From playgrounds to vege patches: the rise of the school garden

Guest blogger: KCC co-ordinator, gardener, worm farm manager & composter, Jenny Lynch 

From Michelle Obama to our very own Sister Loyola , gardeners are being celebrated around the world.  Indeed, the ball of dirt that we call earth is now being tended to by a whole new horde of vege-growing environmentalists conscious of food miles, waste reduction and pesticides.  It’s no wonder schools are jumping on board.

Of course, digging up school grounds and converting them into vegetable patches is nothing new. To cover the shortfall of vegetables being grown during WWII, New Zealand schools began digging up their playgrounds to grow vegetables under the “Dig for Victory’ campaign.

And Rudolf Steiner schools have practised biodynamic vegetable gardening in various forms as part of their learning philosophy for decades. Even my dad remembers having class vegetable plots growing up in Northland in the 1950’s as part of practical biology and cooking lessons, something very similar to the idea behind the school gardens of today

Today’s school gardening boom is partially fuelled by a need to educate our packaged food dependent kids that carrots don’t grow as tiny cubes in plastic bags out the back of the local supermarket. From a more environmental viewpoint, school gardens also help kids understand that everything in a vegetable garden is connected; compost needs bacteria, fungi and worms to break down, plants need the compost to help them grow and that the vege leftovers can then be made back into compost. The whole circle of life can be watched in just one small raised garden bed, like an entire ecosystem shrunk down to a school ground scale.

Some educators also use their garden beds for classroom science investigations. What happens if there is not enough water? Which plants grow best side-by-side? What type of soil grows the biggest vegetables? What are the different ways we can control pests? These hands-on science experiences that relate to real life situations can give kids a wider understanding of the natural world. There is also evidence that children’s attitudes towards science in their primary school years have a powerful effect on their future learning and interest in the subject. School gardens introduce them to science in a way that is enjoyable and rewarding which could have long term benefits for their enjoyment of science at school.

As long as a school has an interested teaching staff, an enthusiastic caretaker and support from an outside agency, like The Enviroschools Foundation, school vegetable gardens are a great teaching and learning resource. Already around 350 – 400  enviro-schools have their own vegetable garden, some of which are better described as orchards.

Are there other similar school based projects that could be used to help our children learn about the natural world?  What other benefits come from school vegetable gardens? Could gardens be developed beyond the humble vegetable to grow native plants and trees for school grounds or the kids’ local park? The possibilities for are potentially endless!

Next month, the Wellington branch of the New Zealand Association for Environmental Education (NZAEE) will be hosting a workshop about the joys of gardening at The Home of Compassion in Island Bay, which is home to one of New Zealand’s largest and successful community gardens. Please join us, if you want to find the green-thumb within –

Vegetable Gardening in Schools and Communities workshop Wednesday 15th May, 2 Rhine Street Island Bay, 4 – 6pm. Contact Jenny if you would like further information at j.lynch@forestandbird.org.nz