Post date: May 09, 2012 6:51:18 PM
In March, things started to get very exciting. The garden started to actually take shape, as plants were ordered and the Science Minors class got down with the dirt!
On March 5, the second talking circle was held. This was also the day that all the seeds and plant plugs were ordered! The plants had been decided based on their indigenous nature here in Alberta, as well as their link to Aboriginal perspectives. The following plants were ordered as seeds:
· Prairie Sagewort
· Yarrow
And the remainder that could not be bought as seeds were ordered as 1 year old dormant plugs:
· Alpine Paintbrushes (originally supposed to be Indian Paintbrushes, but they were out of stock)
On March 8, the plants choices were brought to the Science Minors class. We arranged ourselves into groups, and put our dibs on the plants we wanted to be responsible for. Each groups was responsible for 2 types of plants, and we were sent home with the task of doing some research. We were to find out the Latin species name, Cree name, Blackfoot name, Characteristics, Habitat and Origin, Optimal Growing Conditions, and any Aboriginal perspectives tied to the plant. These were all to be submitted later as a contribution to the garden. The groups were then responsible for making compostable planters with newspaper. Each group made more than necessary for their plants, so when the plants become big enough they can be split and transferred.
By March 15, most of the seeds had arrived! We spent the class filling the compostable planters with dirt, nurturing our seeds according to the instructions, and sowing the seeds. Most seeds simply required to be placed in dirt and watered, but others (Mountain Locoweed, Tufted White Prairie Aster) needed to be placed in sandy soil and kept in the refrigerator for 2 weeks before they could be planted. After those 2 weeks, they were transferred to their own compostable planters and kept by the windowsill with the rest.
And there the plants stayed until early May, being watered regularly!