🏫 La Rivière aux Enfants
🏫 Saint-LouisGarden alert in Grosbreuil! In recent days, masked figures have been spotted lurking between the rows of courgettes. Pumpkins, aubergines, even a lettuce on legs… After a thorough investigation, our mascot has unmasked the culprits: the budding gardeners of the state school La Rivière aux Enfants and of Saint-Louis school! 🎃🍆🥬
Take a good look at the photo above: both gangs of veg-snatchers appear in turn, caught red-handed with their baskets. Want a closer look at the suspects? Just hover your mouse over the picture (or tap it) to freeze the line-up!
A shared garden, like a good cake
Come spring, the school garden made plenty of people happy. This year, three groups wanted to get their hands dirty: the two schools and the local children's holiday club (the accueil de loisirs). No squabbling: we shared! Half a bed for the state school, half a bed for Saint-Louis, room for the holiday club… and the bed at the back set aside for squashes. That's the kingdom of pumpkins and other "giant" vegetables, and its harvest will be shared among everyone.
Team one: La Rivière aux Enfants
At the end of May, the nursery pupils and their teacher Christelle Langevin came to plant their autumn vegetables. They even brought their own seedlings! In September, surprise: big, plump courgettes, tomatoes as red as clowns' noses, and five or six little pumpkins and butternuts just starting to show. In the photo, the basket is overflowing: we very nearly had to call in a wheelbarrow for backup!
Team two: Saint-Louis
The nursery pupils of Saint-Louis school, with their teacher Audrey Fetiveau, came along as early as May to prepare the ground. In September, they carefully picked cherry tomatoes and, above all, a magnificent pumpkin, carried like treasure. When their photo fades in, one question springs to mind: which is more orange, the pumpkin or the mask?
Well done, children!
You weeded, you planted, you waited (sometimes impatiently!), and the garden said thank you. These vegetables are now off to the classroom for more discoveries. Keep your eyes, and your taste buds, wide open: the garden still has plenty of surprises in store!
Thank you to the teachers… and to Benoît!
A huge thank you to our teachers, Christelle Langevin and Audrey Fetiveau. Despite a very busy month of May, they found the time to bring their pupils to the garden. They turn every outing into an adventure and give the children a taste for the soil, the seasons and sharing. Thanks also to Benoît Pichard and the holiday club team, who came to lend a hand with the youngest ones. They happily made do with whatever space was left!
Thank you to our volunteers, the unsung heroes (come rain or shine!)
A very special mention for Philippe Guilloteau, one of the founders of Compostons Ensemble and the children's garden's greatest ally. Before the classes even arrived, the beds had been weeded and mulched. He supplied the squash seedlings himself. He also laid a tarpaulin over the third bed to smother the invading chickweed. And when it comes to bindweed, Philippe never backs down! As he puts it himself, the association is delighted to help awaken the children's taste buds. 🍅
And all summer long, while the pupils were enjoying their holidays, the volunteers watered, tended and protected the vegetable patch. They prepare the gardens all year round, with good mature compost, so that the tiny seeds of spring can grow into these fine autumn harvests. Hats off, or rather caps off, just like our mascot!
Speaking of which, our mascot still can't get over it. An earthworm by trade, it has seen a great many vegetables go by, but rarely such fine gardeners. It looks forward to seeing you very soon for more garden adventures… masks optional, smiles compulsory! 🌱
