Stomping in rain puddles and feeling mud squish between your toes. Digging in the dirt, unearthing bugs and worms, and plucking flowers from the garden. These are the type of iconic childhood experiences that can lead to an appreciation for nature later in life. They’re the type of discoveries that Primrose School of Woodbury hopes its students will make by participating in its Mud Pies gardening program.
“Children can learn so much about life through the experience of a garden,” says Woodbury resident Tonya Holt, who co-owns Primrose with her husband, Travis. “They learn that life is fragile and we all have to help take care of things to grow strong and healthy.”
Holt says their garden is accessible to students of all ages, contains a variety of vegetables, fruit and flowers, and “is located adjacent to the infant playgrounds so that even our littlest learners can enjoy its beauty.”
To enhance this summer’s program, Primrose teams with Karen Weiss of Little Foot Farm and Greenhouse, a farm in Afton that is committed to conscientious and progressive organic growing practices. “We understand that our curriculum can do great things, but partnering with Little Foot Farm adds that element of organic farming expertise that is imperative to leaving a positive impact on our environment,” Holt says. “Karen is knowledgeable and helpful and, as a parent herself, knows the importance of getting children into the garden.”
Weiss says her work with the school is “a refreshing way to stay connected to our community.” She also enjoys passing along a philosophy that she and co-owner Sally Doherty adhere to while managing their farm. As she explains, “While raising beautiful, healthy plants and animals can have a big impact in our lives and in our community, it should also leave a small footprint on our planet.” It’s a lesson that even the youngest gardeners can understand.
Mud Pies offers gardening tasks for all ages, from adding rungs to a simple trellis and tending to snap-pea vines, to placing freshly plucked cherry tomatoes into a basket. “Although these are simple tasks, they get the kids to think about the fact that food is grown and to put vegetables in a positive light and have little ‘ah ha’ moments about what they eat,” Weiss says.
Chris and Laura Meyer of Woodbury have sent their three children to Primrose over the years and they consider the Mud Pies program a fun way to reinforce the school’s curriculum in an outdoor setting. “They work on their literacy by creating their own stakes and signs for the various plants, and they get to use their math skills by determining how many plants should be put in a row,” Chris says. “They’re also exposed to science by learning how seeds grow into plants. What a valuable lesson for children to learn about sustaining a food source while gaining an appreciation for healthy fruits and vegetables.”
Holt and Weiss agree that one of the most rewarding aspects of Mud Pies is seeing the children enjoy the fruits of their labor. Primrose’s chef incorporates the garden’s produce in the students’ daily snacks and lunches, and at the end of the day, the children are welcome to take home the surplus of their harvest. “Most of our students don’t have gardens at home,” Holt says. “The smiles on their faces after they’ve eaten something they’ve grown are priceless.”
While Primrose students are currently gardening outdoors, Mud Pies runs year-round. “Even if the garden is covered in snow, there’s always something growing at Primrose,” Holt says. And that’s a good thing, especially when the children go home with a little dirt on their knees and hungry for veggies.
