with the Earth Care about our Natural World Share our Common Home with all Starting a school garden A s chool garden is an open natural environment It provides an opportunity to discover wonder question exclaim share wisdom ID: 277460
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Slide1
Connect…
with the Earth
Care…
about our Natural
World
Share…
our Common Home with allSlide2
Starting a school garden
A s
chool
garden is an open natural environment. It provides an opportunity to discover, wonder, question, exclaim, share wisdom,
and most of all, have fun!
It connects students with the Earth and with each other. It gives them an opportunity to nurture a living thing, to watch it grow and to share in the harvest
.
Thinking about creating a garden at your school? Start at the very beginning, with these essential elements:
Water
Light
Soil
Pots/raised garden beds/
c
ontainers e.g.
sinks, tubsSeeds/seedlingsSlide3
Building your garden bed
The easiest way to create a school garden is to build a no-dig garden bed. This is basically a garden above the natural ground, made up of layers of organic matter that rot down into a nutrient-rich living soil.
Just add more layers!
Make sure
that your garden bed site is level and gets at least 5 hours of sun a day. If it’s not level, fill the gaps with whatever organic material is at hand.
You need a good mixture of two things: carbon materials in the form of straw, and nitrogen in the form of manures. Don’t forget, water and air must also be provided.
Remember - the layers break down,
so the garden bed needs to be regularly topped up with fresh layers.
Compost (10cm)
Fertiliser
(2cm)
Straw (20cm)
Lucerne Hay (10cm)
Newspaper (0.5cm)
Fertiliser
(2cm)
Border (50cm)Slide4
What to plant and how to decorate
Fast growing
vegetables,
such as
tomatoes, radishes and snow peas, are
popular choices for schools.
Students are
also intrigued by quirky and colourful
plants. If you choose unusual plants for your school garden (such as the magic strawberry plant, pictured right)
their imagination will be challenged.
Don’t forget to decorate to add
a sense of fun to the garden space and encourage students to be
creative
.
Have the students help build a scarecrow, green house or even a seating area. Place a chalkboard in the garden to share information with the school community. Add some statues and a garden gnome or two!Slide5
A place to reflect and give thanks
“
Christ is the brightness of eternal glory, the splendour of eternal light, the mirror without spot.” St Clare of Assisi
Don’t forget to create
a space in the garden where students can sit quietly
to reflect and give thanks for God’s Creation.
A useful Liturgical celebration is available on the Catholic Earthcare website
.
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.
”
St Francis of
Assisi
Slide6
Plant a herb/sensory
garden
Herbs grow quickly, smell
amazing, and
can be a tasty addition to almost every meal. Delight the student’s senses by planting Basil, Parsley and Rosemary, or even the more unusual Chocolate and Pineapple Mint.
Conversations flow freely as students are immersed in the sights, sounds and smells of the garden, and when the produce is harvested and cooked, taste is added to the list of sensory experiences!Slide7
Create, Cook, Celebrate, Document!
Suggestions to
help engage students in every step of the gardening
process:
Use QR codes which are linked to relevant websites, to label
plantsMake simple recipes with the produce
Create
a Recipe Book or a Calendar to sell to
familiesW
rite a column in the School Newsletter
Use
iPads
to document photos and the ‘garden story’
Find
ways to implement the garden into all areas of the curriculumScan the school library to find fiction and non-fiction books to broaden knowledge and imagination
Create
ways to overcome, water, waste, planting and bug problems
Celebrate
special seasons and
achievements
Establish an Environment
T
eam with student leadersSlide8
Tips and tricks
Motivate your school community to start a garden by sharing Catholic
Earthcare’s
Connect, Care, Share video
Plant herbs or strawberries etc. in bales of straw (in polystyrene fruit boxes), place them outside learning spaces
and
invite students to water the plants by emptying their water bottles, at the end of the day
Plant Aboriginal Bush Tucker plants, e.g. Lilly
Pilly from which jam can be made
If revamping the garden, take Before/After photos and celebrate as progress is made
Contact
Local Councils/Businesses, they
may
donate e.g. Compost Bin, Worm Farm
Compost
fruit/veggie scraps, from lunches and canteens Slide9
Place a Stingless Bee Hive in the garden and watch as honey is
produced
Plant potatoes which have
sprouted in old rubber
tyres or sacks, build up as a tower as the plant grows – cut the lip off the tyres
to prevent spiders Squish
overripe tomatoes and dry the seeds to replant
Save seeds, e.g. Parsley, Basil, Sunflowers and
replant
Plant Sunflowers so that students can measure themselves against them and watch them grow towards the sun
Build a Green House to nurture
seedlings
Tips and tricksSlide10
A covered Frog
Pond
surrounded by bromeliads will attract frogs
Plastic bottles with the bottom cut off and
filled with water provide a
drip stream to water plantsPlant seeds in paper cups and allow to sprout, before planting out
Choose a plant
e.g. a rose with the meaningful name – St Patrick
!Hold a competition to name the
gardenDecorate pots and sell for Mothers’/Fathers’
Day
and Fetes
Plant Marigolds/Calendulas as Companion Plants to deter pests and attract
beesTips and tricksSlide11
Where to now?
Useful websites
Making a Garden
www.kitchengardensinschools.blogspot.com
www.organicschools.com.au
www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au
www.gardenorganic.org.uk/schools
Curriculum Resources
www.coolaustralia.com.au www.globalwords.edu.au
www.edibleschoolyard.org
www.aaee.org.au
www.gould.edu.au Plant/Seed
Resources
www.diggers.com.au
Funding
Opportunities
www.environment.nsw.gov.au/sustainableschools/
www.environment.nsw.gov.au
/grants/
education.htm
Planting Resources
www.gardenate.com
www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/
Food R
esources
www.crunchandsip.com.au
www.freshforkids.com.au
www.weekoftastes.com.au
Slide12
Interested in learning more and connecting with your local community? Join a Catholic Earthcare Learning Community near you.
Email admin@catholicearthcare.org.au
to find out more!