Several Quaker Valley area families came together to spruce up an unkempt elementary nature site just in time for students return to school.

About 25 volunteers took shovels to dirt at the butterfly garden outside Edgeworth Elementary on Aug. 12.

They also cleaned up the walkways around the area. First day of Quaker Valley classes was Aug. 22.

School board member Missy Walls said the garden was started in 1998 by the graduating fifth grade class, which raised money and bought the plants and shrubs.

It had become overgrown and forgotten in recent years, prompting the need for a cleanup.

“The garden is in a highly visible area in Edgeworth at the corner of Chestnut (Street) and Meadow (Lane),” Walls said.

“So, it’s not just for the students and teachers to enjoy; hopefully the community will enjoy the garden as well when they pass by.

”We would like to also start some kind of garden club for the kids to help maintain the garden going forward. We think it would be a great opportunity for the students to enjoy gardening and learn about the importance of pollination for our environment.”

Walls’ daughter, Harper, a fifth grader at the school, was among the many students who participated.

“We worked for around five hours, and the garden now looks so much better,” Walls said. “The kids even got to enjoy make your own snow cones, and snacks when they needed a break.”

Master gardeners Martha Murdock and Peggy Adams donated their time and talents to the effort. They helped document what was in the garden and advised folks on what plants could stay, what needed to go and what may be good additions.

“A butterfly garden is a garden made of mostly native plants that provide for the lifecycle of butterflies and pollinators; so not just the butterflies but the caterpillars and the chrysalis and the whole deal,” Murdock explained.

“The first thing was to identify everything (in the garden) because we didn’t know what was even there.”

The garden has three integrated beds surrounded by sidewalks. There are swings and two benches in the center.

Volunteers removed grass, weeds and blue juniper. They added some black-eyed Susans and a tall spiky perennial Murdock referred to as an “obedience plant.”

Other plants in the garden include Japanese maples, goldenrods, false indigo, magnolias and Echinacea or coneflowers.

Murdock and Adams talked with students about the different plants and showed them how to use tools and take care of their environment.

“That was really a great opportunity to get these kids and parents involved with a good project,” Murdock said. “Research has shown how important it is for kids to get outside. It’s good for their health and their well-being. Watching these kids was so exciting because they did so much.

“They took turns and they shared. They learned how to use tools and they became self-confident in how to plant plants. We looked at roots and bugs and seed pods. They were just so enthusiastic. It was really fun.”

Murdock, a Bell Acres resident, was encouraged to help out with the garden by Edgeworth parent Addie Sochats. They have been neighbors for about five years.

Sochats said the garden was not much to look at until everyone came together.

“I just thought: Here’s a patch of green things,’” she said. “It hasn’t been updated since I couldn’t even guess when. Just lots of things buried in there.”

Sochats said she was proud her children were able to help with the cleanup and was very grateful for Murdocks’ assistance.

“My kids just love volunteering, doing whatever sort of needs to be done,” Sochats said. “It came naturally to them and they love playing in the dirt. It’s cool to see (as a parent), but it’s not unexpected to see them playing in the dirt.”

Sochats’ daughters, Francesca Zeiders and Laura Zeiders, are entering sixth and fourth grade, respectively.

Edgeworth’s Home and School Association will take over butterfly garden maintenance.

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