Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Digging In to Gardening

Wow, there is some of everything in this project!  Exercise, writing, reading, great food, intergenerational opportunities (truth, beauty, justice...all that good stuff).



Kathy Larson at the Bloomer Public Library teamed up with some area Chippewa Valley Master Gardeners to provide a gardening class at the Library this summer. Children met weekly for a brief lesson to learn gardening tips from area Master Gardeners. 
Making compost!
 The group walked to the Bloomer Community Gardens where they planted and tended to plants.  

Then they walked back to the library where children reflected on their experience at the garden and created a journal entry about the weather conditions and how the plants looked in the garden that day. 


 The program has been well attended with an average of fifteen children at each program. Parents often attended with their children and occasionally senior citizens from the nearby senior housing wandered over to the garden to chat with the children.  






 
After six weeks of hard work in the garden, the children had a garden party where produce grown in the garden was used to make their own salads and vegetable pizzas. Residents of the Maplewood Nursing home were in attendance and enjoyed the food made from the harvest and sang a song for the children about gardening. 

Enjoying the fruits of their labor!

How many other library gardens were there this summer?

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