Come for the Teaching, Stay for the Agriculture

Another fun surprise was waiting for me at elementary school today.  A number of boxes with plants in them and some wheelbarrows were all lined up in front of the school.

Hmmm...I wonder where the kids are running off to?

Down the rabbit hole...

and into the secret garden!  

Yes, today was planting day for my students' garden.  Each of the boxes out front had a number that corresponded with the planting teams.

Little white signs were placed on the end of each row to show which team was responsible for maintaining it.  First things first, let's collect rocks!

Here's the bucket I helped with:

All the rocks were dumped under a nearby tree.

After receiving some instructions from the students' grandparents (who were on hand to help if we needed it) everyone set about spacing out the plants.

Next came the actual planting.  We were told to bury them up to the fourth branch and pat down the soil afterward.

Last, we watered the plants.  Each one got ten handfuls of water.  An excellent opportunity to practice counting in English if you ask me.

Here's the sign for our "Waku Waku Noen" or "Exciting Agricultural Garden."  In faded letters below, it says "joy to grow" and "beware of snakes."  Nice!

It certainly was a day I won't soon forget.