The freedom tree.

September 11, 2001 is a date we all remember when our country suffered a terrorist attack. This year the Federated Garden Club planned an event at the Arboretum to commemorate that time and to plant a tree as a memorial. They chose a spot in the newly created Children’s Garden

Grand Opening of the Children’s Garden

We can see from the document below and the photos that this event was quite elaborate and contained several components.

Orkin put on a display all about bugs, of course

We had music

The schedule included hot air balloons and small aircraft

Of course, there were loads of things for kids 

The community is beginning to find ways to hold their events at the Arboretum

This one was Organ Donor Night

This year we learn more about the Children’s Garden

This project has been in the works since 1999, At last, after three years of hard work, we see the finished product.

To refresh our memoires; the Master Plan says in part: “children visiting the garden should have a place for their own needs, a safe and stimulating environment where whimsical structures for climbing will allow them to expend some of their abundant energy……” “this garden will offer greater freedom of movement and exploration to youngsters and serve as a gathering space for many educational activities.”

The red dot shows us where it was on the Master Plan and we find that the present location is very near this spot.

There is a four- page document in the archives called the concept plan, rather than include copies of the entire thing; I am listing the main points from this document, but first a quote from the opening statement of the plan.

“The Children’s Garden is designed for playful and engaging education. It is not conceived as an active playground or a pre-school tot lot. The garden is meant to support the teachers, docents, and educational programs for school children between the ages of 6-12 in grades 1-6. The goal of the garden is to stimulate inquisitive thought and encourage critical analysis. The garden is meant to train the young scientific minds of future scientists.”

Main points and/or features

·        Story book garden

·        Different animal homes and habitats

·        A compass Rose

·        A sundial

·        A water- channel

·        Shade structures

·        Weather station

·        Fast plant garden

·        Windbreak play area

·        Soils study area

·        Compost study area

·        Prairie butterfly maze

·        Sand area

We should note here that the original concept was changed early on to accommodate an Education Center as evidenced in this document shown below, given the early success of our Earth Connections program and the stated importance of education in the Mater Plan, it is not surprising that the garden shed has given way to an Education Center.

Now let’s take a look at the actual building process

One item of interest that has to do with the Children’s Garden is the advent of our T-Rex.

According to an article in our newsletter dated March of 2002, an 8 feet tall steel Tyrannosaurus Rex created by welding students from Hawkeye in 1993 was looking for a new home. So, Sparky, as he was named by the students, was donated to the newly created Children’s Garden. He originally resided in some type of cage by the sand box, according to the article. Today you can find Sparky in the tall grass right outside the Children’s Garden fence.

As we look at this year what impacts us the most are the two newer elements of the site: the maturing Rose Garden and the new Children’s Garden

According to the records we planted many one of kind trees this year. A lot of them went into the Peek-a-boo forest in the Children’s Garden

As always, our amazing volunteers are what make the dream work.

Cindy Gutknecht and Kelly Conrad

Glen Johnson, Carol Saul, and Irene Johnson

Jan Rather

Chloe

Larry