Planning a new garden!!

Plangarden software has an interactive layout design of the new vegetable garden at the White House. Plangarden software also allows beginning community gardeners to design and plan their gardens to meet the group objects. To read an interesting article about this software, please visit: http://www.theenergydaily.com/pressreleases/environmental_services/200903241539PR_NEWS_USPR_____LA88410.html

The People's Garden!

Before the new garden at the White House was planted, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack broke through asphalt at the United States Department of Agriculture to create "The People's Garden." The garden is designed to encourage average people to start their own gardens, as well as increasing awareness and appreciation of "green" concepts such as water retention and conservation, using native plants, soil conservation and appreciationg local, seasonal food production. For more information about The People's Garden, please visit: http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/%21ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB/.cmd/ad/.ar/sa.retrievecontent/.c/6_2_1UH/.ce/7_2_5JM/.p/5_2_4TQ/.d/1/_th/J_2_9D/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB?PC_7_2_5JM_contentid=2009%2F02%2F0042.xml&PC_7_2_5JM_parentnav=LATEST_RELEASES&PC_7_2_5JM_navid=NEWS_RELEASE#7_2_5JM

Composting & the Green Steps for Environmental Education program

Some of you may be interested in learning more about composting as you are working on your gardening projects. The Green Steps for Environmental Education program has some good information about composting and other environmental projects that your school might be interested in, as well as the requirements for being recognized as a South Carolina Green Steps School. For more information about composting and the Green Steps program, please visit: http://www.greenstepschools.com/greensteps/SampleProjects/composting.asp

Gimme 5 Challenge in the Low Country!

I heard about this neat initiative going on in Bluffton, SC called the "Gimme 5 Challenge!" I thought that some of you who are interested in linking your garden programs with healthy eating and activity choices might be interested in checking out their website and activities. You can learn more about the Gimme 5 Challenge at: http://gimme5aday.org/index.htm

Garden at the White House!

Seems like everyone is getting into the benefits of gardening and the benefits of fresh produce! For more information about the Garden at the White House, check out this link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/dining/20garden.html?_r=1&ref=dining

"Gardening and composting go hand-in-hand, especially in school garden projects: gardening without composting only teaches half the lesson..."

"Learning About Soil" and "Composting Resources for Schools":
http://journeytoforever.org/edu_compost.html

Simple fact sheet (download PDF from link):
http://njaes.rutgers.edu/pubs/publication.asp?pid=FS811

SC DHEC information and links:
http://www.scdhec.net/environment/lwm/recycle/compost.htm

Pollinator Curriculm

Check out this link to see how to integrate garden pollination learning into your classroom:

http://www.nappc.org/curriculum/

Overview:
Nature's Partners is an inquiry learning-based curriculum for young people in the 4th through the 6th grade. It is comprised of seven modules. Each module offers three or four activities designed to engage young people in active, investigative science following a learning cycle of

• exploration,
• concept introduction/development, and
• concept application.

The Nature's Partners curriculum is designed to be flexible. Although it is presented as a sequence of activities, there is no need to do them all or todo them in order.