This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Ms. Cahill doesn't really remember the first Earth Day in 1970, but she does remember making a batik banner with the Earth Day symbol in her 8th grade Art class in 1971. Her banner had the green Earth Day symbol on a bright blue background.
Click on the link below to see a short, animated history of Earth Day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6LUaGy1ChA
Because of the global coronavirus pandemic, there will not be the traditional gathering of people involved in service projects around the globe. Ms. Cahill hopes to celebrate Earth Day this year by working in the garden after her school work is done on Wednesday, April 22nd.
Since we are all at home anyway, this is a great time to start a garden. It doesn't have to be big. Many flowers, fruits, and vegetables can be successfully grown in containers. Find a sunny spot and start growing. Seeds seedlings are readily available at local stores and on the internet. Ms. Cahill's backyard garden is shown below. The picture on the left was taken this morning and the picture on the right is from last summer. We had LOTS of raspberries last summer. This year we are harvesting our first asparagus after a long 3 year wait. It takes awhile for asparagus to get established, but it is worth the wait. The freshly picked stalks are so tender!
Since we are all at home anyway, this is a great time to start a garden. It doesn't have to be big. Many flowers, fruits, and vegetables can be successfully grown in containers. Find a sunny spot and start growing. Seeds seedlings are readily available at local stores and on the internet. Ms. Cahill's backyard garden is shown below. The picture on the left was taken this morning and the picture on the right is from last summer. We had LOTS of raspberries last summer. This year we are harvesting our first asparagus after a long 3 year wait. It takes awhile for asparagus to get established, but it is worth the wait. The freshly picked stalks are so tender!
Here is a short video on how to start a garden. Start small with easy to grow plants like radishes, leaf lettuces, and peas. If you live in Prairie Fields, the soil is very heavy clay, but the Landscape Recycling Center in Urbana has soil, compost and mulch. They deliver, too! Happy gardening!