What's happening in the garden

Look at all that stuff growing! Broccoli and peas to eat soon. Nasturtiums and marigolds to keep the bad bugs away. Those yellow little petunias in front are from Mrs. S's class and their Georgia O'Keefe art project. Remember what I said about the hogsfuel? Well the South Salem cheerleaders did an outstanding job of making our garden look a little more tidy.
Thank you thank you!!

This, my friends is a work in progress.
All those little stakes indicate a historical companion planting: The Three Sisters Garden. Native Americans used to prepare a mound and plant corn in the middle. Then some pole beans, that would climb up the corn and use it as a support and fix nitrogen into the soil. Then a squash plant at the base whose leaves shade the roots of all the plants and help retain moisture. A perfect combination! So Mrs. Nelson's K's saved their pumpkin seeds from October, sprouted them in the classroom and here they are in the garden. Those little gardeners can come back in the Fall to pumpkins (hopefully)!
The 2nd graders planted the corn and beans for the other sisters. They will come back in the Fall and see the cornstalks, and maybe even some beans--depending on the summer weather. Don't worry, I will keep you posted on the gardens progress all summer. 

This is another project of Mrs. Nelson's kindergardeners. If you didn't know, Mrs. Nelson loves sunflowers. Really loves them and likes to plant them every year. These are sunflower seeds recently planted that will create a bright sunny yellow curtain of welcome along the fence as kids come to school in the Fall. Won't that make for great mornings? 

This is a very blank wall, isn't it? Well, not for long! If you haven't heard, Lynn Takata has been working with McKinley students to create a garden mosaic that will be installed on this very blank, boring wall in July. She is the artist extraordinaire that created the mosaic downtown on the YMCA building. Every student in McKinley has helped create the mosaic in some way, the ideas all come from our kids. Have I mentioned how great SKSD Facilities Dept. is?  They heard about our project, looked at this wall, and said, "We should replace that siding and get that wall ready for your mosaic." Well, maybe they didn't say that exactly, but they are replacing the siding so that it will be ready for the mosaic. This is not just a school project, this is a community art project.
So please come down to McKinley the weekend of the Art Fair
in July and help install our mosaic.