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For The Telegraph/JAMES B. RITTER
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Excedrin Davis, left, and Isis Robinson, right, both 14, joined seventh and eighth graders from North Middle School.spent Friday morning May 5 working outside
in the Discovery Garden at the Lavista Park in Godfrey.
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Children learn to appreciate gardening
By VICKI BENNINGTON
For PB&J
GODFREY - Helping children explore and appreciate what it entails to bring healthy, daily food to our tables, Discovery Garden, A Children's Organic Community Garden was formed in 2001.
April Calvin, project manager, said interested individuals from the Sierra Club, Audubon Society and Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate Novitiate formed the Community Cultivators Board to create the garden.
"Discovery Garden leases its acre of land from the village of Godfrey for $1 a year and officially opened on Earth Day in 2002 at the same time La Vista Park was created," Calvin said.
Creating and maintaining an organic garden involves several factors. One of the key ingredients is the soil itself with its billions of microorganisms that
help rejuvenate it and transmit nutrients to the root hairs of the plants.
Through proper care, a natural resistance against pests is built up and there is no need for chemicals.
Calvin said spraying the plants with a mixture of ground garlic in water and sometimes actually removing pests by hand may also be called for. Crop rotation, cover cropping, composting and mulching further encourages
healthy plants.
"The idea for the garden was to give children a place where they could learn about a working farm and be aware of where their food comes from," Calvin
said. "It's amazing to see how excited they always are about putting seeds into the ground."
Many children's groups and even some adult groups visit the garden throughout the year. Though it never really closes, March through October are usually the busiest months.
Discovery Garden is organic in nature, but doesn't necessarily stress that pesticides and herbicides are bad, but rather introduces an alternative way of farming crops.
"Companion planting is another way of providing natural protection," Calvin said. "For example, the three sisters - com, beans and squash is a Native American farming tradition."
The corn provides support for the beans; the beans provide nitrogen for the sister plants and squash grows large leaves that discourage weeds.
Techniques such as these help to make the garden somewhat self-sustaining, Calvin said.
Visiting day care and school groups, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, summer campers, etc. come into the garden generally for about a two-hour
session. Calvin or one of the other group leaders present a short lesson, with children seated on hay bales in the natural harbor covered with silver lace,
and trumpet and kiwi vines to become a shade circle when in full summer growth.
"We believe in experiential learning so we keep the talks short and everyone gets to plant or harvest something, depending on the time of year; do a little
maintenance with weeding or mulching and then construct some type of garden-related craft," Calvin said.
One of this spring's projects was an adult-sized scarecrow to stand as a sentinel in the center of the garden; warding off rabbits, squirrels and deer.
"Even though we have a full fence around the garden, we know animals will get some of it, especially since it's organic," Calvin said. "But that's okay.
Our philosophy is to try and make sure they don't take it all.".
And exploring the natural world isn't always limited to gardening if an opportunity arises. Calvin said the garden offers a wealth of interesting insects, birds and wildlife that children love to investigate.
"If we see something unusual or something the kids are interested in, we stop and talk about that, too," she said.
In some cases, if a particular group cannot physically come to the garden, representatives are available for on-site oral presentations.
"We want to foster an appreciation for the natural world," Calvin said. "We all tend to come and go, and not really pay enough attention to what's going
on around us. The garden helps us to see nature and survival on a very basic level."
Programs vary and can be determined by a particular group's current focus. Grocery Bag Botany; Life of a Seed; Garden Patrol; Glorious Dirt; Water Plant and Smorgasbord are a few examples.
The garden includes a variety of produce including potatoes, asparagus, garlic, broccoli, kohlrabi, strawberries, lettuce, com, sweet pea and beans.
"Portions of our produce is given to groups who visit the garden, with some of the surplus donated to the Crisis Food Center," Calvin said. "We will also
have a booth every Saturday morning at the Alton Farmer's Market."
Flowers and herbs may also be available this year, to be determined by availability.
A certain amount of the garden is set aside for the Family Plots Program, administered by Lisa Reid, Family Plots project coordinator and lead garden
teacher. It offers local families who do not have the space to garden, the opportunity to grow and cultivate their own crops.
Adult volunteers work the first Saturday of every month on the general maintenance of Discovery Garden.
"Our volunteers do so much," Calvin said. "We try not to ask any one person to do too much, so we can always use more help."
Jill Mellenthin is the garden's onsite manager. Christine Favilla is the president of the Community Cultivators Board; Chrissie Chapman is vice president; Cathy Copley is treasurer; Blair Campbell is secretary. The
Reverend Maurice Lange and Eileen Long are board members.
Paid internships are available at Discovery Garden for students in fields such as biology, horticulture, environmental sciences, computer science and education.
La Vista Park is located at 2421 West Delmar Ave. on land that will never be developed. It is open to the public and sits on Forest Legacy Land set aside by The Department of Natural Resources. Youngblood Trail runs
through the park and connects to the Vadalabene Bike Trail.
Discovery Garden will hold an open house from 6 to 8 p.m., Monday, May 15. Various stations and representatives will be set up throughout the garden.
For more information or if you would like to volunteer at the garden, e-mail Calvin at communitycultivators@hotmail.com or call 254-6521. Discovery Garden programs are free.
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