Spring is the time for new plants to appear. Now we're at the peak of the spring season and looking ahead to summer.
But thee are indoor plants!
I don't know how it happened but at one time I had many "house plants " or maybe to be more exact "school plants. "
Well, I do have an idea why I accumulated so many plants. I probably asked a teacher who had plants. I know the Vice Principal gave me a huge Christmas cactus. After that plants just kept accumulating. Somebody had a plant they didn't want? Send it to school with the kid and give it to the teacher. There were many small plants like ivies. I had one ivy that trailed around the classroom. There were large plants like split leaf Philodendrom, diefenbachia. I also had a couple of tree like plants that grew to the classroom ceiling.
I was surprised by how many middle school kids were interested in plants. I always had some starters on the go for kids who wanted a plant. I think some of them had a favorite plant that they would visit each day as I would catch somebody daydreaming at a plant. There were many secretive plant waterers. I just kept my eye on things to see that nothing was missed.
I was also surprised that there wasn't vandalism. I had one or two aloe veras. There was always somebody who needed the aloe vera for some owy but they always asked for permission.
So one day a kid said to me. "Mr. Kline do you know how many plants you have?" I said "No. Did you count them?" He had counted them so I said, "How many?" Forty two! So my classroom was a bit of a jungle.
When I retired I had to get rid of my plants. So teachers wanted some and kids wanted some. Some I wanted to take home. I made my plan to retire a year before so I had lots of time to clear things up.
Plants created a good times for me and some students.
I love plants and would love to have an indoor jungle but lack of light doesn't permit. I'm glad the plants you had brought you a lot of joy (and others too after your retirement).
ReplyDeleteI would still have plants but this house is not suitable because of light.
DeleteNo plants for me- I once killed a cactus.
ReplyDeleteOkay , I've got it. Only snow!
DeleteWhat an interesting classroom with so many plants! Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteEducators discovered that the classroom decor helped with learning.
DeleteThat is a LOT of plants. Good story, Red.
ReplyDeleteI'll never forget the nerdy little kid who counted the plants.
DeleteI enjoyed this post, Red. I like that you shared your plants with your students and many of them took interest in the plants. I wonder how many went on to develop of habit of growing their own plants. Sounds like you were a well-liked teacher. Well done!
ReplyDeleteYes, I would wonder how many took to plants. I know one former student who has a good collection of cars but I didn't do anything with cars . I didn't even have pictures of cars.
DeleteI loved reading about all your plants that you had in your classroom. Makes me wonder if there were any plants in my classrooms when I was growing up. I don't remember any.
ReplyDeleteYou probably didn't have plants. Only a nerdy old teacher like me would have plants.
Deletei had forgotten how important plants were in the classroom. I wonder if that is also true today?
ReplyDeleteYou must have been a lovely teacher Re
ReplyDeleteWell thankyou. Some days I was awesome and some days I stunk the joint out.
DeleteThis is such a great time of year for growing in this country. Too bad it’s so short.
ReplyDeleteI really prefer outdoor native plants.
DeleteI love having plants, we have them in every window.
ReplyDeleteI cannot remember any classroom with plants! Yours were wonderful.
ReplyDeleteGood for you Red, caring for plants is good for kids in the classroom:)
ReplyDeleteGreat. This house has very little good light for plants
ReplyDeleteI got a good feeling from this post. I liked that your students noticed and cared for your plants and that you could enhance your relationships with your students through your plants. Good for you.
ReplyDeleteThose kinds of experiences make fabulous memories for kids and I bet it was good for their mental health
ReplyDeleteI always had plants at school! I had several that were 4' tall!
ReplyDeleteI remember Ice Storm '98 and the school was 5 C. when I returned about 10 days without power. My Dief was still OK!
(ツ) from Cottage Country Ontario , ON, Canada!
What a nice memory to have firmly planted in your mind.
ReplyDeleteI love the stories from your days in the classroom. Given the classes I taught in high school, I did not have the same classroom all day. So, it would have been difficult to have a sort of “green room” at school. It sure sounds like it was a delight for you.
ReplyDeleteThose sound like great memories. I once worked with a woman whose husband taught biology. One of his subjects we plants. The kids would grow some of them in the classroom, and take care of others. At the end of the year, the teach had to take home a considerable amount. So, one summer day, the woman had a plant party at their house. She invited all her female friends from work for lunch and at the end we got to select plants to take home with us. It was a lot of fun! And a brilliant way for the plants to be minimized in their house.
ReplyDeleteI had four hanging planters in my classroom and perhaps one or two pots of plants. Your classroom sounds very inviting and I'll bet the plants cleaned your air well too. We had more plants when we lived in Illinois, but here in Hawaii we don't keep any indoor plants. Uuuummm... except my lucky bamboo who is not very lucky right now.
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