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It is easy to help out. We are in 100 Los Angeles schools weekly and we care for our 100 gardens 332 days per year. If you want to help , we will put you to work. We are growing so rapidly that no matter what you have to offer, we likely need your talents. Engage today. Volunteer tomorrow.
For Our Garden Rangers
SCHOOL GARDENING?
OUR VALUES
Students at 10th St Elementary are busy taking care of the cool-season garden. The 3rd graders looked for hungry caterpillars, worms, and aphids. They washed the leafy greens and added fresh healthy soil around the plants in need.
Winter Garden Bounty and Seed Saving at Bushnell Elementary
Last week Bushnell third graders explored the garden and looked for plants that had gone to seed (lavender and Basil) and others with visible seeds (strawberries and snap peas). We then talked about the practice of seed saving. the students were eager to try for themselves! I passed out dried sage and lavender flowers and…
Learning about Water Conservation with Fifth and Sixth Graders at El Sereno Elementary
Returning from winter break last week students were excited to get out into the garden and see the changes brought about by nearly 31/2 inches of rain! After exploring the garden a bit and snacking on the cherry tomatoes still thriving there we sat down to talk about water conservation. The students were surprised to…
Yes, cilantro is a common herb that most of the kids know is used in the Latin American cuisine. They definitely knew a sprinkling on a taco, pozole or rice gives food a punch of flavor…yum! But what they didn’t know is that cilantro in also used heavily in the Philippines, Thailand and India. We…
A Bountiful Harvest
Atwater Elementary is booming with so many plants that are ready to harvest, so the 3rd graders and 5th graders spent their classes making a delicious salad and having a harvest party! We harvested mustard greens and leafy lettuce, chopped them up and put them in a big bowl. We harvested the broccoli and Chinese…
Warm and Cool Season Planting
The 5th graders had a lesson about our climate, which is a Mediterranean climate. This means we have mild winters and hot summers. So we really have two planting seasons, a warm and a cool season. So it’s easy for us to grow food all year long. The warm season crops, which we plant in…
Worms!
The 5th graders were so excited to study worms! We discussed the main jobs of a worm — to make tunnels in the soil, eat rotten food, and make soil. We talked about where worms live, their senses, their anatomy, and their diet. Worms do not have eyes. They are very sensitive to bright light…
Brand New Garden at Erwin Elementary
Erwin Elementary has a brand new garden! The first rotation of garden classes started with three 5th grade classes. Their very first lesson was learning the parts of a seed. We discussed the seed coat which has the job of protecting the seed. We talked about the food storage that gives the seed the nutrients…
Seed Saving
The 3rd graders spent their class learning how to collect seeds from plants. We discussed that it is important to save seeds to ensure bio and genetic diversity and long term success of a species. We also talked about how early agricultural civilizations saved seeds to plant crops because they did not have a store…
Our last class of 2019 was held on a sunny and brisk day at Valley View Elementary. First graders spent a lot of time discussing the importance of leaves and how they are the plant’s food source and large reason for growth! We ended our discussion by selecting leaves from mature plants in the…
Lettuce Tacos
This week at Selma Ave Elementary, the 1st graders got to harvest some lettuce leaves and make tasty tacos! Since this was the last class of the semester, the students got to enjoy a harvest day to celebrate all they had learned over the past 5 weeks in garden class. Students went into the garden…
Plants Can Climb
This week at Toluca Lake Elementary we learned about plant adaptations, specifically, plant’s ability to climb. Class started with a discussion on what an adaptation is, and some different examples such as cacti adapting to dry environments, or plants who live in windy places with seeds that fly like helicopters. After our introductory discussion, we…
For the past four weeks I’ve been blessed to have two Nutrition students from Cal State LA, assist me in my garden lessons here at Woodlawn elementary. These two were such an asset to the program. They were excited to dive in and research nutritional aspects as well as help me with garden tasks. Here…
Radishes are a great seed to plant year round. Here in Southern California, these little seeds germinate quickly during Spring, Summer and Fall. They can be tricky to to grow though. Sometimes they only grow leaves and fail to produce a bulbous root. Mostly this is due to root disturbance during the time when the…
The Ramona Elementary garden is small but it sure can produce a fair amount of produce. Broccoli and collard greens are abundant right now. So are the mint, lemon balm and snap peas. The office and staff got most of the harvest but we used some of the ingredients to make a Winter salad. We dressed…
Sometimes you have to let the garden do the teaching! When I saw all the monarch caterpillars in the milkweed, I knew I had to take this opportunity to teach the kids about caterpillars and monarchs . All the kids were gentle and kind to the caterpillars. I explained that we need to make sure…
Bugs are so much fun to learn about. And with a diverse organic garden as a home for so many insects, the kids had a great time hunting and gently capturing them. After observing the insects closely and drawing a quick sketch and writing down some observations, the kids released them back into their…
Kids need lots of ways to feel ownership of their school garden. That’s why when we figured out we needed a trellis for the snap pea vine, we decided to build one on our own!
Native American Traditions
This week at Rio Vista Elementary School, the 4th graders learned about the different native herbs that are in the garden. To do so, we learned how to make herb bundles, otherwise known as smudge sticks in Native American traditions. To connect to what the class is currently learning about in social studies, we began…
Root vegetables are fascinating to kids. It’s something about eating something that is harvested by digging in the dirt! I explained to the kids that roots that we eat are a food storage area for the plant…kind of like our refrigerators store food for us. For our activity, we planted potatoes. I showed the kids…
The kids at Aspire have had their share of fresh crisp kale and they love it! But I wanted to change things up a bit and really take a look at how cooking a vegetable changes texture, flavor, color, and nutrient content. The kids harvested, washed and prepped the kale for the chips, then…
42nd Street Students delighted to decorate
Indoors and outdoors, the students at 42nd Street School were delighted to decorate their school with images related to gardening and growing
The kindergarten students were excited to learn about how compost feeds other plants, and they were energized to help tear up weeds and other plants to facilitate decomposition.
Audubon Middle students gentle with seedlings
The middle school students at Audubon were so gentle as they planted seedlings
This week Castelar students were taken for an observational walk in the garden since it’s been raining most weeks during class. Students used the knowledge they learned over the semester to identify plants and scratch & sniff things that have wonderful aromas. There were insects climbing around, and one in particular was a sure show-stopper!…
The last few weeks at St. Patrick’s School we have been utilizing our rich and fueled compost throughout the garden. The younger and older students have been breaking down what really makes a perfect amendment to our already fertile garden beds. We also made sure to plant plenty of beneficial plants to our space such as…
It was time to harvest our bed of sweet potatoes! Pre-K had a blast pulling the sweet potatoes out from the soil. They were shocked at how big some of them were! We learned about some of the health benefits of sweet potatoes- they are packed with fiber and antioxidants. The students and teachers were…
The Third Graders had been learning about worms in their Science class, so we dug a little deeper in the garden today. We began by learning about the anatomy of earthworms, and some fun facts about them. We then put some worms out on a damp newspaper and looked at them closely with a magnifying…
We have been busy planting seeds and seedlings for the cooler season at Garvanza Elementary. Lots of lettuce, broccoli, kale, cabbage, arugula, beets, and radishes! The students are enjoying beans right off the vine from the garden. So yummy! Look at the huge grasshopper! The older grades worked on a Venn diagram using cool and…
The students at Garvanza became pumpkin peddlers for a class. We discussed the life cycle of a pumpkin. We then split into groups and each group got their own pumpkin. We measured the weight, circumference, and height of each pumpkin and estimated the amount of seeds in each pumpkin. Then they got to carve their…
I read a book called “My Five Senses” by Aliki to introduce the Kinders and 1st graders to their five senses. We collected herbs from the garden such as mint, basil, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme. We passed them around and used our five senses to discuss them. At the end of class, we made…
El Sereno Elementary students became pumpkin peddlers during the month of October. We discussed the life cycle of pumpkins. They got into groups and measured the height, weight, and circumference of their pumpkins. They then estimated how many seeds they would find inside their pumpkins. Then the fun part — cutting open the pumpkins and…
Atwater Elementary is bursting with guavas and the students, teachers and staff are gobbling them up! We had so many great lessons in the garden this month. We talked about the food chain with first graders. We created Venn diagrams using warm and cool season plants with the 2nd graders. We did a fun lesson…
This week we learned all about worms and how important they are to the garden! It was raining inside, and Ranger Sanjay has a worm bin so he brought it in for all the kids to see. There were hundreds of them and we learned about how their “castings” are super healthy for garden plants.…
There’s no fear of Halloween at Frank Del Olmo! With our garlic bulbs ready to harvest, we learned about the myths of Dracula and his fear of garlic as it’s said to “cure” people. We also learned how garlic can be helpful during the winter months in staving off the cold and flu. We got…
We may have started with just dirt, but now we’re seeing the fruits (and veggies) of our labor! Despite being in a pretty shady area, these garden beds are doing great. When learning about the different parts of the plant, I brought in sweet potato slips for the kids to see root to stem to…
The semester is off to a great start at Arroyo Seco Museum Science Magnet! This week, the 4th graders modeled a food web using yarn. Each student was assigned a different plant or animal. We discussed the interconnectedness of all species, and how energy is passed along a food chain. While we haven’t been able…
This batch of gardeners at Mayflower Elementary are the first-ever students to enjoy the garden! They have been busy planting seeds and seedlings (while learning about the differences between them!) and making their mark on the garden. This week, the Kindergarteners learned about the Butterfly Life Cycle. We read “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” and made…
Soil Nutrient Test
This week at Toluca Lake Elementary the fourth graders learned about their periodic table of elements and some important soil nutrients. Students first discussed some elements that they already knew about, such as carbon and oxygen, and how these are important building blocks for life in the soil organic matter. Next, students learned about the…
Mild to Wild
This week at Rio Vista, the kindergarteners explored their sense of taste. The first thing we talked about was the importance of “don’t yuck my yum.” This means that we should recognize that taste is subjective, and everyone has different taste buds. When tasting things in the garden students are taught to not talk badly…
Today Pomelo’s 5th Graders learned about LA’s Mediterranean climate and what kinds of vegetables we can grow during the winter months. Everybody got a seed packet to study. We used a Southern California planting chart to determine whether the seeds in our packet should be planted during the warm season (April-September) or the cool season…
Thanks to the foresight and “planting ahead” of the Garden Committee at Pomelo Community Charter, we already have ripe fruit to enjoy during the first few weeks of our new gardening program. This is a great way to way to introduce students to one of the best things about gardening–snacking on the fruits of your…
Soil is what makes our garden successful–or not. At Hamlin Charter this week the 3rd Grade reviewed the three textures of soil: clay, silt, and sand and examined their properties more closely. Sand has large, visible particles which don’t stick together. Silt feels soft, not gritty. Clay sticks together and stays that way in a…
A level-ground garden was built over the summer for our new gardening program at Pomelo Community Charter Elementary School. The beautiful redwood 24″ raised beds and picnic tables in a shaded teaching area provide a fabulous space for learning about the joys and benefits of gardening. The new beds are already producing fruit–cantaloupes–which will be…
We started the second year of the gardening program at Hamlin Charter with the 3rd Grade and a garden scavenger hunt. The kids consulted and competed to find garden tools such as trowels and wheelbarrows, garden items such as soil, leaves, and roots, and garden friends like bees. Then we learned to use citrus juicers…
Kindergardeners loves all the hands on exploring and work at Angeles Mesa. They proudly shared their successes in weeding many of the beds. Upon discovering a monarch Caterpillar, the children oohed and ahhed at its unique pattern. Before planting seeds, each youth examined and admired the potential plants they could create. Finally, the youngsters took…
42nd Street Elementary students help the decomposers
Learning about how bugs help the process of decomposition, the students at 42nd Street School were energized to aid in the process of breaking down weeds and other leaves to help create compost fertilizer.
Fun in Fall at Audubon Middle School
Students at Audubon Middle School had loads of fun in the Fall..first, they emthusiastically prepped a bed to plant potatoes by bailing half the soil out. They also learned about succulents and made their own flowery centerpiece to take home to their families for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Rainy Day Lemonade
This week at Selma Ave was wet and rainy, so we brought garden class indoors. The previous week we harvested lemons from the tree, so this week we put them to use and made some lemonade. The lemons, bottled water, and honey were brought into the classroom and students fresh-squeezed right into their own cups.…
Decomposing Matters at Queen Anne
Kids seem to have an innate sense of decomposition, even if they don’t understand how or why it happens. Show a Kindergartener a flower and a potato chip bag, and they instinctively know which one should be put in the composter. To get our compost lesson started, the kids collected things in the garden area that…
Cold season is arriving late, but the never-ending sunshine has been beneficial for our pumpkin, watermelon, and sweet potato patches. With trowels and their busy hands, students helped dig out sweet potatoes and understood that the leaves are edible and highly nutritious. Thank you to Miss Alvarez’s kinder class for helping harvest and tilt the soil…
We investigated pill bugs at Atwater Elementary! Pill bugs are not an insect. They are a part of the crustacean family. They’re related to lobsters, crabs, and shrimps. They like to live in sheltered, damp or wet locations in the garden. They eat organic matter and are beneficial decomposers. They roll up into a little…
We began our class with seed yoga. A favorite game with any age that includes repetition and physical stretching. Learning the parts of a seed and the elements a seed needs to grow into a seedling. We planted bean, cucumber and squash seeds. Kids really enjoyed taking a closer look at parts of a lima…
A favorite best kept secret located in Highland Park is the Yorkdale Elementary School Edible garden. These curious kiddos are genuinely excited about being in the garden, they are respectful, energetic and eager to learn. The teachers are positive and supportive along with Dr. Grass, the principal, who is all in it to win it…
Plants are Alive too! Investigating Leaves at Bushnell Elementary
After discussing plant respiration (plants breathe too!) Bushnell elementary 1st and 2nd graders used magnifying glasses to search for evidence. The students were delighted to discover tiny bubbles of oxygen coming from their submerged leaves. To help the concepts sink in we alternated between breathing like humans and animals (inhaling oxygen and exhaling carbon dioxide)…
Such sweet seeds from the sunflowers at 42nd Street School, the students succeeded in snacking on so many. Some struggled to crack open each shell, but they were delighted by the creamy kernel on the inside they didnt even notice that the seeds were not saturated in salt. They did proceed to plant some of…
Fruits of Our Labor
In annual gardens, transitioning from the warm to cold growing season means that we get to harvest and enjoy the literal fruits of our labor! This week at Toluca Lake Elementary, garden class revolved around harvesting ready fruit and pulling out old plants in order to make room for new season crops. Before the harvest,…
Seeds are Asleep
This week at Rio Vista Elementary we celebrated the new fall season by planting some new seeds! For younger students, we started class by discussing plant lifecycles and the 6 parts of a plant (root, stem, leaf, flower, fruit, seed). In this lesson students learned about how the seed is the first and last stem…
Worms!
This week at Selma Elementary we explored the amazing composting power of worms! The garden ranger brought their own personal worm bin from home and let the students explore with magnifying glasses. We began class by talking about if worms are friends or enemies to our garden. I asked the students what they thought worms…
For the last 3 weeks of this rotation, Tulsa 5th graders learned about warm/cool weather crops, parts of plants, and made a paper pumpkin patch! For the weather/climate/seasons lesson, we talked about warm and cool weather crops. We played a game where everyone got a flashcard with the name of a plant and whether it…
Crisp, cool cucumbers for the students at Angeles Mesa. One special Ed child enjoyed the fresh vegetable plain. The others were delighted by cucumber tacos wrapped in sorrel leaf. It was a pleasant refreshing reward after learning about the soil that nurtured them.
New found enthusiasm for bugs
The students at Audubon Middle School showed their bravery in handling and talent in catching insects in the garden, helping transfer the bugs to the compost bin in order to facilitate decomposition.
5th Graders finished their garden class! During the last six weeks of gardening, Mr. Fergunson’s class learned to rotate a garden from a warm season to cool-season crops. during this period students learned about seeds and how to save them for the next growing period. Compost-green & brown, dos & donts make for a good…
Easy breezy to simply “BE” in the garden with Mrs. Meza’s curious 4 year old TK class. These kiddos crave seed yoga then ask, “What is for snack?” Learning about “Yellow Time” also called, “Autumn” also named “Fall” Climates & Seasons were a big hit! They love to plant seeds and color leaf rubbings Mrs.…
Oh yeah! It’s on! The fifth graders were game to do a compost challenge to help kick off school wide composting efforts! So this is how it went… Two 5th classes…one compost collection bucket each. The empty buckets were first weighed on a digital scale. Then each class had equal amounts of time to clean…
Today we explored the importance of eating local seasonal fruit and vegetables. I used exporting bananas as an example. Bananas travel many miles to get to the US. From Costa Rica to California, a banana travels 1120 miles! We made a list of the seasonal fruits and vegetables that are growing now and are ready…
While harvesting with the six graders at Ramona Elementary school, we found an unusual egg plant! I explained to the kids that fruit or vegetables that are miss shaped, strange, have minor bruises or miss colored are not sold to markets because people won’t buy them. This was quite an interesting topic! We discussed companies…
With a multitude of fresh greens and fruit to choose from, the end of session salad was amazing! The students had a hand in every part; sowing seeds, transplanting, pest management, harvesting, chopping and preparing! These are true LIFE lessons!
We had a great 6 week rotation coming back from summer vacation! The students were so excited to be back in the garden! The time flew by and on the last day, I decided to change things up a bit. I had the kids choose to do the things they enjoyed the most in the…
The students at Firestone Academy learned what makes herbs one of my favorite plants to grow. Not only do they add a punch of flavor to any dish, they can easily be grown in containers or on a balcony. Sometimes when talking to my students, I hear them say they don’t have a lot of…
Kids need many experiences using tools in the garden and starting early, can help reinforce these skill! Today the TK students helped loosen the soil with rakes, spades and trowels. We talked about the different functions for each tool and how to use them properly. As they worked the soil, they discovered many things. Some…
This September, for the first 3 weeks, Sherman Oaks’ 5th, 4th, TK, and 2nd graders all helped out in the garden! Each class (excluding TK) had had garden class before, so we were able to dive deeper into the lessons! Yay! For the first week, 5th grade learned about permaculture, monoculture, and polyculture. They made…
This September, for the first 3 lessons, the 5th graders at Tulsa learned all about soil and food chains (producers and consumers). This was these students’ first exposure to the garden class so we were starting from ground zero- very exciting! For the first class we found bugs and veggies that had grown over the…
What better way to learn the parts of a plant than to find them in the garden. The kids searched through the garden and brought back samples of the different parts of plants. They used their senses of sight and touch to identify the plants and their various parts, and then matched them to the…
When we grew started growing indigo it was to solve the overwatering issues we were having in one of the raised beds. What ended up happening was that the indigo began to thrive and it created a beautiful pollinator-friendly Over the past 2 weeks, we’ve been harvesting and trimming back the indigo. It was ready…