Schoolyard Lessons: Growing the Next Generation of Stewards for Darby 

Schoolyard Lessons: Growing the Next Generation of Stewards for Darby 

By: Ellie Ross

The leaves are changing, the days are getting cooler, school is back in session and in Darby a new and exciting project has taken root and is growing.  Behind Darby School students now find over 350 square feet of garden beds with blooming native flowers and healthy fruits and veggies. This is the Darby Courtyard Habitat and is the home of over 125 native, Water-Wise (or ‘low-water’)plants, the hügelkultur mound for wildflowers, and seven food crop beds! The Darby Habitat is one of multiple ‘Water-Wise’ landscapes that the Bitterroot Water Partnership has helped install this summer, including those at the Ravalli County Fairgrounds and the Hamilton Public Library. At Darby, not only are students seeing the benefits that native plants provide for pollinators and water conservation efforts, they’re also able to increase their understanding of sustainable and local gardening practices.  

Planting the Seeds 

Standing in the garden watching butterflies flit from flower to flower blossoming in neatly mulched beds, it’s not immediately obvious how much effort from community members, students, volunteers and the Water Partnership went into the Habitat. In 2023 BWP received a small grant from the Montana Community Foundation (Darby Chapter) to help students and staff install a pollinator habitat in their unused courtyard.  Over the course of 6 months, BWP’s Big Sky Watershed Corps member, Ellie, helped Darby staff and students transform the space. 

Over 350 sq ft of lawn was removed to make room for flower beds and the hügelkultur mound. Over 125 native pollinator-friendly and water-wise species including Showy Goldeneye, Wooly Sunflowers, Prairie Coneflowers and Silvery Lupines from our Water-Wise Plant Packs were planted by middle and high school students. Soil in the raised beds was replaced with a nutrient rich organic soil-compost mixture before adding vegetables to replace the tangle of weeds that had previously laid claim.

By the time Darby School reopened their doors in Fall of 2024, the courtyard was transformed, and a new outdoor learning space had opened up among the trees!   

Ellie Ross, the Bitterroot Water Partnership’s 2024 Big Sky Watershed Corps member, leads high school students in planting over 100 native water-wise and pollinator friendly plants alongside high school science teacher, Andrew Shulstad.

The Fruits of Our Labor: Stewards of the Future 

The Bitterroot Water Partnership has helped install multiple Water-Wise gardens throughout the Valley. The Darby Courtyard Habitat expands upon this to serve as an outdoor classroom space for students and teachers interested in horticulture, native plants, pollinators, and more! Studies have shown there are a range of benefits to teaching outside and letting kids learn from the world around them including an increase in problem-solving skills and creativity and a decrease in behavioral issues.  

The decision to extend this partnership with Darby School was motivated by the enthusiasm from involved teachers and BWP’s emphasis on empowering young local stewards. Students can be immersed in a space that emphasizes water conservation, sustainable agriculture, and personal exploration. Students who prefer to ‘learn through doing’ have an easier time absorbing new information and high school students can take on new responsibilities as Garden Ambassadors to direct Courtyard care. 

When the next generation’s mindset is grounded in stewardship values, the impacts can stretch for years to come.  

Looking back on a year of planning, development, and initial implementation, it’s clear the garden is blooming with the support of students and teachers. As the Courtyard Habitat passes from our hands into the full control of the Darby School community, it will continue to grow alongside the students that pass through its gates to explore the native flowers, sample schoolyard produce and learn more about what it means to live in our Valley. 

Water-Wise, drought tolerant plants flourish in two large beds in the Darby Courtyard, providing pollinator habitat and a beautiful show of flowers!