Our First Garden

Learning 4 Life Farm is diving headfirst into organic gardening with the students at The Learning Spectrum North East - Johnstown. ​

This spring our TLS Johnstown Transition Class (grades 9-12) built raised garden beds -- the kids worked hard and got experience using power tools! The PreK, K-2, Elementary and Middle School classes painted tires and built them into colorful planters, too. Families and garden centers donated compost, garden soil, mulch, tools, tomato cages, plants and seeds, and even a wheelbarrow, and the Transition students planted tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, herbs, flowers, and cucumbers. 

​We’re using organic fertilizer, compost, and bug repellent, and our summer garden is off to a great start -- raised beds keep the soil drained and cut down on weeds. Our Transition Summer Camp students are tending the garden, and so far their favorite activity is planting vegetable starts. Later this week we’ll stake tomatoes and trellis cucumbers and squash.
Stay tuned as we harvest later this summer! 

Big thanks to our garden donors: The Learning Spectrum, TLS Northeast PTO, DataField, Home Depot, Oakland Nurseries, Baker’s Acres, Sunbury Urban Farm, Boyd’s Tire and Service, Jennifer Scales, Mary Hooker, and Rick and Jane Baltisberger.