Schoolyard Gardens Program

The brand new East Somerville school building now has a spacious new garden to boot! Last week, we got nine classes – about 160 students total – out into the garden. Some students were discovering the garden for the first time. Upon arriving to the garden each class was introduced to the garden and reminded that the garden belongs to them, and that with their help it will grow into a beautiful, productive place to learn, play and sustain them. Students weeded, watered, planted, and added compost to the new beds. October is the perfect time for planting cover crops and garlic, so we planted 4 beds of winter rye and 3 beds (plus one small corner) of garlic.

On the borders of the beds, come spring, the garden will be full of color, due to the tulip and narcissus bulbs that the students planted. Less pretty, but certainly very essential to the sustainability of our garden, is the compost bin that the students installed. The younger students, especially, enjoyed observing our productive worms, which turn the food and garden scraps into dark, rich soil that will boost the fertility of the garden. In addition to being able to get outside and move their bodies, students learned some basic garden science concepts, such as the life cycle of bulbs, the process of composting, how to broadcast seeds, and why we use cover crops.

Last week’s planting day was just the beginning with the East Somerville Garden, which will be used as one of several sites for our on-going after-school Healthy Education program this fall and spring – and for many future growing seasons!