"Its My Park Day" threatened to be an empty celebration of tarps and rain gear but nature's whimsy once again overshadowed the weatherman and it turned out to be a perfect day.
In collaboration with Coffey Park gardener, John Clark, and volunteers from Coffey Park Gardeners, Kentler Teaching Artist Mollie McQuarrie worked with participants to hunt for trees, measure them and then transfer those measurements to ribbons. Once we had our ribbons cut and labeled we pinned them together to create a "drawn" tree ring diagramming the number of trees by type and their corresponding diameters. We measured London Planes, Maples, Oaks, Redbuds, Crabapples, Lindens and Gingkos. We decided that next year we will measure ALL the trees in the park and compare their sizes to see how much they've grown.
Most volunteers measured circumference which we then helped them translate into diameter using a calculater. A few participants, eager to use Pi probably for the first time since high school, did the math themselves (circumference divided by Pi equals diameter). The ribbons we cut represent DIAMETER.
While some participants were eager to measure, others were content to hang out on our mural-sized roll of wallpaper with Mollie to cut, label, arrange and pin. Still others got some drawing paper and drew trees or worked on our scavenger hunt with a sibling or parent. By the end of the day this project involved a diverse array of neighborhood families, those from far away, and people of all sizes, shapes and colors ranging from age 3-70!
Throughout the day neighborhood folks and commuters stopped in to see the progress of our tree rings and lend a helping hand. The blue ring represents London Planes. The "LP's", as the gardeners call them, got their own special blue ring because they are the logo for Coffey Park due to their abundance and size.
The Coffey Park Tree Rings will be on view in the Coffey Park House SOON!
Thank you to everyone for making this a wonderful day! Due to its success and popularity it may become an annual event. Stay tuned!
Special thanks to Independence Community Foundation for their support.
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