WHICH IS NOT AN UNNATURAL FLOW, BUT FOR THE DURATION IT WAS UNNATURAL.

AND THAT IS WHAT CHANGES EVERYTHING.

>> THE APALACHICOLA BAY OYSTER FISHERY CRASHED DURING THAT DROUGHT OF 2012, AND IT STILL HASN'T RECOVERED.

THE RESTORATION IS ONE OF A HANDFUL OF PROJECTS CURRENTLY UNDERWAY AIMED AT MAKING THE RIVER AND THE BAY AS FUNCTIONAL A WATERSHED AS POSSIBLE.

FOR WFSU, I'M ROB DIAZ DE VILLEGAS.

>> ROB HAS SPENT A LOT OF TIME OVER THE YEARS IN THE SWAMPS AND SLEWS OF THE APALACHICOLA FLOODPLAIN.

CHECK OUT THE WFSU ECOLOGY BLOG FOR MORE ON THESE STORIES.

>>> NEXT.

UP, WE VISIT A FARM THAT EMBRACES WEEDS AND WILDFLOWERS.

PLUS, IT LIKES TO EXPERIMENT WITH VARIOUS GROWING METHODS.

♪ >> SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE PREPARING OUR BEDS FOR THE SPRING SEASON.

WE'RE GOING TO BE PLANTING SOME KALE IN HERE, AND WE'RE JUST PULLING THE WEEDS SO THAT WE CAN MAKE ROOM FOR OUR NEW PLANTS.

♪ ♪ >> SINCE WE WEREN'T USING THESE BEDS IN THE FIRST PLACE, WE WERE ALLOWING THE WEEDS TO COME.

THEIR ROOT SYSTEMS KEEP THE SOIL INTACT WHILE THE SOIL IS NOT BEING ATTENDED TO.

SO ONE OF THE COMPONENTS OF REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE AND SUSTAINABLE FARMING IS KEEPING YOUR SOIL INTACT.

ASIDE FROM REDUCING TILLAGE, YOU WANT TO KEEP A LOT OF PLANTS IN THE GROUND, AND THE WEEDS ARE LIVING PLANTS.

>> SOME WEEDS HAVE BENEFITS.

>> IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT WE'RE AWARE OF ONE OF THE ASPECTS OF NITROGEN FIXING.

>> WE'RE VISITING SMARTER BY NATURE, A FARM IN QUINCY, FLORIDA.

THEY'RE EXPERIMENTING DIFFERENT WAYS TO FEED PEOPLE SUSTAINABLY IN OUR AREA.

>> OUR INITIAL INTRODUCTION INTO LAND STEWARDSHIP AND GROWING FOOD, IT WASN'T ABOUT PROFIT, IT WAS JUST ABOUT LEARNING HOW TO TAKE CARE OF THE EARTH.

>> IT WAS MAINLY A TRIP TO THE PEOPLE'S CLIMATE MARCH IN NEW YORK THAT REALLY IGNITED OUR FIRE.

WE NOTICED THAT WE WEREN'T THE ONLY ONES WHO CARED ABOUT THE EARTH, AND SO WHEN WE CAME BACK FROM THAT TRIP, WE WANTED TO DO SOMETHING TO ADDRESS THE FOOD INSECURITY IN OUR AREA.

SO WE DECIDED, OKAY, WE NEED TO START A COMMUNITY GARDEN.

SO WE GOT TOGETHER WITH ABOUT 15 OF OUR FRIENDS TO CREATE A STUDENT COMMUNITY GARDEN.

>> WE LIVE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF TALLAHASSEE WHICH WAS CONSIDERED A FOOD DESERT WHICH MEANS THAT THERE'S NO LOCAL FRESH FOOD AVAILABLE WITHIN A MILE AND A HALF RADIUS BETWEEN ANY GIVEN POINT IN THAT SPACE.

BY THE TIME WE GOT BACK FROM THE TRIP, WE HAD, LIKE, OUR PASSION WAS IGNITED.

AND BETWEEN ADDRESSING FOOD INSECURITY AND BETWEEN STEWARDING THE EARTH AND STUDYING ITS PROCESSES, THAT TOGETHER CREATED SMARTER BY NATURE.

WANT TO GO OVER THERE?

>> YES.

SO WE USE A COMBINATION OF GROWING STYLES.

SO WE COMBINE PERMANENT BEDS WITH THE ROOT-STYLE NO-DIG METHOD BY LAYERING A LOT OF HAY INTO OUR SPACE.

>> THEY SAY THAT FOR EVERY 3 INCHES OF RAIN WHEN YOU STORE HAY ON YOUR SPACE, THAT IT RETAINS 1 INCH OF WATER OVER TIME INTO THE SOIL.

>> THEY TRY TO GET THE MOST FROM THEIR SOIL AND FROM THEIR PLANTERS.

>> WE'RE GOING TO -- PLANTS.

>> WE'RE GOING THE CUT THESE PLANTS AT THE BASE.

OFTEN TIMES THEY'RE LOOKED AT AS ANNUALS, AND I THOUGHT SO TOO MYSELF, BUT WE CLIPPED OUR COLLARDS, AND THEY STARTED COMING BACK ON THEIR OWN.

SO WE'RE GOING TO DO THE SAME THING HERE.

HERE'S A LITTLE SMALL ONE GROWING.

>> WE HAVE DIFFERENT NATIVE PLANTS THAT WE PLANT ON THE FIRST 5 FEET OF OUR BED TO INCREASE THE POLLINATION.

THERE'S A LOT OF NATIVE BEES AROUND HERE AND BUTTERFLIES, SO WE WANT TO PROVIDE THEM WITH FOOD.

>> WE'RE SOLARIZING THESE BEDS RIGHT NOW.

THIS METHOD'S CALLED SOLARIZATION.

WE WEEDED THE BEDS RIGHT AFTER IT RAINS SO THERE'S MOISTURE, AND WHAT YOU DO IS YOU PUT A SEWAGE TARP OVER THE BEDS.

AND OVER THE COURSE OF 6-8 WEEKS, IT CREATES HEAT THAT CAUSES WHATEVER WEED SEEDS UNDERGROUND TO GERMINATE.

BUT BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO LIGHT, MOISTURE AND, LIKE, EVERYTHING ELSE, EVENTUALLY THEY DIE.

>> AND SO FOR SOMEONE WHO'S STARTING OUT, IS THERE PROFIT DOING IT THIS WAY?

>> FOR SOMEONE STARTING OUT, IT'S NOT PROFIT.

IT'S MOSTLY LEARNING AND, LIKE, LEARNING HOW TO BRIDGE YOUR SYSTEM TOGETHER.

EVERYONE GROWS IN DIFFERENT TYPES OF METHODS.

SPREADING HAY IS NOT THE ONLY METHOD.

SOME PEOPLE USE COVER CROPS.

SOME PEOPLE MAKE COMPOST.

THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT METHODS, AND WHEN YOU FIRST START OUT, YOU'RE GOING TO BE FIGURING THAT OUT AND FINDING OUT WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU.

WE MIX DIFFERENT THINGS, BUT WE'RE GROWING TOWARDS PROFIT.

ONE OF THE PROFITS IS THE INTRINSIC VALUE OF GAINING WISDOM OVER TIME.

I MEAN, WE SELL FOOD.

THAT'S NUMBER ONE.

IT'S JUST THAT THE MONEY GOES BACK TO OUR BUSINESS, SO IT'S NOT LIKE PROFIT TO GO ON A CRUISE OR SOMETHING.

IT'S PROFIT TO FEED BACK INTO OUR BUSINESS.

>> FOR WFSU, I'M ROB DIAZ DE VILLEGAS.

>> IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN A MORE NATURAL APPROACH TO GARDENING IN YOUR OWN YARD, CHECK OUT THE WFSU ECOLOGY BLOG FOR MORE ON BUILDING A BACKYARD FOOD WEB.

THAT'S IT FOR THIS EPISODE OF "LOCAL ROUTES."

I'M SUZANNE SMITH.

YOU CAN SEE ALL OF THESE STORIES AND MORE ON OUR WEB SITE, SITE,WFSU.ORG/LOCALROUTES.

WHILE YOU'RE ONLINE, FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM.