Time flies - Gardens grow ( a lot!)

Aaagh - summer is almost over already!? Our garden has come through looking like a trooper thanks to the 16 familes (with 14 more as alternates!) who came forward enthusiastically and helped weed, water, plant and harvest the garden this summer. These pictures are from the Werner family and beautifully show the wonders of Wescosville's Outdoor Classroom garden.

There's the big wonders . . .

and small . . .

The fun of harvesting

And the not so small endeavor of watering

Thanks again for your help. Harvesting is continuing so please come by whenever you can to pick some tomatoes or beans, etc. Watch for the Outdoor Garden display during the fall Open House at school and for an update on what is next!

July 17th in the Garden

The last time we came the sunflowers were not in bloom yet. But yesterday - wow! They were the first thing we noticed walking up to the garden. Big and beautiful!

Saw lots of bees buzzing around.

The squash are coming in big time. Please make sure to pick anything that looks ripe and take it home for your dinner table or for your neighbors. The expert gardeners tell me that picking the squash as it comes ripe will keep up the production.

Another update on the water situation: During school hours (approximately 9 to 5) the water from the hose near the garden is available - however you will need a key to turn it on, which means that you will need to buzz into the school office and ask for it. It is something that is easily lost so please be sure to remember to return it.

If you plan on using the water barrel - you will need a container. The flow is just too slow from the hose connection.

Safety Town is being held right now at the school and the whole safety town course is set up on the playground near the garden. Please do not allow your children to play on the course or on the pedal cars unless you are sure that you will be able to leave everything as you found it.

July 4th Garden Update

This posting is a little delayed, but here are some pictures of the garden over the past July 4th weekend.

The sunflowers are getting really tall and big flower buds are forming quickly. Looking forward to seeing them in bloom!

The bean plants are starting to really climb up the trellises we erected a couple of months ago. Hopefully they will climb all the way across and make the green arches we envisioned.

The zucchini and squash plants are sprawling and already are producing not only a lot of blossoms but squash too. If you are tending the garden look for some to pick for dinner. There's some basil plants tucked in under the squash plants that are doing surprisingly well. Look for them and pick some leaves to take home. It will help keep them producing.

The cherry tomato plants are going to town! Lots of green ones for now . . .

These droopy plants are a couple of eggplants that I tried to move a little from under the cherry tomatoes. Hope they make it!

Our composter and water barrel. There is a hose attached to the water barrel now. Just be warned that the water flow is very slow and a bit of a trickle. If you are in a hurry to water - bring a watering can or container.

Don't forget to compost garden scraps, trimmings and weeds that haven't yet gone to seed!

Thanks for checking out the blog and please contact me to add your own pictures and garden news/stories. - Noreen

Wescosville Garden June 22 and 24th

What a difference 2 months makes! Here are some pictures of the garden taken earlier this week. The broccoli and cauliflower plants that the students planted in April are now ready to pick.

The bamboo trellises you see were erected in late April to support climbing bean vines. If you look closely at the pictures below you can see the tendrils of the bean plants just starting to grab hold. Hopefully, by the end of summer we'll have bean vine arches at both ends of the garden rows.

Welcome to Winkle's Garden

Welcome to the blog for the Wescosville Outdoor Classroom Garden. The first planting in the garden took place on Earth Day, April 22, 2009. Several classes helped plant a variety of vegetable seedlings, including broccoli, cauliflower, beets and lettuce. A few zinnias were also planted among the rows as beneficial companion plants that will help keep undesireable insects away.