Reuniting Kids w/ Nature – Visit a Community Garden

MATERIALS: 

Directions to the nearest Community Garden, your Nature Journal or a notebook with your questions/so you can take notes, a camera.

TIME FRAME:

1-2 hours

PROCEDURE:

• Research Community Gardens in your area.
• Find out if they have specific tour dates when volunteers might be available to talk to you and answer any questions you have. If so, schedule a meeting and compile your questions. Questions can include:
  • When was this garden established?
  • How many gardeners have plots here?
  • What is the average size of each plot?
  • What is the annual contribution for one to be able to garden here?
  • Are there any rules or policies for gardeners?
  • Is there a close water source available for gardeners or do they haul their own water in?
  • Is there a wait list for plots?
  • Do you have many children who garden here?
  • Are there many problems with pests (gophers, rabbits, deer, etc.)?
• If there are no guided tours, ask if you can go on a self-guided tour. If this is possible, take notes about the gardens as you walk around and observe what people are growing in different plots, how much sun each plot gets and how each plot is designed (both the structure of the beds and where each plant is placed within that bed).

REFLECTION: 

What did you think about the garden you visited?  What did you like about it or not like about it? Is it a place you might like to garden in?  Did you see a fruit or vegetable that would like to grow?  Was anything growing that you were surprised to see?