Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Spring Fever! Farming, Flowers and Festivities

Spring is back--with forecast temperatures for the upcoming Longfellow Spring Fair this Saturday predicted to crack 80 degrees. Put on your sunscreen, get ready for fun in the sun, outdoor games and grilling, and a bevy of plants and seedlings for sale from our very own garden.

corn seedlings
squash seedlings

There is also a lot to be learned in the Longfellow Learning Garden, and plenty of Longfellow students have been helping out, preparing our future crops and learning about sustainable agriculture in the process.

While the Fourth Grade classes planted four beds of potatoes last Friday, they sang the ’16 Counties’ of Maine song, because Maine's Aroostook County produces more potatoes than any other county in the United States!


When you're tired of bending over to tend to our seedlings, take a rest in the garden's new picnic tables, which were made just down the street at Davis Woodworking on Brighton.


In other news, next year's Kindergarten students will be planting sunflowers in the Garden, which they will get to enjoy when they return in the fall, while third grade classes will be planting carrot seeds this week--which should also grow into edible treats during harvest season. But if you can't wait that long, take a look at this year's Kindergarten classes' cold-weather green beds, which are already beginning to sprout. Salad, anyone?







Sunday, May 5, 2013

Springing into Action: Gardening Fun in the Sun

Could this Spring be any more pleasant?


While the lack of rain may be making our gardens thirsty, the dry and sunny weather has made for some warm and wonderful work-days in the Longfellow Learning Garden.

In just the past week, kindergarden classes have planted peas and radishes, while the Magnolia tree and the tulips are beginning to bloom.
 

On Sunday, a number of intrepid garden volunteers helped out with the Spring Work Day, getting things ready for the busy planting season. In between sips of hot chocolate and fresh doughnuts, our gardeners -- novice and experienced, young and old -- removed weeds, pruned bushes, raked debris, watered seeds, and prepared the soil for the "Three Sisters" garden.


If you don't know, the Three Sisters garden is named after a Native American legend that claims corn, beans, and squash are three inseparable sisters who only grow and thrive together. But the myth is based on a sustainable growing reality.


According to Renee's Garden website,

"Corn provides a natural pole for bean vines to climb. Beans fix nitrogen on their roots, improving the overall fertility of the plot by providing nitrogen to the following years corn. Shallow-rooted squash vines become a living mulch, shading emerging weeds and preventing soil moisture from evaporating, thereby improving the overall crops chances of survival in dry years. Spiny squash plants also help discourage predators from approaching the corn and beans. The large amount of crop residue from this planting combination can be incorporated back into the soil at the end of the season, to build up the organic matter and improve its structure."