How to Set Up a School Garden
6. Prepare an action plan
- prepare for the upcoming weeks' gardening activities: who is doing what and when. The growth cycles of the garden's vegetables should fit in with the school term. If needed, voluntary helpers should be mobilized
- all the tools and materials should be at hand;
- prepare some integrated lessons using the garden as an outdoor laboratory
- Apart from the practical gardening activities such as seedbed preparation, sowing, planting, watering and harvesting, you should also think about monitoring, record keeping and publicity.
7. Put the plan into practice
You may need to motivate the school and community to support the garden. One way is to promote the value of the School Garden and your dedication to it. Gardening projects can last several months and involve repetitive work. It will be necessary to maintain motivation, even if there was enthusiasm from the beginning. Generally, the best motivation is the deep sense of pleasure and achievement when your school garden is seen to bloom and prosper.
If parents and community members have had negative experiences with school gardening, a special effort may be needed to overcome these. It is best to proceed with patience and continuous advocacy for the learning objectives of the School Garden.
