By Iris Graville

Three bald eagles circled overhead last Saturday morning as a group of us joined Suzanne Berry and Valerie Yukluk for a work party at the L.I.F.E. school garden (a BOUNTY participant).

Through this garden program, Lopez students learn about where food for their school lunches comes from, and they help grow it.

 It’s time to put some of the garden’s plots “to bed” for the winter, though the tomatoes in the greenhouse are still producing 60 to 70 pounds of fruit per week!

“We’ve harvested over 1000 pounds of tomatoes since August,” Suzanne says. “We’ve been making tomato sauce for the cafeteria freezer, and last week I made spicy pizza sauce.”

Eight volunteers spent the morning harvesting a few tomatoes plus the last of the cucumbers, tomatillos, and summer squash, and preparing beds for garlic.

Erika Davis, Dixie Budke, and I helped Suzanne and Valerie weed along the garden fence

and create a small berm to keep the rabbits from digging their way through to the tempting cabbages.

After the productive morning, volunteers stopped in the Garden Classroom for snacks

and to admire some of the bounty the garden produced.

Looks like the kids will be eating well all winter long.