I’d like to influence you to give integrated programming a chance and give one example of how it worked for us in Gaston County NC
Yesterday’s speaker talked about some of the challenges to Land Grants in the Future, one is getting everyone on the same page and working in the same direction. He specifically mentioned integrated programming, though from his standpoint of getting researchers working with Extension more.The integrated programming I’m talking about are…You may have heard the terms “tear down the silos” or “stop using different buckets”The whole synergy thing (that may be copyrighted)
Julie, pictured here with a teacher to her right and a master gardener to her left does a great job of integrating other life skills into the programSpacing Transplants teaches mathScience and Biology are everywhereJohnny, let’s not swing that tomato stake at others, thank you.Delayed gratification, patience, reaping what you sow, etc.
Stages…This is a seed, This is a plant, This is a flower, This is a vegetable,
Some of the produce students tried for the first time included eggplant, squash, and even watermelon!
Lots of fun activitiesPaper potsHealthy fruit parfaits (pictured)Peanut PlantsVegetable PizzasPropagation ActivitiesSo much more
February’s not so great in the garden, so we plant sugar peas and stay inside for a few weeks learning about nutrition, wellness and do some inside plant experimentsKnowledge, Aspirations, Skills and Abilities
A community garden in Greensboro grew about 15 tons of food and gave away at least 10% of that throughout the city.Community development programs help revitalize neighborhoods and the youth, families and resources within
My challenge to you is to work with your co-workers when you return. We are all doing the same thing with different clients and information. Let’s identify some big issues and address them together. Community Gardens are just one way to do this. Make great stuff happen in your own area and share it at meetings like this one.Here are some resources if you’re here just to know how to start a community gardenNC State’s new Community Garden site with lots of resourcesThis includes pre-made curriculum packages including an entire plan that follows 3rd grade standardsBoston Natural Areas NetworkLos Angeles County Cooperative Extension has a great program to teach people how to grow and prepare their foodGreen Guerrillas is a New York program to get gardens growing and people involved in their communityLet’s look at the first one…
The first few times, we had the schools provide whatever water nozzle they had available, but we specified on future sites because the students would either do a quick and completely ineffective mist or forcefully erode an entire row of seed.They’ll spray their classmates in a heartbeat so water breakers help with character building, too.
Welcome to your vegetable garden today.But this is a flower garden Ms Flowers.Alright, well fruits and vegetables start off as flowers…botany lesson botany lesson blah blahblah
Right, we are harvesting peppers today, but we need ones that we can use a fork with, not just a toothpick