yurt classroom project

earlier this spring the kampe foundation and thistle whistle farm started a classroom project. for the past 3 years we have been doing field trips to farms all over the valley. we always have fun and learn something new on these trips! one lesson we learned early on is that it's nice to have shelter. a place where students can gather; out of the wind, rain or blistering heat to focus on that days lessons. not in the unsuspecting but generous farmer's greenhouse, garage or living room- but real dedicated classroom space. we are making some good headway, with the deck complete, and yurt delivered and in pile waiting to be assembled. we are waiting on the arrival of a new compression ring- then it's a matter of a scheduled day, some instruction, and grit. i hope to have it up... soon. before summer science camp begins! thank you mark, adam, kevin, megan, the other adam and graham (for entertainment). i look forward to the days ahead - sheltered from  the elements (if we choose). here is picture of our deck in progress.

paonia junior high

this week we worked with the paonia junior high 8th graders. it's been nearly a year since we first started meeting with administration & community members. our goal is to enhance their  science and nutrition curriculum with farm/garden-based educational experiences. yesterday the 8th graders and 5 dedicated adults came together to build two raised beds on campus. we hope to get the site seeded, and a commitment to maintain the bed through the summer (that's where  the rubber meets the road with these projects).  i am pleased that we got the beds in, this could be the beginning of a wonderful relationship! thank you kampe foundation for rounding up the materials and wcfac for your help.

spring break

last week was a busy one. 

we hosted the montessori 1st graders at zephyros farm and garden on thursday morning. activities included, crafts with farm grown dried flowers, worm discovery station, lamb petting and onion planting. the giant worm bin was a hit! they must have several hundred pounds of worms and castings....

amazing!

later that day we hosted the 5th & 6th graders at the hotchkiss high school biodome. we discussed basic biodome design and layout, introduced the students to our worm bin, and the future plans for the dome. 

on friday we visited the hotchkiss K8 1st grade classes for our tomato project. the students went out to thistle whistle farm last fall to collect a sample (a very large sample) of a variety of heirloom tomato seeds. we planted those very seeds last week. mark waltermire, one of the finest farmers in our valley has been instrumental in this successful project. later in may the students will go out to his farm to transplant the tomato starts, the fruit produced by these plants will be donated to area food banks. thank you to kevin and danielle for your help that afternoon.

i met with the women that run the youth garden project in moab last tuesday. it is an inspiring program that i hope to replicate somehow, sometime, somewhere...

more on that later.

april 8th

For the past 3 weeks we've been working in the biodome at hotchkiss high school with the north fork community montessori 2nd and 3rd graders. we have been busy! so far we have built a worm bin, seeded one of the raised beds, and started a compost experiment. the worms (1000s of red wrigglers) were donated by the fine folks at zephyros farm and garden in paonia. a big thank you to don & daphne. the compost bags are decomposing nicely, and the seed germinating...

what shall we do tomorrow?