THEWORKSHOPSCHOOLGARDENPROPOSAL

byMs.HelensAdvisory:
QuwontayHunter,BaijeenCompton,KeyshawnStran,TyreseMcleod,Edgar
ArroyoCruz,ShirelleSmalls,ReginoCruz,RazionTafari,RobertEdwards,Khalil
RobertstonHicks,MichaelBest,ShamiraEdwards,AddisonHart,VictorGinsburg,
DanielBurrell

RESEARCH

LessonwelearnedvisitingFarmsandGardens
Inordertomakeourowngardenwedid2typesofresearch.Onekindwasinour
classroomwherewelearnedaboutfoodsystemsandnutrition.Theotherwasoutside
theclassroomwherevisitedgardensandconductedinterviewstoseehowgardens
actuallyfunctionsandtogethandsonexperienceingardening.

ThegardenswevisitedwasBartramGarden,MillCreek,Plotland,Sayreschoolgarden.
BartramgardenwedidinterviewsandlearnedaboutBartramGardenandlooked
atthefoodthattheyhave.
MillCreekwedidainterviewandwedidtourofMillCreekandweateasparagus
andwelearnedthatbeesaregoodforagardenandgarlicisverygoodforyour
garden.
Plotland,Wehaveabedandwehad2groups.The1stgroupweretheinterview
teamthe2ndgroupwastheplantingteamthatlearnedhowtoplantcucumbers,
cilantroetc.
Sayreschoolgardenwealltriedsomethingnewlikehelpingplantandwehelped
Mikiimprovehergarden.Weaskedquestiontoherandanotherstudentandwe
atehealthyfoodthatMikipreparedforus.

Everythingwelearnedfromthesegardenswewillmakesuretokeepitinmindwhen
wedoourgarden.Fromwhattogrowninwitchseasontipsonhowtokeepunwanted
animalsandpeoplethatwillharmthegardenaway.Tomakingourowncompost.We
willkeepeverythinginmindwhenwedoourown.

Lessonswelearnedinclass
Food&Health
Welookedatdataanddidresearchonhowfoodandfarmshad
changedoveraperiodoftime.Wefoundoutthat2outof3Americansare
overweight.Alsoin1960therewere8ozinabottleofcocacola.In2004there

were24ozinabottleofcocacola.INthe1930stherewereover7,000,000
farmsandnowintheU.Stodaythere'sonly17,000left.Thisisimportant
becauseweseewhythefoodsystemisgoingdown.
Foodsystem
Wealsolearnedthatinalocalfoodsystemthefoodisbroughtby
thesupplier.Thefarmerharvesttheproductandthennextgetshippedorpicked
upfromaretaileroraconsumer.Wealsolearnedthataconventionalfarm
systemisamuchlargerfarmcomparedtothelocalfarms.Welearnedthatit
goesthroughalargerprocesswhichisfirstsupplier,thentheproducer,thenthe
processor,thenthetruckerwhichsendsitofftothedisputer.
Foodjustice
Whenwewenttothemarketswelearnedthatindifferentareas
evenwhenit'sthesamemarkettheywouldselladifferentqualityoffoods.We
wentto2FreshGrocersoneat40thStandtheotherat56thSt.Welearnedthat
at40thStitsmorediverse,easiertofindhealthyfood,ithadamorevarietyof
healthysnacks,and100%juice.Welearnedat56thSttheyhadnoorganicfood,
no100%fruitjuice,andhadonlynamebrandcerealthatcontainsalotofsugar.
Fromtheseexamples.welearnedthatat40thSttheyhadabetterchoicesof
foodthen56thSt.Thisshowsthatpeopleat40thStiseatinghealthierthan
peopleat56thStbecausetheyhavethemoneytoaffordhealthierfoodsand
peopleat56thStcannotaffordthehealthierfoodssotheytakethemoffthe
market.Thisshowsthatindifferentareaswithmarketstheywillhavedifferent
typesoffoodsbecausethat'sallpeopleknow.Youcanputdifferenttypeoffood
inmarketbutifpeopleinthatareadon'tlikethatfoodtheywon'tputitoutforsale
andthefoodthattheywantinbothcasesratherit'shealthyornotthatswhatthey
willbuybecausethatiswhattheyareuseto.Ifwillgetagardenandwillget
peopletobuyourhealthy
theyspraypesticidestheyuseittohardenupthefoodsowhenitgetsshipped
outitwon'tgetdamagedorbeatup,Itcangointheairthenfallsintothesoil
whichgetsintothewaterandpulloutit.

Challengeswelearnedweneedtopreparefor:
Whowouldwateritoverthesummer?
Whowouldkeepoutanimalsandorpeoplethatcancauseharm
Keepingtrashout
Whowilldodifferentthingstohelpthegarden
Wecanhelpeducateourneighborhood

Whatwearedoingtoencounterthesechallengesarewewentonlineandresearched
importantfactsaboutcommunitygardenswealsotookfeedbackfromthegardenswe
visitedtohelpmakesoursbethebestitcanbe.

NUTSANDBOLTSOFTHEGARDEN


SITEPLANNING
1. Possiblesites
a. Plotnexttoourschool:480024WalnutSt
b. Greensgrowfarm49thandBaltimore
c. SiteswefoundonGroundedinPhilly(allpubliclyownedbythecity)
i. 4701Sansomst
1. Pros
a. PubliclyownedbyCityofPhiladelphia
b. Closetoourschool
2. Cons
a. Prettysmall
b. Overgrown
c. Itsbyagasstation,whichcouldmeanthesoilis
contaminated
ii.
4612Sansomst
1. Pros
a. PubliclyownedbyPhiladelphiaRedevelopment
Authority
b. Reallyclosetoschool
c. Itsprettybig
d. Isntovergrown
2. Cons
a. Itsbyagasstation
,whichcouldmeanthesoilis
contaminated
b. Kidsplayinit
iii.
219S.49thstreet
1. Pros
a. PubliclyownedbyCityofPhiladelphia
b. Reallyclosetotheschool
c. Itsagreatsizedspace
2. Cons
a. Nexttoanoldhouse
b. Neighbors
c. Qualityofsoil
iv. 133s.46thstreet
1. Pros

v.

a. PubliclyownedbyPhiladelphiaRedevelopment
Authority
b. there'salotofspace

2. Cons
a. Itmightalreadybebeingdeveloped
b. Itsmuddy
214s.50thstreet
1. Pros
a. PubliclyownedbyCityofPhiladelphia
2. Cons
a. Onehalfisfilledwithtrash
b. Peoplearealreadygardeningintheotherhalf

GARDENPLANNING
1. Whatwillweuseitfor?
a. Wehaveafoodtruckandwewouldbesupplyingfoodtothefoodtruck.It
givesthecommunityanother,cheaperandhealthierwaytogetproduce.
b. Wecanuseitforprojectsbecauseitsalearningexperienceforall
studentsintheschool.Itopensuppathwaystomanydifferentthingslike
carpentry,farming,andagriculture.
2. Whatwillweneedtomakeitsuccessful?
a. Everyquarter,atleastoneclasswouldhavetodosomethingwiththe
gardensothewholeschoolcanbeinvolvedandsoitmaintainsthe
garden.Wecouldhavemorethanoneclass,dependingonhowbigthe
areais.a
3. Whatshouldbegrownandwhen?Why?
a. Therearemanytypesofveggiesthatneeddifferenttypesofcarelightand
therighttemperatures.Thereareseasonalveggiesthatcangrowbetterin
specificseasons.
i. Springandsummer:beets,carrots,cauliflower,celery,chinese
cabbage,endive,irishpotatoeslettuceandgourmetgreens,etc.can
growbetterinthespringandsummerbecausetheirvulnerableto
thecoldtemps.
ii. Summer:beans,pumpkins,sweetpotatoes,corn,cucumber,
eggplant,melon,okra,peppers
iii. SpringandFall:
Beets,Carrots,Cauliflower,Celery,Lettuce,Kale,
Spinach,SwissChard,Tomatoes
4. Thedesigndependsonthesizeofthegarden

5. Howcantheshophelp:Theshopcouldprovidetoolsandbuildingspacefor
partsofthegarden.Herearesomethingwecanbuild
a. Alittlegreenhouse
b. Awatersystem
c. Makethebeds
d. Buildaspotforpeopletosit
e. Aplaceforlittlekidtoplaysotheywon'tmesswiththegarden

SUMMERPLANNING
1. Summerplan:becauseinthesummeritstimetorelaxandnotdoanymore
schoolworkbutwestillhaveagardentotakecareof
a. Hireworkerstoforthesummer
b. Getinternstoworkforthesummer
c. Asksomeofthestudenttodedicatesometimetothegarden

LOOKINGFORWARD:PLANNINGFORTHEFUTURE

ResourcesNeededForourSchoolGarden:
4RoundPointShovels($80total)
4GardenForks($100total)
4GardenHoes($40total)
6HandTrowels($42total)
6HandCultivators($42total)
50Ft.Hose($35total)
12pairsGardenGloves($24total)
4WateringCans($20total)
2Wheelbarrows($200total)
3RainBarrelsandinstallationsupplies($210total)
Soilandcompostdelivery(priceunknown)
Trellisingsupplies(stakes,twine,tomatocages)($131total)
3roundsofseedsandseedlings($150)

Total:$1074

Supporters:
Thesearethesupporterswehaveidentifiedwhocanhelpusinourgarden:
PHS(andtheirCityHarvestprogram):ThePhiladelphiaHorticulturalSocietyisa
largenonprofitorganizationthatsupportscitygardens.TheirCityHarvest
programworkswithcitygardenstohelpprovidehealthyfoodforfamiliesinneed.
Provideuswithseed,seedlings,andsoil
CityHarvestgardensgettoattendworkshopsabouthowtoincreaseyield
andcontrolpestsorganically
MillCreekFarms:MillCreekisacommunitygardenthatputsworkbefore
anythingthatsupportsotherpeoplegardentobuildontheirowngarden.They
giveexcitingeducationaltourstoshowandtellpeoplehowtocontroltheir
gardensanditssometimesopentothecommunity.
Providesupportforteachers
Offertourstostudents
BartramsGarden:BartramsGardenisagardenwhichhas46acres.Itisoneof
theoldestbotanicgardensintheUSA.
Provideuswithseedsandseedlings
Offertourstostudents
TriskelesFoundation:Triskelesisanenvironmentalfoundationwherepeople
groupkidsaroundthecommunitytochangeproblemsintheneighborhood.
Triskelesisanonprofitorganizationwhosefocusisprojectsupport,advice,
education,andprovidingcustomizedphilanthropicservices.
Payforustohirepeopletoworkinthegarden
Fundusinotherareas
UrbanNutritionInitiative:TheUrbanNutritionInitiativeisaprogramofthe
UniversityofPennsylvaniasNetterCenterforCommunityPartnershipsthat
helpsstudentsandcommunitymemberstoparticipateinactivitiesandto
promotehealthylifestylestoobtainanaffordableandavailablefoodsystem.
Provideussupportwithplanningandmaintainingourgarden
Helpuswithprojectssuchas:
buildingagarden
makinghealthyfoodchoices
Plotland:Plotlandisasmallcommunitygarden.Itslocatedon45thandLocust
St.Itsopenforanyoneintheneighborhoodtogardenthere.Wehaveaplot
there.
Intheneighborhood
Gaveusasmallplot

ProjectIdeasForTeachers:
Soiltestingproject:
Studentscouldsampledifferentsoilswithcompostandwithoutandtest
themfordifferentnutrients.Thesoilcouldcomefromdifferentfarms
aroundthecityandthearea.
Oncestudentsfigureoutwhatthemostnutritioussoilis,theycouldfigure
outhowtoreplicateit,whetherviacompostingorothermeans(andthen
doit).
Buildingatoolshed:
Studentscouldexaminetheneedsofthegardentoolwise,andthen
designatoolshedaccordingly.
Buildingraisedbeds
Improvingbordersaroundproperty:
Ifourpropertydoesnthaveclearlydefinedborders,itmightbemore
invitingforpotentialtrespassers.Studentscoulddesignabarrier/fence
aroundthegarden(orimproveanexistingone).
Watersupplies:
Studentscouldlearnaboutthewatersuppliesthatallkindsoffarmsuse,
fromlocalonestoindustrialones.
Studentscouldthendesignandbuildawatersupplyforthisgarden.
Buildingagreenhouse
Buildingacoboven
Acobovenisacircularovenmadefromdirtandclayontopofbricks.
Studentscoulddesignandbuildone.
Hydroponicsvs.Conventionalgardening:
Afterthegardenhasbeenoperatingforalittlewhile(atleastlongenough
toyieldcrops),studentscoulddoaprojectwheretheygrowfood
hydroponicallyandcomparefoodfromthegardentothehydroponically
grownfood,perhapsbytestingfordifferentnutrientsintheplants.
Studentscouldalsoexaminethetimeinvolvedinbothmethods.