When we arrived at the garden’s waterfront location around 9 a.m., it was drizzling. One of the main staff members, Jeff Clarke, greeted and talked to us about what he and his team do at the garden and throughout Camden. Jeff explained to us how he travels to schools throughout Camden city and southern New Jersey, educating the children about healthy eating and gardening practices. He sometimes brings in different fruits and veggies for the students to try (sometimes for the first time), as certain communities do not have plentiful access to nutritious, fresh foods. He also told us about the garden’s complicated relationship with the well known Camden Aquarium, as well as difficulties receiving reliable funding from the state government.
After our short introduction, Jeff then led us to the butterfly garden, where we were able to hold butterflies. Some members of our group were afraid to enter the room, while others gladly allowed the gentle creatures to perch on an outstretched finger. We learned that butterflies taste through their feet, and that the male species are the colorful ones. Unlike in humans, if the females are the pretty, eye-catching ones, they make for easy prey to predators. This could be problematic for raising offspring.
Before we made our way to the different planting locations, we made a short stop to see the penguins at the aquarium’s outside exhibit. As the storm cleared, we split into smaller groups to garden and clean the grounds. Our group was tasked with weeding vegetable beds and planting new crops, including broccoli, collard greens, cauliflower, and spinach. These foods are sold in the garden’s marketplace, or donated for school functions.
In the midst of our hard work, we noticed a bunny running around. He was adorable!
Other groups had responsibilities like raking, cleaning, and planting daffodil arrangements. Because of another major downpour, we headed inside for a little while, which was when we discovered that we had been working alongside Santa Clause. Yep, Jeff has been working as Santa for 22 years! After taking our lunch break, we went back to gardening, and by this time it was heavily raining. Despite the rain, we continued to plant and rake and clean. Although it may sound like just a miserable cold and wet day, we were still able to make the best of it. We had a ton of fun, and learned a whole lot!
-Sonia and T’Shay
Thank you to all of you for your hard work. It was nice getting to know you. Keep up all the good work you do. I hope to see you at the Camden childrens garden again!!