Summer watering, waiting and watching

Dear Gardener-Teacher,

So you think that you and your students can just take the summer off, go on vacation, slack off and when you come back to school you will have a thriving veggie garden? How wrong you are! Unless you have an army of ladybird beetles and electric fencing around each plant, there is no way you can keep me and my buds away. That is right - this is Rocky Raccoon and Daisy Deer come to munch on your increasingly dry garden.

If you don’t want us around, munching on your garden, you are going to have to either connect with the summer students at your school or connect with the local community. Perhaps your community is really in need of a garden to grow their own food in and will gladly water, weed, and maintain your garden over the summer. Alternatively, have you and your school board thought of connecting with young local organic gardeners who could be both mentors and caretakers on your site in exchange for their ability to sell market garden vegetables?

You probably haven’t thought about any of this, you were just merrily sailing on your little curricular way, without any thought of the summer, other than what lake you are going to swim in. Classic!! Well all the more food for us. Just make sure you plant lots of corn and potatoes. We really like those.

Hey - anytime you need your compost bin knocked over give me a call: 1-800- RAC-COON

Your friends
Rocky and Daisy