Living in Technicolor

The ReTreeUS Farm - our "Emerald City"

Spring has always been my favorite season. Like the film The Wizard of Oz, it's a time when the black and white shades of winter suddenly lift to reveal a Technicolor dream world--only it's real. And as we dive into planting orchards with vibrant, smiling kids, the Emerald City comes alive more than ever.

Fifth graders transform what was a rather lifeless zone in front of their rural Maine school  into a large orchard and outdoor classroom. The foresight and support of their teachers and community were an essential part of the process.

On May 2nd, we finished planting our last orchard of the school year, bringing our total to eight educational orchards in the past two years. Participating students range in age from 2 to 18 years old, and we are often joined by community volunteers and teachers aged 24 to 74.

High school students near the coast plant a peach tree in the large orchard they helped add to their already-active school garden space. Many thanks to volunteers from FoodCorps Maine and the Good Tern Food Coop, as well as supportive teachers from the school.

Everyone loves to be involved! Working together on this inspiring project, planting food-producing trees for themselves and future generations, students feel something deep within them spring to life as well--before our eyes, their connection with the earth and with each other changes from black and white to color.

To be sure, this enlivened connection is an invaluable benefit of the ReTreeUS program. Alongside the innumerable other benefits of a school-based agriculture program (e.g. increased academic and social skills), ReTreeUS receives the benefit of a thousand enthusiastic helpers--making it happen in a way that we could not do alone. We thank the students, staff and communities who rallied to make this year's orchards a success.

This young gardener came with his mother and sister to help ReTreeUS plant a partnership orchard at Wolfe's Neck Farm.

When a thoughtful third grader placed her four-leaf clover in the hole with the tree she planted, when the high school senior's shoes got so muddy from a day of planting that he took them off and watered the trees barefoot, when the two-year-old adopted a new favorite word: "Compost!", when the fifth graders shared the shovel even when they didn't want to, we knew that we were leaving these trees in the best of care.

If this story brings a little more Technicolor to your life, you can join our many supporters by becoming a member, or apply for your own school orchard today!