Carrot seedlings at Albany High started 13 days ago. Not bad considering carrot seeds are notoriously slow to germinate.
I mentioned a patch of ground near Albany High to an administrator there the other day. I said that I hoped we could throw some compost there and drop some seeds in.
“Now?”
More than ask a question, this individual betrayed substantial surprise that we would still be putting seeds in the ground in late August. So, for the record, yes, now. Indeed, we put lettuce, spinach, arugula and radish seed in over at Myers Middle School later on the same day. The leafy greens as well as radishes like cool weather and grow pretty fast.
More importantly, however, this is what creating teaching and learning opportunities with plants, and mostly vegetables, is about. We often learn from the students. Sometimes we can teach the teachers. We absolutely want to stretch the season and build season-extending structures when we can. And we are delighted (okay, sometimes also frustrated and troubled) by surprises nearly every day.
We sowed carrot and kale seed at the Albany High garden on Aug. 10. Both shot right up within a week. We put beets and chard seeds in a week later, which would be last Saturday. The chard is up. Stay tuned and we’ll tell you how they do as we head into the colder months. Or take a look for yourself.
—Bill Stoneman
