Spring Garden Planting

Passing out parsley seeds

Planting peas

Watering!

We had plenty of hands on deck to plant the first round of seeds and transplants before spring break. Mr. Rich and Mrs. Boston's 6th grade classes along with Mrs. Stoverink's 1st grade and Mrs. Fanson's Kindergarten classes helped plant peas, beets, broccoli, cauliflower and parsley. Mrs. DeMere helped organize everyone for the spring planting. Watering was the hands-down favorite event that day.

Since then, we've planted leaf lettuce, spinach, carrots and strawberries. We'll be planting some summer vegetables soon too!

Check back soon for updates on our veggie progress!

2012 Spring Plot Layout

The first two plots will be used for the Seeds to Salad Spring harvest. The third plot will get us started for our fall Soup Garden.

Garden Bed Construction Complete!

Due to weather and volunteer availability, the bed construction began on Friday, but was completed on Sunday. Over six cubic yards of a topsoil/compost mix was delivered Friday. That day we were able to construct 2 1/2 of the structures, and fill just one. It *snowed* some that day!

Sunday however was much more agreeable, and we were joined by several more volunteers from the community. Special thanks to Central "neighbors" John Walker, Gail Babcock, Sue Odell, Angelique Kidd, Gene Stephens and Sharon Brandt for several hours of shovel and wheelbarrow duty! We managed to finish construction of the 2 strawberry tiers and the 3 4'x8' vegetable beds. Leftover soil mix was moved over to the lower landscaping tier across the school yard.

The soil will get a few weeks to settle before we begin planting our Seeds-to-Salad veggies!

February 2012 Committee Meeting Notes

Central School Yard - Landscaping and Community Garden Committee
February 8, 2012 Meeting

Attendees: Ron, Kelley, Melva, Belinda, Larry, Heather

Landscaping Information
Jack from Waldbart Nursery joined our meeting and we showed him the areas that we would like landscaped. Larry will fax him the dimensions of the areas, and Kelley will fax Patti's original ideas. Jack indicated that he will look at everything and come up with a plan before our next meeting.

Community Garden
Construction materials have been picked up and are ready for an upcoming work day: Friday, February 24 from 10am-4pm. We hope to construct 3 4'x8' raised beds, the strawberry bed and the compost bin. We will reach out for volunteers to assist in the construction and filling the beds with wheelbarrows of dirt (to be delivered the same day.)

Becky and Jen Redd started seeds for broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage in their classrooms. The seedlings are growing and will be ready for transplant in March! Becky also got commitment from teachers for planting duties in March.

Next Meeting
Wednesday March 7, 2012 4:00pm - 5:00pm

January 2012 Committee Meeting Notes

Central School Yard - Landscaping and Community Garden Committee
January 18, 2012 Meeting
Attendees: Ron, Becky, Kelley, Melva, Patti, Belinda, Jennifer, Ruth, Larry, Heather

Funding Information
Heather applied for the following grants for Central School Yard: 

• Home Depot Garden Club's 2012 Youth Garden Grant 
• Whole Kids Foundation 2012 School Garden Grant 
•  The Food Chapter of the Awesome Foundation

We do not qualify for the Jamba Juice Grant as we are not within 50 miles of the nearest location. The Alton location is no longer in business.

Landscaping Information

• Ron spoke with Jack from Waldbart Nursery and Jack will come out to assess the landscaping areas and offer suggestions. 
•  Ron asked that the "stepped" landscaping along the front also be given consideration.

 
Community Garden

• Larry is going to get a materials list to give to Kelley and Ron to build the initial 2 beds. If Ron agrees, we would also like to build a separate strawberry bed for spring.
• Becky is going to get the Broccoli and Cauliflower seeds planted by the end of January so that they may be transplanted in mid March. Becky is also going to canvass teachers to assign spring planting by vegetable/class.
• The committee would like to get approval to build a compost bin on school grounds and teach students what can be composted. Compost bin/s will follow the City of Ferguson's compost ordinance.

Next Meeting
Wednesday February 8, 2012 4:00pm - 5:00pm

December 2011 Committee Meeting Notes

Central School Yard - Landscaping and Community Garden Committee
December 7, 2011 Meeting

Attendees: Ron, Kelley, Becky, Patti, Ruby, Larry, Heather

Previous Action Items Discussed
1. The area for the vegetable beds was measured and first 2 beds will go along the back fence (perpendicular to Clark Ave). Subsequent beds can be added at an angle to work around the hill.
2. Becky's class will track hours of sun on the tiered beds for the landscaping. The garden beds will have full sun. Becky will report back on that during our next meeting.
3. Larry has a call into the MU Extension office for submitting soil samples. He will report back on that next time.
4. Patti researched various landscaping options for the tiered beds. We will get a ph reading of the soil to determine which plants will thrive. Ruth offered several suggestions and Kelley and Ron will reach out to Jack Waldbart from Waldbart's Nursery for guidance. Ruth also suggested Thies Farm for a resource.
5. Different material types and costs were discussed for the raised vegetable beds. The group is leaning toward the long-lasting recycled plastic option. Larry will find out if the plastic is recyclable itself for our next meeting. Estimated cost for 2 plastic beds is $500.

Other Items
1. Ron Stedman expressed that he would like to have funding in place by Feb 1, 2012. He mentioned a grant offered from the Green Committee (undetermined amount). Ron has provided Heather with an official letter about Central School Yard to use for other grant applications.
2. The group briefly discussed a "Seeds to Salad Spring Garden". The goal of this would be to produce enough fresh vegetables in 2 plots to provide 14 classrooms with a healthy salad by the end of the school year. Seed starting could be provided by 2nd or 3rd graders.

Next Meeting
January 18, 2012 4:00pm-5:00pm

Initial Central School Yard Committee Meeting

Central School Yard - Landscaping and Community Garden Committee
November 2, 2011 Meeting

 

Attendees: Ron Stedman, Kelley Powers, Jen Bond, Steve Wegert, Jenny Redd, Becky DeMere, Melva Davis, Ruth Brown, Heather Robinett, Larry Robinett, Patti Paton

Organizational Framework
Committee will be co-chaired by Larry and Heather Robinett. Kelley Powers agreed to be the landscaping chairperson. Future meetings will be held the first Wednesday of each month from 4:00-5:00pm in Central's library. The group agreed to communicate via e-mail using the subject line of Central School Yard.

Landscaping
Initial brainstorming session and tour of the tiered areas to be landscaped. Ideas included replanting grass to the sidewalks on the top level, constraints for plants/flowers (no thorns for easier weeding, no fast growth, no large growth to prohibit "hiding", 3-5-7 planting rule for better appearance, and consideration for appearance from multiple angles (the street, the playground, the school, etc.) Kelley will work with Patti for ideas and investigate particular plant/flower ideas for the next meeting. Larry mentioned that Waldbart Nursery was providing 25% off products and 50% off installation through Spring 2012 for Ferguson residents as a result of the tornado damage in the area. He will e-mail Kelley the flyer in the event she wants to talk with them.

Community Garden
The group agreed to start small (2 initial garden beds) in the spring. Heather will investigate best plot sizes for the students to reach all areas as well as best spring vegetable planting options. Multiple teaching opportunities include seed/plant growth, plot measurement and calculations, soil testing and composting instruction among others.

Next Meeting: December 7, 2011 4:00-5:00pm

Action/delivery items for the next meeting:

1)      Measure area along NE corner of school yard for sizing vegetable beds. A crescent layout was agreed upon. – Patti & Larry

2)      Track hours of sun exposure for tiered bed area. – Becky’s class

3)      Collect soil samples and reach out to MU Extension office for testing. – Larry

4)      Research landscaping options in tiered beds. – Kelley & Patti

5)      Different material types and costs for raised beds. – Heather & Larry