As the Garden Grows, so does the Gardener.
Enter our garden and see what we have growing.
Ten years ago, the school garden at Hidden Hills Elementary School began
with a dream for musical instruments. Gourd plants grew on a hill on the
south side of the school until vandals pulled out many of the plants.
Undeterred, teachers, parent volunteers and students didn't give up, each
year planting flowers and vegetables and applying for and winning grants to
improve their gardens. This year, the school, at 1919 E. Sharon Drive, won
the 2007 Mantis Award for Community Gardens by the National Gardening
Association. The school received a lightweight Mantis tiller/cultivator for
use in its gardening program.
Pre-schoolers up to middle school junior master gardeners dig in the dirt,
pull weeds and plant seeds. Beautification projects from decorated tiles,
painted murals and a geology rock wall give the children a sense of
ownership. Habitats for a desert tortoise, native fish, butterflies and
birds border the school, all under the watchful eye of garden coordinator
Lois Farlin.
Swinging her hips while holding a hula hoe, Farlin, the school's garden
guru, makes gardening fun. Farlin has retired from the school district
seven times, only to be drawn back to Hidden Hills by its gardens and the
students. Farlin not only writes lesson plans that incorporate the garden,
she also provides free fertilizer from her horses.
"I just know gardening is good for kids," Farlin said with a group of
fourth-graders. "I'm so proud of the garden. The kids love to plant, they
love to harvest, but they don't like to weed. That's where the tiller comes
in."
Tall chain-link fences, while unsightly, guard many of the gardens.
Parents, who value the garden, volunteer to work with the students.
Last year, several parents received their food-handling permits so they
could help prepare a feast from the garden's vegetables. In years past, the
school has donated produce from the gardens to Desert Mission Food Bank in
Sunnyslope.
"We have wonderful parent help," Farlin said. "People will see the garden
and say they want to help. It's been an all-school, all-student, all-parent
involvement."
Principal Lynette Geake credits the garden and Farlin's lesson plans for
students' awareness of nutrition and health.
"The kids are so excited to eat vegetables," Geake said. "By integrating
the gardens in the classroom, all the students participate actively."
Smokey, Sadie Jo. (2007, October 24). SCHOOL GARDEN CULTIVATES KIDS' INTEREST IN LEARNING NUTRITION. The Arizona Republic, Northeast Phoenix Republic, p.3.
Reprinted with permission.
Copyright: Copyright (c) 2007 The Arizona Republic
Tag: 200710240647825
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