Like just about everything at Arcadia, the kids farm is a project that's constantly evolving. When I showed up in July, the space included some tomato, cucumber, and eggplant plants, plus some squash vines that were getting eaten alive by squash bugs. And of course, there was lots and lots of crabgrass. The photo here shows what it looked like back in the spring.
Since then, I've gotten to work planting a salad bar bed full of carrots, broccoli and cauliflower, a field of greens, sunflowers and more. And while we're almost ready for DC students to join us for field trips, we're also thinking about what we want our kids farm to look like in the future. (You can find some current photos here).
Since they've been artfully gardening with DC kids for the last ten years, we called up our friends Lola and Rebecca at City Blossoms. Inspired by their gardens on Marion Street and Girard Street, we wanted their help to create a design for a kids space that's interactive, educational, beautiful and fun. We met up and talked basics - goals, measurements, age-levels - and shared ideas. Lola and Rebecca visited Arcadia Farms to see what's already growing and get inspiration.
Not only did they come up with a plan that includes a natural dye bed and lots of easy-to-maintain perennials, they also handed over their super-secret list of kid-friendly plants. We're excited to make it happen.
Thanks to Lola and Rebecca for sharing their expertise and creativity with us - and for being super fun to work with!
Want to help maintain the kids farm? We could always use your help at our Monday and Saturday volunteer days. You can sign up for our email list here.
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