The Gardening Club has sprouted out of the ground, allowing multiple opportunities for students who want to work in Amy’s Garden and connecting the community at Buena.

Led by president and founder, Madysen Hawley, and vice president Jasmine Paramo, Amy’s Garden will hopefully be seeing great changes after the disasters of the Thomas fire and Covid-19 left it with work to be done. The club is a way for students to get involved with the garden and for those who were unable to ta

ke field studies.

“[Gardening Club is a way] to involve more of the school so it is not just limited studies within the garden, but anybody who wants to [join],” Paramo said.

The garden has been empty for quite a while but now there is a group of people willing to change that.

“When I started freshman year, I would walk [by] the garden… [and] it just look[ed] so lifeless, like nobody was there,” Paramo said. “But now I like knowing that there is a group of people that want to get in there… and make it all nice.”

Gardening club offers many advantages, including fun activities and information about what is needed for the garden and its care 

“We are definitely going to be pulling weeds,… planting,…harvesting,… [and] learning about what you need to start a  garden,” Paramo said. “You can [also] take home food if you want.”

While hard work is often something that people avoid, the students involved in this club appreciate the act of struggling in order to see results. The process itself can also have its benefits.

“It is really fun to get out there and to get your hands dirty, it feels rewarding to harvest things that you have planted,” Paramo said. 

Although it is called Gardening Club, there are many more activities and experiences being offered than just taking care of the garden.

“You get to do any of the field trips that AP Field Studies do,” Paramo said. These field trips include frequent trips to the Channel Islands and most recently kayaking and snorkeling.

The Gardening Club has a lot of potential in benefitting Buena and the community by growing crops for the culinary class, cutting back on the costs of fresh produce, and bringing together students from across the school. This was the aim in the NOAA grant that Field Studies received that funds this transformation of the garden.

Yorke believes that Garden Club would be a great benefit to Buena by getting to involve students and helping them get better experiences while at school.

“I want our students to have meaningful experiences during their high school [years],” Yorke said. “[It is nice to have] access to a great group of pears in a welcoming, positive community.”