Greetings!
We continued our basil lesson for a second week. We spoke about the differences between annual and perennial plants and observed these differences in stem structure. Perennials typically have hardy woody stems to support their longevity. Annuals have green supple stems. Basil will survive as a perennial if there is no frost. Frost will kill basil. Even colder temperatures will slow down the foliage growth of your warm weather plants. We are cutting it close on our basil and pesto lesson. When Christmas break arrives, I will pull the last of our basil plants and make room for root veggies and brassicas.
Our aeroponics tower is up and running in the courtyard. Aeroponics sprays a mist or trickles water on suspended roots; hydroponics uses a system of submersion whereas the roots grow in low-flow water. This is our third year with our Lettuce Grow aeroponics tower and we could not be happier with our system. There are many cold weather varieties on the tower right now. In the spring, we will transition to warm weather crops. Thank you to Adrian and Santi for taking care of the tower. It looks great.
Our Friendsgiving was a huge success! Thank you to all the parents who made our Friendsgiving a reality. We really enjoyed all the food. I will try and send the students home with their respective kitchenware. If you are missing something, then I will be on campus all next week. You can email me and let me know when you would like to pick up your kitchenware. Otherwise, we will make sure you get it after the holiday.
The following volunteer dates are on the calendar:
· December 3rd & 5th (holiday concert afterparty)
· February 22nd (2nd parent workday)
You can access the volunteer signup site by clicking on this link: https://signup.com/group/1135044326099
We are always seeking coffee grounds, seeds, aluminum cans and MASON JARS. PLEASE, NO MORE EGGSHELLS. If you have anything that might benefit our garden program, please contact me via email (insects included). Otherwise, the front table outside of the office is our designated drop-off location for garden essentials. james.obrien-moench@phxschools.org
Enjoy your holiday break!
Mr. Moench
