Garden Project Helps Students Discover New Way To Bloom

DADE CITY - Students at Moore-Mickens Education Center in Dade City learned how to help the environment this year by creating a hydroponics garden.

J.D. Durham, behavior specialist at the school, said the hydroponics garden provided hands-on experience about water conservation.

"It is even better than a traditional garden because you can use less space and get a higher yield of plants," Durham said. "It uses a lot less water than a traditional garden and it also takes less time for the plants to grow to maturity."

The garden is a vertical hydroponics growing system made up of four poles with five units per pole for a total of 80 plants. The system is 18 inches wide and 121/2 feet long.

Durham applied for a Splash! Mini-Grant from the Pasco County School District in conjunction with the Southwest Florida Water Management District last year, and she received $1,248.58 in October.

Since then, she and her students have created a hydroponics garden using a mix of vermiculite and perlite. The plants receive one quart of water three times a day. The water is mixed with a half-ounce of sulfuric acid per 55 gallons and nutrients.

Mary Alice Makoid, youth education specialist at Swiftmud, said Durham received the grant because her project focused on water conservation.

Four other Pasco schools also received grants, including James Irvin Educational Center, Centennial Elementary, Bayonet Point Middle and Gulf Trace Elementary.

"We gave grants based on the focus of the project," Makoid said. "We wanted the projects to focus on water quality, water conservation, alternative sources and water supply or watersheds. Since we are in drought, we wanted to give grants to projects that focused on water conservation."

Durham said the school serves those with behavioral problems, teenage mothers and mentally handicapped students.

"These are kids who couldn't make it in a traditional classroom setting," Durham said. "These are hands-on kids. I think they are learning something important about the environment."

Kevin Brown, a sixth-grader, said he plans to eat the fruit and vegetables from the garden.

"My favorite part is getting to plant stuff," Brown said. "I like to work in the garden because I get to be outside."

Joe King, a student in the Families of Advocates Partnership for Education program, said he enjoys the outdoors. Recently, the school took students on a field trip to Crystal River.

"I saw snakes, turtles and gators," King said. "I got to get my feet wet and it felt good."

Durham also received a Splash! grant last school year. She and her students created a butterfly garden at the school as a tranquil place to enjoy the outdoors.

"When we put the butterfly garden in last year, the kids did every bit of the digging and planting," Durham said. "It is a great place to go and relax. We got a lot of help from B.J. Jarvis at the Pasco County Extension center."

Principal Steve Cox said he is thrilled with the gardening.

"I think the hydroponics garden is a neat idea," he said. "I also think they did a great job with the butterfly garden. It benefits the kids because they are exposed to things they normally wouldn't see."

Applications for Splash! grants are available at www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/minigrants. Grants offer up to $5,000 a school and are available to public, private and home-school teachers.

For more information, call 1-800-423-1476.