The horticulture garden is one of the staples of our school. Many clubs meet, people eat their lunch and even have their elective in the garden. Students love the horticulture garden. However, have we ever thought about who runs it and keeps it nice for us? Mrs. Trujillo, the horticulture teacher manages the place. She’s done an excellent job, considering this is her first year working as a high school teacher full-time. Not only that, but she teaches horticulture, and sustainable landscaping, and sponsors the FFA club (Future Farmers of America). She truly does a lot for our school! Yet, how did you get up to this point?
At first, Mrs. Trujillo only knew she wanted to do humanitarian work. She loves working with kids. However, she found her love for gardening when a tomato plant randomly grew after a rainy day. The taste of the fresh homegrown tomatoes convinced Mrs. Trujillo that gardening was for her. Of course, when you love something, you want everyone to feel the same way, that’s why she loves teaching horticulture. Now, that’s only part of the story. She got to Eagle Rock through Mr. Mailes, the previous ERHS horticulture teacher. They both work at a non-profit organization, and when Mr. Mailes was leaving our school, he knew that Mrs. Trujillo was a gardener, so he passed along the baton to her.
Aside from teaching us, Mrs. Trujillo runs a business where she installs and maintains people’s gardens. Her favorite type of garden is an edible garden. An edible garden is what it sounds like, a garden that grows produce and other crops you can eat. Mrs. Trujillo’s favorite plant to grow is a tomato plant as it was the first plant she grew. She also enjoys camping with her family. Going off-roading is a fun adventure she loves! And of course, she uses her plant knowledge to find edible plants.
Have I mentioned Mrs. Trujillo loves gardening? She is the sponsor for FFA, the Future Farmers of America. This is a club, especially for students that have a love for plants and gardening. They do lots of garden work, planting seeds, maintaining the garden, and overall care for our space. The club has great plans for our garden. As you may know, they have been collecting wood for a chicken coop.
Speaking of aspirations, Mrs. Trujillo hopes to one day have a schoolwide program that collects organic materials that we can compost in the garden. One of her favorite lessons to teach her students is compost! Compost is a great way to help the environment by reducing waste.
Mrs. Trujillo is an awesome teacher who loves sharing her passion for plants with her students. Despite this only being Mrs. Trujillo’s first year at ERHS, she is proving to be a very special and vital part of our school. Next time you stop by the horticulture garden, be sure to say hi to the wonderful Mrs. Trujillo!