OC Organic Garden Blog

Ryan Solomon, Guest Blogger From Ms. Mahar’s Third Grade Class

I highly recommend going to the TMA garden because of all the wonderful sights like seeing all the plants and the growing develop. Last Thursday, when I went there with my teacher Ms. Mahar’s class, I enjoyed seeing all the magnificent bugs like the butterflies, moths and I saw a giant pill bug. In the Native Garden, I was highly fascinated in seeing the caterpillar my classmates found there that looked like a long skinny marshmallow with yellow and black stripes. We also found a green chrysalis hanging below a bird house with gold highlights. It was a Monarch butterfly chrysalis. Right next to it was an empty chrysalis. I wonder where that butterfly went to? I was also intrigued by learning how to plant and space correctly the carrot seeds that we planted. I can’t wait to see what colors the carrots turn out to be. In conclusion, I love seeing all the plants growing each time I go there and finally seeing the vegetables for sale at the TMA produce sale each week. I am a great customer!

Do you know how our garden grows? Well you can by simply subscribing to the TMA Garden Blog. It’s easy, just go to the subscribe box located on the top, lefthand side of the blog and sign up.

And if you subscribe during the month of November, you’ll be entered to win your own mini garden.

The TMA Garden Blog is great way for you to see what the kids are growing and learning in the garden. Each grade has it’s own curriculum where they’re combining their math and science skills in a hands-on, interactive setting.

The rain didn’t keep the buyers away from our annual Dad’s and Donuts event. Due to the success of this event and produce sales, the garden sold a record amount of pumpkins and produce totalling more than $1,000. The proceeds will help fund PTO programs, such as Art Masters, John Yeiser, Composer Countdown and Physical Education.

Thank you to the garden volunteers that made this all possible. And we’d like to give a special shout out to Sofie Ngeth, John O’Brien, Ellen Kinoshita, Julie Ward and her husband, Jennifer Whyte, Caroline Demmerle and Joyce Howie.

The Garden will be selling pumpkins until they are gone. Produce sales are Thursdays after school, or we’d be happy to meet potential buyers in the garden at a time convenient for all.

By Armen Balian, Guest Blogger and Dedicated Garden Volunteer

Seriously!! Every time it rains, Tustin Unified saves money. Here’s how it works. Walk into the garden and look to the left; you’ll see a very large black tank, known as a rain cistern. Pipes run from it to newly installed rain gutters.

It’s amazing how much 1″ of rain adds up when multiplied by hundreds of square feet of roof space. When it rains, water from the roof goes into the gutters. The gutters channel the water to the pipes that feed into the rain cistern. At the bottom of the cistern there is a faucet where a hose can be attached. You probably guessed it by now; we are collecting rainwater for irrigating the garden in our very own cistern; thereby reducing the amount of water used at TMA.

By Ashley Spinoglio, Third Grader

The garden work day a few weeks ago was very busy. We had 46 volunteers show up to help work in the garden for fall planting. Some of the jobs we did in the garden were pulling weeds, cutting pumpkins off the vines, cutting flowers, mixing soil in the planter beds and watering plants. The garden is growing such things as carrots, pumpkins and grapes.

Here are some things that the parent volunteers said.