10th Annual Native Plant Sale

Come out and help us celebrate a decade of fundraising for the gardens at Clint Small Middle School.

We'll be featuring native trees, shrubs, grasses, perennials, and cacti most grown by students on campus in Margaret's House. We will have Green Academy t-shirts, too.

This year we will try something totally new. We will be selling during and after the school day on Wednesday, April 4th and Thursday, April 5th. We will start at 8:30 and operate continuously until 6:3o both days.

Our school is located at 4801 Monterey Oaks Blvd. The sale will be in and around Margaret's House which is located on the northwest part of the campus. Look for signs.

Margaret's House is dedicated to local naturalist, Margaret Bamberger, who shared her love and knowledge with dozens of classes from the Oak Hill area. Its mission is to study, propagate, and distribute plants native to this area.

Proceeds from the sale will benefit the native plant studies at Small Middle School. Cash or check only. Thank you.

Thanks for Supporting Margaret's House

Thanks to all who volunteered and shopped at our 2011 Spring Plant Sale. Not only does this support our green efforts around campus, it also achieves the 3 goals of Margaret's House: to study propagate, and distribute native plants in our area.

Margaret Bamberger worked with scores on Small Middle School students on the ranch and at our school. She had a hand (okay, foot) in constructing the greenhouse dedicated in her honor.

Originally the garden at Small was designed to be a Japanese garden inspired by the Tanaguchi Gardens at Zilker Park. Margaret was the chief inspiration and major mentor in persuading me to garden for wildlife focusing on native plants.

Margaret passed away two years ago. Many of her friends and family contributed to the construction of this tribute to Margaret. I want them to know that a couple of hundred middle school students have studied, propagated, and helped distribute native plants.

Sam and Jack's Masterpiece

Whoops! All those student volunteers and I forgot to appoint a photographer.

Luckily, project director Sam Birchall, who himself has worked with dozens of Small students, snapped a few. They were tiling the countertop of one of our work spaces. The mosaic tiles were leftovers from the building original construction.

Sam had Jack figure out the pattern.

A few cuts later and lots of elbow grease later...

...the deed was done.

Sam returned two days later and worked with Sergio to grout the countertops.

At the same time of the plant sale and tiling workshop, Linda Gibeaut led another project. She, along with Mr Brooks, Mr. Rosenberg, a Dad, and several students, mortared up the stone vegetable bed designed by Mrs. Reynold's math students last year. I'll post photos in a future blog.

This post is dedicated to the living memory of Margaret Campbell Bamberger.