Regina Huda School

About our Garden

Please describe your garden, is it raised beds, in the ground, do you have a greenhouse?

We transformed our school's front yard into a multi-use area that has some greenspace, some flower beds, and some raised beds for gardening. This year we only had enough time and resources to do most of the design (build raised beds, lay some sod, put in pathways, etc.), and next year we look forward to doing a lot more of the planting! This will be a multi-year project as it is over such a large area and we will include pictures once we have more to show.

What vegetables/fruit do you grow in your garden? What do you have a difficult time growing in your school garden?

Did not get to the actual planting this year, but will in the spring.

Why did your school decide to add a school garden?

Many reasons! We want students to have a nice area outside to be able to spend time outside and learn to appreciate nature. We also believe it's important for students to learn where food comes from and we want to provide students with the opportunity to garden and grow food as many do not have this opportunity outside of school.

What classes participate in the garden, what subjects are taught in the garden?

In the future, we want all students to be a part of this project, but I used my Environmental Science 20 class in the process of designing and implementing. I envision many more classes using the space for curricular needs in the future.

Who manages the garden day to day? Who manages the garden over the Summer break?

So far, it has been myself that has done this, but want to expand that responsibility to the whole school.

What do you do with the harvest from your garden? Do you have a harvest celebration? Do you use it in the cafeteria, or culinary classes? Do you donate some of the produce?

Not applicable at this time, but I envision donating food.

Do you have community involvement? Do you have parents and volunteers? Have been able to source other funding to help your garden grow?

Not at this time, but we were able to receive some other funding from other organizations.

What are your future plans for the school garden?

Grow and expand! I envision a space that all classes can be a part of planting and maintaining, and using the space to do research and learning.

Any words of encouragement/tips for a school starting a school garden?

Start small! Taking on a huge area can be daunting and it spreads your progress out over a large area so it appears to proceed slower. It can be nice to see a finished product earlier so if you start small you can always expand as time goes on.