By Fourth-Grade Guest Blogger, Chelsea Ebisoya
What do think Mrs. Mulligan’s class is doing in the garden? We’ve been doing lots of fun things like planting strawberries, composting, pulling out weeds, and cutting dead things off plants.
A couple weeks ago I composted and the grass smelled as bad as a sewer! I also got piles of leaves in a bin for the compost pile. The people in the group wanted to spin the compost bin because we wanted to get away from the smell.
For the second week in a row we’re spotlighting an organization that has been so supportive of the TMA Garden. In January, Dixondale Farms, a family-owned operation, donated 2,000 onion starts to our garden. This is the second time they’ve made this contribution.
With this donation, our students will have a chance to grow a variety of onions, such as Texas SuperSweet, Yellow Granex, White Bermuda, Lancelot Leeks and more. This is a great opportunity to expose our kids to different onion types and flavors, which may broaden their pallete, making them more open to trying new foods.
Dixondale Farms, located in South Texas, has been in business since the early 1900s. In the mid 80s they began to see a growing need for distributing products to home gardeners. In 1990, the farm began shipping small quantities by UPS and the business has grown from there.
We depend on our community members to help our garden grow. A prime example is our generous Tustin Garden Club.
For five years now, they’ve been supporting the TMA Garden–something no other organization has done. Few organizations give year in and year out to the same cause; this is a challenge given expanding programs require consistent funding.
In December, we’re excited to announce that the Tustin Garden Club donated $500 to the garden. Maggie Prescott, garden club member, said, “Please use the money in your most needed area. We’re happy to see that you’re making such wonderful progress.”
Nathan Richardson, a former TMA student, is working on earning the prestigious title of Eagle Scout. He’s 15 years old, a sophomore at Foothill High School and is still active in Boy Scout Troop 36.
If you’re not familiar with scouting, becoming an Eagle Scout is not an easy task. A scout must complete a long list of requirements by their 18th birthday to reach their goal.
Fortunately for us, Nathan’s quest to become an Eagle Scout brought him back to TMA. One of Nathan’s requirements was to plan, develop and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to a religious institution, school or local community.
Watering plants can be a chore but not in the TMA Garden. Recently, we added small cisterns throughout the garden.
Made from donated plastic barrels, these overflow cisterns pull recycled rain water from the primary 500-gallon cistern via a hose. The kids can conveniently pump water from the overflow cisterns to hand water nearby beds.
Here’s what some of Miss DeClark’s third-grade students think of the cisterns:
Have you ever wondered what the kids actually do on their days in the garden? Here’s a glimpse at what Mrs. Shenton’s third-grade class experienced when they visited the TMA Garden, Dec. 1.
The class was divided up into three groups: planters, maintainers and explorers.
The planters planted carrots in the Shenton bin. Next, they watered their bin and neighboring bins and plants. The planters also checked out the carrot sprouts that were
We’re excited to announce the winner of our subscription contest. The mini garden package, which includes a 4×4 planter box, soil and seeds and a pot of paperwhites, goes to the Kroko Family. Congratulations!
During the month-long contest, we had a whopping 44 TMA families subscribe to the TMA Garden Blog. Please keep on encouraging your fellow TMA families to subscribe. It just takes a few seconds and it’s a great way for them to see what their kids are growing and learning in the garden.
What’s red, sweet and makes yummy pies, jam and ice cream? Strawberries of course and they were just recently planted in our garden.
In early November, Koppes Plants graciously donated 200 bareroot Chandler strawberry plants to the TMA Garden. Chandler strawberries are the typical strawberry that is sold at roadside stands.
Koppes Plants, located in the foothills of the Yosemite Valley in California’s gold country, is a family owned and operated business that was founded in 1949 by the late Max Koppes. Max was a pioneer at every level in the production and distribution of strawberry plants worldwide. He was instrumental in the use of polyethylene plastic as a mulch in the field. He developed corrugated strawberry trays and plastic baskets to hold fruit, and he was an avid promoter of fresh strawberries as a cancer fighter and as an aid in preventing heart disease.
This fall, show your kids that pumpkins aren’t just for carving. Here are some nutritious and yummy recipes you can share with your family.
Naomi’s Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients
* 6 cups chicken broth * 1 cup chopped carrots * 1 or 2 stalks of celery * 1/4-1/2 white onion, chopped * 2 cloves garlic, chopped * 2 fresh thyme stalks, chopped * 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped salt and pepper to taste * 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream * 2 cups of pumpkin puree Nutmeg to taste * 1 teaspoon chopped oregano, optional * 1 teaspoon chopped basil, optional
Directions
Cook carrots, celery and onion in about 2 cups of chicken broth. When veggies are soft, puree them with garlic, thyme and parsley.
Add carrot puree to the remaining 4 cups of chicken broth. Add 2 cups of pumpkin puree and heat to a boil, then reduce heat, add heavy cream, salt and pepper, nutmeg and optional oregano and basil. Heat thoroughly. Serve hot.
More Recipes to Try With Your Kids
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Ryan Solomon, Guest Blogger From Ms. Mahar’s Third Grade Class
I highly recommend going to the TMA garden because of all the wonderful sights like seeing all the plants and the growing develop. Last Thursday, when I went there with my teacher Ms. Mahar’s class, I enjoyed seeing all the magnificent bugs like the butterflies, moths and I saw a giant pill bug. In the Native Garden, I was highly fascinated in seeing the caterpillar my classmates found there that looked like a long skinny marshmallow with yellow and black stripes. We also found a green chrysalis hanging below a bird house with gold highlights. It was a Monarch butterfly chrysalis. Right next to it was an empty chrysalis. I wonder where that butterfly went to? I was also intrigued by learning how to plant and space correctly the carrot seeds that we planted. I can’t wait to see what colors the carrots turn out to be. In conclusion, I love seeing all the plants growing each time I go there and finally seeing the vegetables for sale at the TMA produce sale each week. I am a great customer!
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