Hoop House Preparations

AALC teachers and families have been busy preparing the hoop houses for the upcoming school year. Intermediate teachers and students oversee the maintenance and use of a large hoop house near the main vegetable garden, while the Early Primary classes maintain a smaller hoop house within the butterfly garden.

Hoop houses enable students to work in the gardens year-round as they learn to grow plants even in winter!

Setting up the Intermediate hoop house.

The hoop house is complete!

An Early Primary family installing the hoop house frame.

Bird netting was installed over the frame to keep out a nearby
woodchuck until it's cold enough to add the tarp.

Radishes growing inside the Early Primary hoop house.

Peas sprouting inside the Early Primary hoop house.

Hoedown in Review

We worked hard in the gardens during the hoedown event yesterday! We released butterflies into our butterfly garden, put up some kiosks, and weeded and spruced up the pollinator garden and orchard. We harvested some herbs and saw that the apples in the orchard and the strawberries in the sensory garden are almost ready.

Thanks to all who helped!

There is more to do. Join us next Thursday, August 14th from 3 to 6pm as we pull more weeds, put down mulch, and continue to beautify the gardens.

Sprucing up the pollinator garden.

A new and improved pollinator garden.

Working hard in the vegetable garden.

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Improvements in the sensory garden.

Apples beginning to ripen in the orchard.

Releasing butterflies into the butterfly garden.

Lovely monarchs raised by an AALC family this summer.

Wildlife in the Garden

The gardens at Ann Arbor Learning Community have provided abundant opportunities for learning about wildlife.  Here are some of the critters students discovered in the garden areas:

This skunk was spotted wandering
the AALC property.

AALC garden helpers relocated the
skunk from under the tool shed.

A nest with baby animals was found
outside Ms. Wilt's classroom.

Can you spot the butterfly
resting on a purple coneflower?

A falcon in winter.

Do you see the falcon at the top of the light pole?

Here's a closer look at the lovely falcon.

Bumblebee resting on a stunning sunflower.

This Japanese beetle is actually a garden pest!

Introducing AALC's New Garden Blog

The AALC Vegetable Garden

The GEO-Ed Committee is pleased to introduce our new garden blog!  The blog will enable us to share photos, videos and updates regarding AALC's gardens, while keeping you informed of upcoming gardening events.

There are a number of ways to stay up-to-date on the latest AALC gardening news.  You can visit the blog or join the AALC Facebook Group.  We will also share news in the school's printed newsletter that is sent home with students each week.

We are always looking for volunteers to help in the garden.  Here are some ways to get involved!