Wildflower School

Our garden goal is, essentially, to take what we already have and make it better. Seven years ago we started a garden in our school, turning an asphalt school yard into a diverse garden and play space with raised garden beds, a stage, and a story circle. We are now at a place where we need some additional support to push it further. This grant will help us further our garden goals by:
• improving and extending our irrigation system
• fixing up and optimizing the effectiveness of the wooden 3-bin composter we built
• expanding the garden to grow more foods – specifically grapes and grains

We use our school garden to help children make the connections between the food they eat and where it comes from: what it takes to tend a garden, the growing requirements of specific foods (space, sun, water, nourishment, staking, weeding, thinning etc), what specific plant foods look like when they’re growing, when to harvest, what the soil needs, which crops can grow well together etc. The gardens provide an experiential entry point to food-focused discussions and habits of thinking as children learn first-hand about the social and environmental ethics and issues embodied by the food on their plates. This year we want to focus on pollinators and other wildlife that play an important role in organic food production (e.g., in pest control). To that end we would like to be able to raise and/or introduce ladybugs, mason bees and butterflies to the gardens.

We are firm believers in the power of gardens to teach children about the relationship between growing, eating and sharing food. We hope this grant will help us to create those learning moments for children to make the connection between the food they eat and where it comes from Children gain a sense of pride, wonder and accomplishment from growing their own food, and participating in each step along the way. Our gardens also help the school and local community appreciate the importance of locally grown foods, sustainable food production practices, and healthy eating.