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MSDB students dig gardening | Great Falls Tribune | greatfallstribune.com
This spring, students at the Montana School for the Deaf and the Blind gained hands-on gardening knowledge with the help of local experts.
The students attended several kid-oriented lessons over the last few months, and last week Master Gardener Bob Ford held a class at MSDB to wrap up the season, followed by a tour of the students' greenhouse.
"They're a great bunch of kids," Ford said. "It's remarkable. They're so proud of their school."
Although the children are brimming with enthusiasm, it took a little work to jump-start the gardening season. A greenhouse at MSDB served as a storage shed for roughly seven years before Mark Davis, fellow Master Gardener and Ace Hardware staffer, resurrected it.
"There was a hornets' nest underneath it (that prevented the kids from even playing in the court) so that was done away with," Ford said. "He also got the heater going."
Once the greenhouse was operational it was time to plant.
"Mark came over and helped get the plants started," said Dorothy Nutter, lead house parent and interpreter at MSDB.
She said they originally had a smaller group of kids involved, but before long, the entire cottage had interest in the budding garden.
The kids planted several fruits and vegetables and learned how to care for them throughout the season.
"I think what they liked the most is to see the plants growing," Nutter said.
"The kids are learning things they'd never get to learn at home," she said. "I'm proud of all the kids for all of their work."
Nutter said Gabriel Rowley-Thompson of Three Forks was her biggest helper and one of the most enthusiastic students involved in the project.
Rowley-Thompson said he enjoys growing vegetables because it helps the environment, and he likes to see more gardens in Great Falls.
He had a brief previous gardening experience growing a cabbage at his home, but it met its demise when a tractor ran over it.
This year he's growing melons and watermelons in the school's greenhouse.
"They're my favorites," he said. "I'm kind of doing a science experiment."
With the school year coming to an end, it's about time to wrap up the project in Great Falls.
"(The students) go home the following week, but they can take their plants home with them," Ford said.
He said Sheryl Knowles, a 4-H agent at the Cascade County MSU Extension office, registered the kids in 4-H so they can participate in the program's contests in their hometowns.
"I think that was great of Sheryl," Ford said.
To build a foundation for lifelong gardening, Ford's classes covered the basics of growing in Montana. At the final class at MSDB, he discussed everything from building healthy soil to proper watering.
"Composting can do wonders to help your plants grow and become extremely healthy," he said.
And healthy plants are a key to warding off harmful bugs that thrive on a buffet of fresh vegetables.
The kids also learned about crop rotation — changing the location where each crop is planted from one year to the next.
Ford explained that when the same family of vegetables is planted in the same area, it pulls the same nutrients from the soil each year. But when you mix it up — by planting carrots where the tomatoes were the year before — they use different nutrients and won't deplete the soil.
This also helps thwart unwanted attacks from bugs. Ford used the Colorado potato beetle as an example.
"These insects lay their eggs in the soil and overwinter in the soil," he said. "If you put in a different crop that isn't a potato, they come out looking for the same food as last year. But you just fooled them."
Watering is another important issue,
particularly for new gardeners, he said. To know how much to water you have to know your soil.
"Most of the problems I see are either a watering problem, or having the wrong plant in the wrong location," Ford said.
He told the students and teachers to conduct a simple test at home by digging a hole a foot in diameter and a foot deep. Then fill it with water and see how long it takes to drain. If it drains immediately, it means your soil is on the sandy side and will require more frequent watering. If it takes an hour or so, it's more likely silty loam, which is easier to manage. If it takes a day to drain, you're dealing with clay.
Ford said a general rule of thumb is to provide an inch of water a week to most lawn and plants, and the time of day is important.
"Lawns and gardens should be watered in the morning," said Ford. "You try to water as the temperature is rising during the day."
Armed with this gardening information, the experts hope the MSDB students will have a new appreciation for homegrown vegetables.
"I think it was a learning experience for all of them," Ford said.
Nutter said she intends to do her best to care for the plants left at the school during the summer so the returning students can see the fruit of their efforts.
This spring, students at the Montana School for the Deaf and the Blind gained hands-on gardening knowledge with the help of local experts.
The students attended several kid-oriented lessons over the last few months, and last week Master Gardener Bob Ford held a class at MSDB to wrap up the season, followed by a tour of the students' greenhouse.
"They're a great bunch of kids," Ford said. "It's remarkable. They're so proud of their school."
Although the children are brimming with enthusiasm, it took a little work to jump-start the gardening season. A greenhouse at MSDB served as a storage shed for roughly seven years before Mark Davis, fellow Master Gardener and Ace Hardware staffer, resurrected it.
"There was a hornets' nest underneath it (that prevented the kids from even playing in the court) so that was done away with," Ford said. "He also got the heater going."
Once the greenhouse was operational it was time to plant.
"Mark came over and helped get the plants started," said Dorothy Nutter, lead house parent and interpreter at MSDB.
She said they originally had a smaller group of kids involved, but before long, the entire cottage had interest in the budding garden.
The kids planted several fruits and vegetables and learned how to care for them throughout the season.
"I think what they liked the most is to see the plants growing," Nutter said.
"The kids are learning things they'd never get to learn at home," she said. "I'm proud of all the kids for all of their work."
Nutter said Gabriel Rowley-Thompson of Three Forks was her biggest helper and one of the most enthusiastic students involved in the project.
Rowley-Thompson said he enjoys growing vegetables because it helps the environment, and he likes to see more gardens in Great Falls.
He had a brief previous gardening experience growing a cabbage at his home, but it met its demise when a tractor ran over it.
This year he's growing melons and watermelons in the school's greenhouse.
"They're my favorites," he said. "I'm kind of doing a science experiment."
With the school year coming to an end, it's about time to wrap up the project in Great Falls.
"(The students) go home the following week, but they can take their plants home with them," Ford said.
He said Sheryl Knowles, a 4-H agent at the Cascade County MSU Extension office, registered the kids in 4-H so they can participate in the program's contests in their hometowns.
"I think that was great of Sheryl," Ford said.
To build a foundation for lifelong gardening, Ford's classes covered the basics of growing in Montana. At the final class at MSDB, he discussed everything from building healthy soil to proper watering.
"Composting can do wonders to help your plants grow and become extremely healthy," he said.
And healthy plants are a key to warding off harmful bugs that thrive on a buffet of fresh vegetables.
The kids also learned about crop rotation — changing the location where each crop is planted from one year to the next.
Ford explained that when the same family of vegetables is planted in the same area, it pulls the same nutrients from the soil each year. But when you mix it up — by planting carrots where the tomatoes were the year before — they use different nutrients and won't deplete the soil.
This also helps thwart unwanted attacks from bugs. Ford used the Colorado potato beetle as an example.
"These insects lay their eggs in the soil and overwinter in the soil," he said. "If you put in a different crop that isn't a potato, they come out looking for the same food as last year. But you just fooled them."
Watering is another important issue,
particularly for new gardeners, he said. To know how much to water you have to know your soil.
"Most of the problems I see are either a watering problem, or having the wrong plant in the wrong location," Ford said.
He told the students and teachers to conduct a simple test at home by digging a hole a foot in diameter and a foot deep. Then fill it with water and see how long it takes to drain. If it drains immediately, it means your soil is on the sandy side and will require more frequent watering. If it takes an hour or so, it's more likely silty loam, which is easier to manage. If it takes a day to drain, you're dealing with clay.
Ford said a general rule of thumb is to provide an inch of water a week to most lawn and plants, and the time of day is important.
"Lawns and gardens should be watered in the morning," said Ford. "You try to water as the temperature is rising during the day."
Armed with this gardening information, the experts hope the MSDB students will have a new appreciation for homegrown vegetables.
"I think it was a learning experience for all of them," Ford said.
Nutter said she intends to do her best to care for the plants left at the school during the summer so the returning students can see the fruit of their efforts.