This fall, students and teachers have enjoyed learning and exploring in our schoolyard garden. It may seem small but there is a whole world of living things to be discovered in our garden space. Ms. Li and Ms. Corpas took their students into the garden in search of some of these living things for their terrarium. Ultimately, they acquired aphids, worms, larva, earwigs, and ants. They also learned about the importance of ladybugs, which eat the aphids that munch on our kale and collard greens.
Winter is coming, and students have been working hard to get our garden ready for the cold season. Ms. Brumbach's class planted sun chokes, relatives of sunflowers that produce edible tubers like potatoes that will sprout in the spring. Ms. Dickerson's class helped clear our garden beds and planted winter rye, a grain that will protect our soil during the bitter weather ahead. Finally, many classes have been able to turn and sift our compost, which will be mixed into the soil when Gardener Greg mulches the garden beds.
The week of 11/10 was CitySprouts’ annual Cider Pressing! Students participated in every step of the process: cleaning the apples, cutting the apples, grinding the apples, pressing the apples, and of course, drinking the finished apple cider. Cider Pressing is a popular tradition and we were excited to run it again this year.