Veggie Thief!

What wild creature got into the zucchini?

Just "Bean" Delicious

Can you spots the beans?

Flower Power

These flowers really brightened up the garden!

Sunflower in Full Bloom!

Ready or Not!?

The oregano is not quite ready.

The dill is not quite ready.

The lavender is not quite ready.

Are the carrots ready? Too bad we don't have an underground camera to film the progress of the carrots!

The lettuce is most definitely salad-ready! I hope our summer gardeners harvest some soon. We have lots of basil, zucchini, and summer yellow squash...all itching to make it to someone's dinner table.

Larger Than Life

Sunflowers and corn reach for the stars.

Garden Friends

Two garden friends have relocated from Mrs. Diaz's garden. Their names are Miss Kitty and Lance. Lance enjoys his life in the shade of the mammoth sunflowers, and Miss Kitty enjoys the sweet smell of lavender while she nibbles on fresh green beans nearby.

How About a Closer Look!

These squash blossoms look like baby birds stretching their hungry little necks for food.

These bright yellow stars are cucumber blossoms. We wait patiently for the first cucumber!

This bright fuchsia beauty is a fruit smoothy zinnia flower! More are on their way.

School's Out; Garden's In!!!

Look at what has transpired since school let out less than two weeks ago!

Garden Fun

Elliott and I harvested cilantro and enjoyed some sun at the garden today. The squash plants are mammoth! I spied a squash that was almost ready and am excited to pick some the next week!

Harvest Time!

Here is Joanne harvesting squash, basil, and cilantro!

Pico de Gallo Recipe!!!!

Here's a link to a pico de gallo recipe. Make it and bring it to your next BBQ!!! Viva Cilantro!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/pico-de-gallo-recipe/index.html

The History of Basil

Explore this link to discover the history of Basil. Indians, Greeks, Italians, Romanians, and Mexicans all share a rich folklore surrounding the basil plant.

http://www.basilguide.com/history-of-basil.cfm

Like cilantro, basil should be clipped before it flowers. Yesterday's basil clipping is today's pesto! Yum. Share your favorite basil recipe here!

The Cilantro Needs to be Harvested!

Cilantro should be harvested before it "bolts." That means it should be harvested before flowers appear. Once flowers appear, the leaves lose their flavor. See this useful website for tips on harvesting cilantro! Pico de Gallo, anyone??

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/herb/how-to-harvest-cilantro.htm

Garden Roll Call

basil

lemon verbena

sage

rosemary

cilantro

strawberries

lettuce

carrots

corn

sunflower

lavender

marigold

green beans

squash

tomato

sugar snap peas

Garden Diversity

A variety of plants are thriving in our garden. Many species are native to the new world. These include sunflowers, zinnias, marigolds, corn, and tomatoes. Other species originated in the old world. These include basil, cilantro, sage, and rosemary. Many of our plants have been cultivated since ancient times. We are part of an ageless tradition that has crossed vast oceans and evolved over centuries. Scientists are currently studying a number of our plants in an effort to unlock the secrets behind their healing properties. Which of our plants do you use most frequently? How do you use it?

Planting Day Photo Album

Planting Day

The perfect balance to a morning of hard independent work indoors is an afternoon of hard teamwork outdoors. Some classes planned their beds carefully on grid paper - ever so diligently considering the space and sunlight needed by each plant. Other classes wanted their gardens to evolve on their own. In the end, the grids were helpful, but not constraining. At this point, all the gardens have merged into one collective fifth grade community garden. We take special pride in the teamwork that has made our garden a success and the responsibility we have developed as we care for our young plants. We are completely invested in these green creatures, who, alone, have the ability to tap into the sun's energy to feed us all. After nurturing our charges from seed to sprout to plant, we are determined to work together to ensure that each one THRIVES.

Seed to Sprout

Our next step was to add the main ingredient to our garden...the Green! When we wrote about our garden hopes and dreams, we had so many veggies, fruits, and flowers in mind. We started our seedlings in the classroom right before Spring break. Each seed is so amazingly unique and tiny. When the sprouts emerged, they all looked similar, until the secondary leaves emerged. Then it was easy to discriminate a marigold from a sugar snap pea from a summer squash. Gardening has encouraged us all to focus on the small, but significant details in our world.