This photo, released by the New York Botanical Garden, shows school children learning about growing food in the garden’s 3-acre Edible Academy.
This photo, released by the New York Botanical Garden, shows school children learning about growing food in the garden’s 3-acre Edible Academy.
In this photo by Ginny Hughes, members of the Troy Kids’ Garden Learning Community make bouquets of flowers at Troy Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin.
This photo, released by the New York Botanical Garden, shows school children learning about growing food in the garden’s 3-acre Edible Academy.
In this photo by Ginny Hughes, members of the Troy Kids’ Garden Learning Community plant plants together in Troy Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin.
This photo, released by the New York Botanical Garden, shows school children learning about growing food in the garden’s 3-acre Edible Academy.
In this photo by Ginny Hughes, a member of the Troy Kids ‘Garden Learning Community searches for ripe mulberries in the Kids’ Garden in Troy Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin.
From KATHERINE ROTH Associated Press
Like horticulture in general, the school garden has become very popular during the pandemic. Families and teachers say the practical lessons can be applied to many subjects.
Finding the expertise, manpower, and funding to keep a school garden going can be difficult. But some experts and teachers find creative ways to make it work.
“Gardens are a great way to bring children outside with a purpose. With gardens, children can see a beginning, a middle, and an end of their project with tangible results, ”says Susan Hobart, a retired elementary school teacher at Lake View Elementary School in Madison, Wisconsin, who now oversees the school’s large garden with 12 raised beds.
“The gardens relax the children and give them a completely different perspective that they would not only have at their desk,” she says.
Every spring, as part of the school program, plant seedlings are grown through a training program in a nearby state prison. A church group arrives during the spring break to prepare the garden for the children to return, and an AmeriCorps volunteer takes care of the garden during the summer.
“If we had to buy the seedlings, they would cost $ 3 each, and we could never afford that,” says Hobart.
“When you look at your relationships and the community around you and all the other networks out there, there are plenty of creative ways to find help.”
