For years Maple Leaf’s Perkins School had an unused sliver of a backyard. No more.
Over the winter the fourth- and fifth-grade classes transformed it into a native plant demonstration garden. “We wanted to make our school more sustainable,” said Colt Deese, the school’s science and environmental teacher. “The kids actually had the ideas. They did the planting.”
This charming YouTube video by the school, at 9005 Roosevelt Way N.E., shows the kids constructing the garden far better than we could describe it.
The yard was filled with weeds and broken furniture. The kids cleared the junk and put down cardboard to kill the weeds. Then they started digging.
Seattle Tree Preservation donated a pile of wood-chip mulch. Trees and plants were salvaged. A worm bin and composting food cones appeared. Most of the stuff, including the cardboard, was donated. “Our budget for the entire thing was around $300,” said Deese.
The school kids are also stewards of Thornton Creek Park No. 6. Yes, the one with the Maple Leaf beavers.
Salvaged young trees, including these, are planted at the creek, with the permission of Seattle Parks and Recreation. They’ve been doing it for three years.
