Happy New Year!

The Cale School Garden Club is starting back up next Tuesday, September 4th, 2012.  Mr. V. will be back this year, and I believe I've talked Mr. Ferguson (music teacher, extension activities teacher, and all around swell guy) into joining us as well.  

We have a lot of cleaning up to do, so we’d better get started as soon as possible. This fall we’ll spend some time cleaning out the garden, growing some indoor greens, and planning what we’d like to plant in the spring.  If we can get everything looking good fairly quickly, there are a couple of new spots we can think about planting, as well.

We’ll be meeting on Tuesday afternoons right after school in my room (E-101).  We’ll get going at 2:30 and end at 3:30.  For now, there is no late bus leaving Cale, so the kids will need to be picked up.  Kids can be picked up in my room, but we'll wander up to the front hall by 3:35.

Please note, once the other clubs officially begin later in the fall,  some of the kids might want to take a break from the garden to do another club.  They are most welcome to do that and will be welcome to come back after the other clubs end.  We’ll being running garden club through December, will take the month January off, and will resume in February.

One last thing, we'll have our annual Fall Garden Party on Saturday, October 6th.  Details will be coming in the next few weeks.

I'm sending home permission letters tomorrow!  Can't wait to see everyone in the garden!

Last Garden Club for This Year

I can't believe we've wrapped up another year.  Our last meeting was pretty low key.  We've sort of developed a nice pattern in the last few weeks.  We split the group in half, one part working on the fence with Mr. V., the other working on the flower bed with me.  Today the flower bed crew planted bulbs.  If you haven't noticed the the front entrance to the school is looking fantastic in the past couple of days.  Over this past weekend, Ms. Riddick and her husband, with the help of Cale parent and landscape architect Joan Albiston,  gave the bed at the front of the school a much needed renovation.  In the process they salvaged about 200 bulbs (tulips, daffodils, hyacinth, etc.) that we planted in the flower bed today.  We'll see what comes up next spring.  Even if only half of them produce, the flower bed should fill out much earlier next year.  Although, it looks pretty good right now with the lilies, daisies, and butterfly bushes in bloom.

If anyone wants to come on out to the garden over the summer, you're more than welcome.  I'm going to make a commitment of being there twice a week when I'm in town (which will be most of the summer this year), but it's always nice to know that other folks are coming out to help keep up with everything.  I'm hoping to finish up the fence next week.  I'll post the days when I know more if anyone wants to get in on that.

Anyway. . . Thanks to everybody in club!  It was wonderful gardening with you this year!  Let's do it again in the fall!  Thanks to Esteban for today's pictures, thanks to Phil and Deirdre Armstrong (all the herbs are doing great!), and as always a huge thanks to Mr. V without whom we couldn't do this.  And thanks for the beautiful signed copy of The Edible Schoolyard.  You guys all know that Alice Waters is one of my heroes (though I'm still a bit annoyed she didn't make it to Cale when she was here), and having her sign my book was great.  I have to say, though, it's all of your signatures that mean the most to me.

So, if all goes according to plan we'll come back to a healthy looking, weeded, watered garden surrounded by a beautiful fence and a nice shed.  Oh, and I've already tentatively scheduled our Fall Garden Party for October 6th.  Let's make it a big one.   We'll have a lot to celebrate.

Ready for summer.

Apparently, this is what it feels like to finally get
outside after being in class all day.

Larry and wood.

The Fence Crew

Beamer and Alex

Cassy and Nicky. . . or Nicky and Cassy. . .

It was an bib overall kind of day.

Meanwhile, back at the fence. . .

Helen with a power tool.

An Explanation

This morning was weird. . . weather wise, that is.  I awoke to a thunderstorm and drove to school in the rain.  Three weather forecasts that I checked out said it would be raining for most of the day.  So, of course, I cancelled Garden Club for today.

I wasn't totally surprised to see the sun come out about an hour later.  After it was still sunny at 2:00, however, I seriously considered recalling all the club folks and having a go at the fence again this afternoon.  Driving home, though, I'm glad I didn't.  The thunderheads are, as I type, rolling back into view.  One of the things I've learned in the Master Naturalist class I've been taking for the last few months is that if there are thunderheads in the sky, lightening is possible.  All in all, standing out in a wide open space with the possibility of lightening still seems like a bad idea.  Here are some interesting lightening facts for you.  And, here's a picture of some Louisa County (I think) lightening my friend Wes took last year.

"Lightning is a giant discharge of electricityaccompanied by a brilliant flash of light and a loud crack of thunder. The spark can reach over five miles (eight kilometers) in length, raise the temperature of the air by as much as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit (27,700 degrees Celsius), and contain a hundred million electrical volts."
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/06/0623_040623_lightningfacts.html

Fencing & Planting

This was one of those days when we descended upon the garden like a swarm of bees, did a lot of work in a very short time, and went back to the room for a quick snack.

Phil and Deirdre Armstrong from Harvest Thyme Herb Farm came with a bunch of herbs for one of our beds.  Ms. Deirdre and Ms. Massie helped us plant those.  We also put in two rows of borage (an edible flower that for which bees absolutely go gaga), a row of nasturtiums, and a row of radishes.  If we get a few good rains in the next couple of weeks we might be able to start eating the radishes fairly soon.  Even though we started them from seed, they germinate in just a about a week and, in good conditions, can sometimes be picked in a bit over three weeks.

While all that was going on another group, led by Mr. V and Mr. Phil worked on the fence.  We got the bottom rail put on almost half the fence.  It's possible that Mr. V or I may work on the fence sometime this weekend, but even if we don't, and we keep up the pace we set today, we'll be ready to put the pickets on the fence in just a few weeks.

And while all that was going on, a smaller group helped me pull out the hose to water what was just planted.  It all went by in a blur.  I'm glad Alex and Jack were taking pictures to help me remember.

What're you planting, Liam?

"The name is Bond. . . James Bond."

A source of much fascination.

Ms. Deirdre helped with the herb bed.
Ms. Massie helped in the flower bed.

For someone who doesn't like his picture taken,  he always ends
 up in a lot of good pictures.  Plus, he's got a rockin' hat.  I bet I know
when and where he got it.

Mr. V having a "Tim The Toolman" moment.  MORE POWER!

Mr. Phil helping out with the fence.

No matter how you break it down though, a lot of stuff got done by a lot of very energetic kids today.  Thank you, everyone, for making it a great afternoon.

Killdeer

So, this isn't necessarily garden related, but it's cool nonetheless.

I've known for years that Cale has a pair of resident Killdeer.  Last weekend a pair of babies hatched in one of our courtyards.

Here is a link to some information about our feathered friends.

Actually it is garden related.  Gardens make great habitats for wildlife.  Now, the Killdeer isn't nesting in the garden, but the gardens can bring in food for the Killdeer.

We're not kidding when we "protective."

Can you see the baby?

Momma (or Dad, I'm not sure)  hiding out in the gravel.

Some Killdeer facts.

Momma keeping one of the babies warm.

Momma again.

What Did We Do To Deserve. . .

. . . all this good weather?

I'm sure it gets repetitive for you all to keep hearing this but, . . .

It was yet another stellar day in Garden Club.  We worked on mulching the flower bed today.  Next week we'll work on the fence and Phil and Deirdre Armstrong will be coming to help out with some planting.  

In the spirit of that old expression, "a pictures worth a thousand words," here's 10,000 words worth of pictures.

 

Of Concrete and Fence Posts

It has been a very productive week.  The fence posts are in and set.  Mr. V., Mr. Lepsch, Larry and I spent the morning getting them in place, cemented in, and leveled.  It was a great time and it went very quickly.  I think we were all surprised seeing as it literally took days to dig the holes.

When Garden Club starts again this week we'll have plenty to do.   In the next few weeks we'll need to mulch the flower bed, plant our starts, start some more seeds, and finish building the fence.  Then there's the seemingly unending weeding.  Weeding is actually one of my favorite things to do.  It's a quiet, calm activity that can be very restorative after a long day in school.  Yup, I almost kept a straight face when I wrote that.  Well, it is restorative, but when you have a dozen or so elementary age students helping, it's not really that quiet.  It's fun though.

That's a lot to think about, but we'll get it done.  This coming week I believe we'll just concentrate on getting the flower bed mulched.

Here are few pictures from this morning.

Say hello to my little friend.

Mr. V. and Mr. Lepsch mixing concrete.

About half way through.

The Brute Squad
(minus Mr. Lepsch who was taking the picture).

The other half.

What I Did On My Spring Vacation

Some people might think that Spring Break is for relaxing.  Unfortunately, it's also the time to put a lot of work into the garden.  Still, it's much more pleasant to spend time out in the garden than in front of a TV or computer.  .  .  really.  Maybe it's not quite as pleasant as being on a beach, but still . . .

Monday, Mr. V. and I started getting ready to put up the new fence around the garden.  We had the aid of a power auger to dig the post holes, but with all of the rocks it was still a pretty long process.

Wednesday, Phil and Deirdre Armstrong of Harvest Thyme Herbs came with their tiller to help get our beds ready.  Larry, a garden club regular, also came out to help and was a great help hauling all of the rocks out of our post holes and the garden.   He also helped me finish measuring out the fence line.   The Armstrongs, Phil and Deirdre, grow a lot of produce for many of the local restaurants around Charlottesville and Staunton.  They're great friends and really believe in what we're doing in the garden.

This morning, Mr. V., Alex, Joe, and I came out to work some more on the post holes.  Our load of mulch for the flower bed came just as we were finishing up working this morning.  Later in the afternoon, I finished up the holes with the help of my friend Ian.  Right afterward, Mr. V.'s friend, Heather, delivered our fence posts and the slats for the fence.  Heather also lent us the auger.  I really can't thank her enough for the donations and the use of her tools to get this project going.

Tomorrow morning, Mr. V., Don Lepsch, and I will be setting the posts.  I think Alex, Joe, and Larry may be back to help as well.  If anyone else would like to come out and help, you'd be more than welcome.

Let me finish up by saying, this garden wouldn't exist without help and donations from a lot of people.  I don't want to make a list, for fear that I'd unintentionally leave someone off the list.  (Actually, I'm working on just such a list.  Look for it soon.)  I'll just say, I couldn't do this without friends.  Thank you all very, very much.  If you're in garden club, or even just a teacher, student, or parent who appreciates the garden, don't forget to say thanks to these fine people when you see them.

So Happy Easter, Happy Passover, and go Red Sox!

On Wednesday, Phil and Deirdre Armstong came to till our garden beds. 

Mr. V. and I dug holes for the fence posts.

The auger that helped dig the holes. . .
and made blisters.

An action shot.

Joe and I checking out the progress.

Meanwhile. . . we had the mulch for the flower bed delivered.
(Is it just me or does the grass look purple in that picture?)

Edible Schoolyard Project

Alex says you need to check this out!

We're now listed as part of the Edible Schoolyard Project.  You can visit our profile page here.

The Smiles Keep Coming!

Wow!  That was another great garden club.  Today we worked on the flower bed.  I managed to clean  about a couple dozen lamb's ear plants out my home garden and brought them in to help fill in some of the holes in our school flower bed.   Afterwards, we worked on weeding some of the grasses that are starting to poke their heads up where we don't want them.  Mr. John, our most excellent school custodian, has ordered a load of mulch for the flower bed.  Hopefully it will be here when we return from spring break.

Today Mr. V was back and taught us about umami.  That's the taste best described as savory (as compared to sweet, salty, bitter, etc.).  We got to taste it at the end of club today. . . Doritos.  Not our usual snack, but sometimes only they will do.  "All things in moderation," as Mr. V often reminds us.  Ms. Shutz, a kindergarten teacher here at Cale, also came out this afternoon to join the fun.  She'll be running her own club for a while but will rejoin us later in the year.

Today's pictures are courtesy of club member, Larry.  I also took some with another camera, but his were  much better.

BIG NEWS!  Cale alum Dylan Berger has agreed to build a shed for the garden to fulfill the requirements for being an Eagle Scout.  I met with him this afternoon right after garden club, and it looks like it will be completed just after the end of this school year.  We'll have a Grand Opening celebration when we come back next year.

OTHER BIG NEWS!  Look for the return of the Armstrongs (Ms. Deirdre and Mr. Phil), our farming friends from over in the Valley, in the near future.

Well, that's all for now.  Hey, turn your computer off and get outside.  It's a beautiful day!

Mr. Rough

P.S.  Nicky, I'm really sorry I've been misspelling your name in the other posts.  Thanks for correcting me.

Nicky and Molly

What'd you find, Addi?

Beamer's new friend.

Mr. V.

Larry, our photographer of the day.

The flower bed soil is much improved.

Digging

Our target of the day.

Gardening, a social activity.

Beamer

Ms. Shutz joined us today.

Helen, Addi, Molly, and Destiny

Say "hello" to our little friends.