page background

Orchard Express

Spring Update 2023

Orchard ExpressSpring Update 2023

Harvest

The year 2022-2023 school year started with gardens full of eggplant and tomatoes. The students enjoyed harvesting and taking the produce home. I was surprised how many students wanted eggplant! Our pumpkin crop that we planted in the back of the orchard was a bust, but we are going to try again this year. In fact, it is time to put pumpkin seeds in now!


The monarch garden that was built last year is looking spectacular! The butterflies are so active. The students have even extended the monarch garden to connect to "Monarch Meadow," a beautiful area of shaded trees just North of the garden. This meadow is somewhat hidden in the heart of the Goodwater property. When the students come into this special place, I am witnessing their creativity come alive. It is truly beautiful.

Egg to Chick

The egg to chick program was a huge success. We had 12 incubators totaling 120 fertilized eggs! The staff and the students relished this experience as we learned about chick development throughout the 21 day incubation cycle. It was especially fun to watch the adolescent community come alongside the younger students to guide them through the process.

After nurturing the chicks through the winter and awaiting them to become fully feathered, we finally got to move them to their new coop in the orchard. They are easily handled, as we have raised them as a community and they are quite trusting of us. Because we hatched them in November, they are now providing us with an ABUNDANCE of eggs! If you would like to support the school AND enjoy delicious farm fresh eggs, please click for our Weekly Egg Pick Up! Retrieve your eggs from the Orchard at Goodwater most Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9-11 am (*See summer schedule below).

Primary Fruit Tree Planting

We savored planting trees in each primary yard this Spring. Mulberry community planted a Tropical Fruiting Mulberry tree, Maple has two new Rio Grande Peach trees, Sassafras apple tree was grafted with a Fuji, Gala, AND Granny Smith apple varieties, Desert Willow planted two pomegranate trees, and Cypress has three new apple trees. We planted the Cypress apple trees just 18 inches apart, which is a method used in Japan to encourage pollination and save space! By doing this, they simply grow as separate trees with their own small canopy, flowering and producing at different times. The vision of a small scale orchard for our primary students is slowly coming to life!


If you would like to join the Primary Yard Team, please contact Mrs. Katy. The primary yards are a special place and we would welcome you to be part of bringing it to life.

Wrapping Up the Year

Preparing for the orchard party and making a final school year push to get work done in the orchard has brought an AWESOME level of engagement. Our students and outstanding PTO kicked in with a solid work ethic and toughness. The selfless work that went into making the end of the school year a success for all has brought me a great sense of joy and a true "community" experience.

Summer 2023

Growing in the Garden: Hosted by Mrs. Katy, this summer garden club is for students wanting to continue time in the outdoor classroom while exploring new skills and enjoying themed topics. This will be a "drop off" activity that meets in the orchard most Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 am - 11 am this summer (*See schedule for dates and sign up). Cost is $10 per student, max 10 students per session (financial assistance available).


Adolescent Orchard Meet Up: Join incoming 6th-8th grade students as they explore the orchard together! This is a free "semi-supervised" social club that meets in the orchard during Mrs. Katy's "Growing in the Garden" Club. There will be suggested topics for outdoor exploration, but this time is mostly unstructured.



Farm Fresh Eggs: Our Goodwater Chickens are producing over 40 eggs day and we are ready to sell them by the dozen! These organically farm raised chickens are delicious as they are nutritious! The cost is $6 per dozen, or $15 for three dozen. Easy summer pick up on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9 am - 11 am at the orchard.


Summer Tree and Chicken Care: Join our orchard and garden team as we nurture the chickens, the butterfly garden, and the orchard, and the gardens this summer. This is our communities special place and it just gets better with love and attention from our awesome families. Make yourself at home in the orchard this summer...just leave it as you found it or better. This is OUR orchard.