BRIDPORT — While children see spiders as part of the spooky Halloween holiday, Bridport Central School students recently were introduced to the notion that spiders are a vital part of a garden community. Principal Jenny Urban invited Jill Vickers, a member of Bridport Blooms that maintains the school flower bed, to the all-school community meeting Sept. 12. There she shared photos of the orb weaver garden spiders currently in the school flower bed using plant stems to anchor their webs.

BRIDPORT SCHOOL STUDENTS work together packing down the newly-added shredded bark mulch on a bed for sunflowers.

On Sept. 19, two of the Bridport School mixed-grade groups, K-5, joined Bridport Blooms volunteers Nancy McDonald, Paula Fleisher and Vickers to plant the garden’s first shrub, a native black chokeberry donated by Bridport Blooms volunteer David Basque. Students in pairs volunteered to take a part. Using shovel, trowels, wheelbarrow, garden gloves, soil amendment and lots of water hauled from the school in cans, the students, with the help of staff members, had the shrub in place with plant marker in 30 minutes. Mixed-grade groups are perfect for garden projects. 

After that meeting, first-grader Ezra along with his grandfather Bill Taylor, a para-professional at the school, found an orb weaver spider on the playground. Ezra said it was on a short, dead milkweed. He recognized it and knew it belonged in the garden. His grandfather Bill took it there out of harm’s way. Ezra noticed it a few days later with a grasshopper wrapped in its web. 

On Sept. 26, two other mixed grade groups with volunteers Dinah Bain, McDonald and Vickers created two new flower beds by the playground. Students plucked seeds from sunflower heads donated by Bridport Blooms volunteer Karan Cutler, who had inspired the project. Students then grabbed newspapers from a box, piled them on the soil, covered them with cardboard from Pratt’s Store shed and added mulch and some garden soil. The beds will be planted in the spring. Team spirit was high, and no one held back in the bright sunlight and cool air of two perfect September mornings. 

Editor’s note: This story was provided by Jill Vickers.