On Saturday, August 29, we had ten students from North Garland High School Key Club attend our monthly group workday down at the Garland Community Garden.   If you want to boost the spirit of your organization, I can think of no better way than to invite the youth of your community to work side by side with your members. 

In the short time span of three hours these students laid a brick pathway around the Medicine Wheel Garden; worked with one of our members to install a hugelkultur (including planting a cover crop of peanuts); visited the loofah tunnel with Charlie (the Loving Garland Green board member who built it) and watched his demonstration of how to shuck a loofah.  And even with all that activity they still had time to pull weeds, observe and discuss an orb spider, and play with a baby toad.

We so appreciate their assistance and look forward to working with the North Garland High School Key Club on many projects this fall—one of them includes assisting them in installing a butterfly garden at their school.

Students completing the first row of a double row of bricks for a path around the Medicine Wheel garden bed.

Some of the students standing in front of the completed brick pathway.  With the exception of a few bricks carried by three Loving Garland Green members, and the barest of instructions, the students built the walkway themselves.

Members of the North Garland High School Key Club also worked with Loving Garland Green member, Kevin Keeling to complete construction of a hugelkulter bed. Kevin explained the principles behind the construction of these kinds of beds.  The students completed the build by adding the soil to the top of the mound and planting a cover crop of peanuts.  Next spring this bed should be ready for planting a vegetable crop.

A tiny baby toad was quite an attraction--all the students were interested in  it.  In the photo above he is on the arm of the young lady in the foreground.

Charlie Bevilacqua, one of Loving Garland Green's board members, demonstrated how to peel a loofah and create a bath or kitchen scrubber.  Each of the students were given a loofah to take home.  Prior to the demonstration, the students toured the loofah tunnel and learned a little about how loofahs grow and their commercial potential.

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Monroe Todd, a frequent and welcome visitor to the Garland Community Garden, dropped by as well.  He talked with several of the students about the history of Garland and its land.  Monroe's family are long-time residents of our community.  In fact, I believe that some of his relatives once owned the property where we now have the Garland Community Garden.

Sophia Tran, President of the North Garland High School Key Club may look like she is just sitting, but she is also weeding.  

Jean Shortsleeve, Loving Garland Green member, is shown above weeding with one of the students.

 Jane Stroud and Margie Rodgers, both board members of Loving Garland Green, take a break from weeding for coffee and cookies.