You’ve probably noticed a big change when you drive by Orcas Christian School on Enchanted Forest Road – the green, grassy field in front that used to be the play field is now a permaculture garden in the works, bursting with color and edibles.
The brainchild and design of Alex Wolf, it began last school year. Juan Nunez offered his time to build the fence, and Wolf and local gardener Maura Lynn Pritchard transformed the lawn into a rich soil haven. The students got to plant its first generation, which is now abundant kale, lettuce, tomatoes, cabbage, tomatillos, squash, etc.
This new garden has already supplied dozens and dozen of pounds of vegetables to The Food Bank and The Senior Center. Now that school started last week, the kids are getting to take part in harvesting and eating the foods they planted.
Not only will the garden be a learning resource for OCS students and a source of nutrition for their school lunches, it will also continue to provide for other local entities and people who are in need.
As the garden, arbor, greenhouse, and barn continue to be built, look out for future classes for adults and families on topics like food preservation and canning. And anyone who wants to volunteer time and effort in the garden gets to bring home freshly picked food.
My son has done various jobs this summer, including watering the OCS garden for a stint. I had the pleasure of getting up close and personal with the plants that are bursting heartily out of the ground there. It turned into a morning of picture-taking that went on and on. It’s downright beautiful and bountiful.
