The garden behind Miami Lakes Educational Center’s 5th building was set up with pest proof wood, a nice bench to its side, and the pride of the ecology club. If other students haven’t noticed, the garden, as well as the bench, both of which were located next to the big shady tree, have been gone since the summer of this year.

Starting in 2009, the garden has been a part of the school’s appreciation of ecological and environmental awareness, and it has been the birthplace to several plants. Mr.Turner, the club sponsor of the Ecology Club, has stated that the garden was a place of many experiments with different gardening methods.

“The problem was a lack of attention with the people who cut the grass. The vice-principal of the adult students, Mr.Gonzalez, noticed it was overgrown and they decided to clean it up over the summer,” said Mr.Turner. “I think it was a sort of lack of appreciation of trying to find the health benefits of organic gardening.”

Mr.Turner also stated that although Mr.Parker was very supportive of the garden, perhaps the issue was that they wanted to make the front of the school more attractive. In the garden to come, Turner has decided to try and imitate FIU’s new “agro-ecology” field, which practices ecofriendly gardening, which include what Mr.Turner likes to call chiapaponix, or growing plants over a body of water.

“The point of the ecology club is trying to bring environmental awareness to the world and MLEC, and that it’s okay to grow ‘healthy foods’ rather than the ones normally genetically modified.” said Mr.Turner.