We Are Planting Seeds

We had a blast on Thursday in the sustainable garden! The tasks were to plant seeds and to encourage compost use. Other timely lessons or tasks were:

• Encourage real life observations of insects and spiders.
• Encourage exploration of soil and what is found in garden soil.
• Encourage real experiences within a growing garden. For instance, plants grow from week to week: How does the soil feel? What is it like to pull a weed out of the ground?

Plant update: The mesclun lettuce looks like a spread of tiny green leaves. The Swiss chard plants are not visible yet, neither are the marigold plants. The pea seeds were all visible above the soil, so we poked them back into the soil. Next time we plant peas, we’ll have to plant them deeper.

There were deer footprints along the fence inside the garden. We may lose vegetables to deer browse.

Today’s accomplishments:

• The kindergarten children came to the garden in groups of 5 or 6, and planted green beans. They also saw the compost bin with lunch leftovers and dried leaves layered together.
• The younger Children’s House students revisited the Swiss chard location from last week (no seen growth), noticed the mesclun lettuce growing, and planted onions.
• Lower Elementary students visited the garden in groups of 5-7. They planted either: onions, carrots, green beans, radishes, or red beets, visited the compost bin, and watered the new seeds/onion sets.

We have about half of the garden space planted. I am hearing suggestions for a herb garden, and I’m planning on tomato and pepper plants. There’s room for a bit more. Egg plant? Cabbage? Flowers? I wonder what it will be. Our next planting day is Thursday, April 21 from 1 to 3.  

See you then!  Dottie Baumgarten