Learning, growing
Fingers in the dirt cradle fragile seedlings. Some hands are wrinkled next to others that are smooth.
In March, two groups of people – more than a generation apart – stood side-by-side to share knowledge on greenhouse starts through an informal partnership between the Spokane Valley Senior Center and Spokane Valley High School’s horticulture program.
It’s a potential bumper crop for both the young students and the seniors. Senior Center volunteers sought tips for starting and operating a greenhouse, something SVHS has done for three years. Newer SVHS students need planting knowledge and can learn from lifelong gardeners.
Both groups plan to host separate community plant sales on May 1.
“We kind of plant and talk,” said Tara Clark, 15, describing when she and her classmates piled onto a school bus to help senior volunteers at their center start plants, followed two weeks later by a group of six seniors who came to the school.
“It helps to get older advice. They’ve been planting since they were young. Before this, I had a Chia pet, but it died.”
Seniors got a greenhouse space when their new Valley center opened this past fall in a wing of CenterPlace, a complex built at Mirabeau Point across from the Valley YMCA.
Chuck Chandler, a senior volunteer, sought help starting a greenhouse and knew that SVHS horticultural instructor Scott Carver has worked with students in operating a greenhouse with annual plant sales. However, neither could remember who called first.
“Last year, Scott called us to see if we could send someone over to help,” said Chandler, while at SVHS recently. “This year with the new building, we got a new greenhouse and I didn’t know squat about it, so I called Scott and he helped me. We had to build all the potting tables and hung racks. He came over two weeks ago with all these students they put on a school bus, so now we are back helping them.”
Chandler, 74, said that many seniors are eager for reasons to enjoy a favorite pastime of gardening.
“This is neighbors helping neighbors,” he added. “Many seniors are used to gardening and may have lost a partner, so they haven’t done it for a while. They’re just aching to get their fingernails dirty again.”
“One lady said you’re helping save me because I’m busy again.”
The two groups were working at the SVHS greenhouse in mid-March using a large green metal trough to replant tiny bedding plants, including many flower varieties. Rich Hill, 65, and Karen Hill, 64, of Newman Lake are members of a local gardening club and volunteered at the school.
“We read in the newspaper that the senior center had a greenhouse and we thought we’d help,” said Karen Hill. “We love gardening. When we found out that we’re working with kids, that made it even better. These kids are interested in planting. You don’t have to keep telling them to do something.”
Irma Edwards, 57, saw it as a chance to help. “It’s for a good cause. It’s helping the youth who maybe don’t fit into the mainstream of a traditional school. It’s fun. You see their enthusiasm and energy level.”
The joint work inspired some conversations about school, families, grandparenting and gardening. “We did an assembly line,” described student Jamie Pierce, 16, about the joint work. “I’ve shared stories with them.”
Student Cassie Swiger said she thought that working with seniors was fun.
“It felt really giving and caring to be able to get out and help people. We just talked about school. I think it’s cool they’re here to help us out.”
SVHS in West Valley offers a greenhouse project as part of three pathways for students: cafe, Web design and horticulture. About 20 students at the school take horticulture, some for all six periods in the day and some for only one.
“We try to submerge them into these vocational opportunities,” said Carver. “We give them an idea of how a well-run greenhouse would work as a business. They learn the whole process from planting to advertising to current market analysis to helping customers out to the car with plants.”
“We want to connect our students with our community as much as possible. We already had this relationship with the senior center. They get this greenhouse, so it was, ‘Would you help get us going?’ It came together really well. Our goal is to continue this in the future.”
In the school’s roughly 2,000-square-foot greenhouse, students learn about starting plants in stages, growing different varieties from flowers to vegetables, and conducting science projects.
Mary McLeslie, 68, who also volunteered at the school, had a little bit of gardening experience but never learned large-scale planting techniques.
“I’ve never done anything like this. The kids are teaching me a lot. You think at my age I’d know how to do this. You’re never too old to learn I guess.”