School Grants

Here's an update from Hooker Oak Elementary. They won a grant award in 2024 and have used it to purchase mulch for their garden area walkways to keep down weeds. They are also reconfiguring their garden area with raised bed. Their "Root Crew" is in the process of adding new beds, ground covers, and a new garden shed, much of which is financed from their garden grant funds. It's great to see them cultivating the next generation of gardeners!

Here are a couple of photos from Chapman Elementary School's school grant project, awarded in 2024. The students have been learning about co-planting plants (to benefit from other plants' shade, etc).

This spring they will be planting a classic "three sisters garden", a combination of corn, climbing beans, and pumpkins. The corn provides food, but also acts as a trellis for the beans to climb. The beans provide food, but also add nitrogen to the soil to feed the corn and the pumpkins. The pumpkins provide food, but also shade the roots of the beans and corns so they stay cooler and require less moisture. What a great lesson!

Many thanks to the Chapman Elementary School for these project updates! Apply for your chance of a school gardening grant during our next cycle.