AMES, Iowa – Local schools interested in building a strong team to start or expand a school garden will benefit from a series of five classes offered by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. School Garden 101, a weekly program, will be offered this spring in six locations across Iowa.
School Garden 101 provides school staff with horticultural skills and shows them how to connect gardening principles to school activities. It also will help school staff work together to develop and build a school garden.
Participants will learn how to build a compost bin, test soils, plant seeds and incorporate garden produce into classrooms and cafeterias. The workshop series will be offered this February and March in Cass, Dubuque, Franklin, Linn, Polk and Woodbury counties.
“The intent of School Garden 101 is to increase the number of school gardens in Iowa,” said Susan DeBlieck, Master Gardener assistant coordinator with ISU Extension and Outreach. “At the end of the program the school teams will have a budget and plan to build their school gardens.”
School Garden 101 classes have been offered in Iowa since 2012.
The program is intended for school teams of three to five staff. Each team registers for a fee, which provides all supplies and a resource folder filled with educational materials for the classroom.
For more information, contact DeBlieck at deblieck@iastate.edu.
[PHOTO] School gardens