School Gardens Help Children Grow

It’s a typical school day and time for an Explore Ecology garden class. Children line up to head outside. When they enter the garden, their excitement is palpable. Students notice that the flowers they planted from seed are now being visited by butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds. They harvest ripe fruits and vegetables and try new foods like kale, parsley, and passion fruit. When the compost bin is opened, there is always a collective gasp of wonder as students see firsthand the bustling world inside. In school gardens, science comes alive!

Approximately 14,000 elementary and junior high school students benefit from this program that brings students outside into nature as part of their school day. Explore Ecology School Gardens are found in over 30 schools throughout the county. Trained Explore Ecology Garden Educators guide eager young learners through the processes of planting, composting, and maintaining an organic garden. Students have so much fun outside, they hardly even know they’re practicing their skills in math, science, and language arts.

Produce is harvested regularly and provides students opportunities to taste new food that they grow themselves. Extra produce goes to the cafeteria and occasionally to the school community. 

“Time in the garden is many students’ favorite part of their day,” says Lindsay Johnson, Explore Ecology’s Executive Director. “When I visit school gardens I’m reminded of the importance of our work and instantly have renewed hope for the future of our children and the planet. The garden offers common ground for children to connect with each other while exploring the natural environment and allowing their imaginations to soar!” 

Closed-loop systems like vermicomposting, also known as worm composting, are an important part of the program. Green waste and food scraps from the cafeteria and garden are fed to worms and other decomposers and transformed into a rich soil amendment, which is returned to the garden beds to grow nutritious food. These large-scale vermicompost bins reduce waste and are a valuable teaching tool for experiential learning.

Explore Ecology is a leading environmental education nonprofit in Santa Barbara County, providing a wide array of programs to over 40,000 children and adults annually. Programs include the Art From Scrap Creative Reuse Store, Environmental Education, the Watershed Resource Center at Arroyo Burro Beach, and the School Gardens Program.