Saturday, June 09, 2001St. Rita grows young gardeners 
By Peg St. Clair Enquirer contributorIn March 2000, Twila Deanbecame involved with the  students at St. Rita's School
for the Deaf through the Master Gardener internship program. After completing 12 weeks of classes, Ms. Dean was 
ready to put her education to good use, but she was reluctant to consider a position as the school's gardening
coordinator. She didn't know sign language and felt too inexperienced to lead a program.  Nevertheless, her love for
children prevailed, and the  internship blossomed into a paid position at St. Rita's. 

"It's my own personal miracle to help in the creation of the beauty that is already here," Ms. Dean says. "The  gardens
are coming alive with an energy of their own, and I  am loving every bit of this experience."  St. Rita's gardens were 
begun in 1927. The students helped to build the walls, plant trees and tackle general gardening tasks. The gardens
especially were popular in the  1940s, when Victory Gardens were at their peak.  Through a grant several years ago, a
gazebo was built and the greenhouse was renovated. Now students can be  involved in gardening year-round. 

These gardens, tucked today between Interstate 75 and    the overpass at Glendale Milford Road, have been planned
and worked by the St. Rita students. There is a sense of ownership and just the right balance between instruction and 
true involvement of the students. 

 A Succulent Garden, new Bulb Garden, Four Season  Garden and Hillside Garden have been installed. A Friendship
Garden, Wildlife Sanctuary and Louisiana Courtyard are being developed. 

Ongoing projects are a Student Art Wall, Gourd Tunnel, Wildflower Garden and a Nature Trail through 30 acres.  St.
Rita's gardens will be part of the Gardens of Glendale tour 10 a.m.-3 p.m. today.Tickets ($10) and directions will be  at
Glendale Florist, 1133 Congress Ave., and Bluebird Bakery and Century House, both on the village square.
Information:  772-4976. 

                 Their own garden gives Ross students a  hand on nature 

Butterflies even tagged and tracked thanks to grant, award to 6th-grade teacher 
By Sue Kiesewetter  Enquirer Contributor 

ROSS TOWNSHIP _ In the last eight weeks, Ross  Middle School students have found and tagged 11 monarch 
butterflies, one of which migrated to Alabama before it died. 

They are hoping to attract a hummingbird and tag even more butterflies as they add perennials and bushes to a
40-by-40-foot garden surrounding the school's student-run  greenhouse outside a science classroom. 

They've been able to move forward on their project thanks to a $2,000 award given to sixth-grade teacher Al Gross,
who has overseen the project since a $5,000 grant from Fluor  Daniel allowed the school to purchase the greenhouse
three years ago. He was recently recognized as an outstanding teacher in ReliaStar's Education's Unsung Heroes
Awards program and is eligible for up to $25,000 in other grants that will be announced soon. 

"It was scrub grass out there _ a real eyesore," said Joel  Fink, assistant superintendent for Ross Local Schools. "It took
some real leadership to involve the community and the kids to  do this." 

 The grant money plus proceeds from the students' sale of plants in the greenhouse and aluminum-can recycling upped
the budget for the project to $2,700. The money is being spent on seeds and plants, mulch and fertilizer, soils, fencing,
landscaping stones and timber, materials for a pond and a compost bin. Eventually a bird house, bird feeders and tables
will be added. 

Each day, students volunteer to work either in the greenhouse watering plants and tending to their upkeep, or they're out
in the garden digging holes to lay timber, mark  paths or add plants. Sixth-graders design the different areas of the
garden, which eventually will include herbs besides  perennials native to the area. 

 "At home it's not fun to pull weeds but here it is. We do it as a group," said sixth- grader Christina Stoffer. "I think it's
kind of cool Mr. Gross trusts us with this stuff _ all these tools." 

Seventh-grader Matt Smith said his group tried to choose  the most colorful perennials to get people's attention. 

 "I was surprised at how beautiful it looks," he said. "When you get the seed it might not look so good but it grows into
something beautiful." Zach Slinker said the students were building up some perennial beds near the garden's perimeter so
they could be seen over the landscaping timber. 

Besides using the greenhouse and garden for science instruction, Mr. Gross said students have used math skills tomark
off and design smaller areas within the garden.  Several English essays were also prompted by the project. Reading and
critical thinking skills were used when reading catalogs and descriptions of seeds in deciding what to purchase and plant.