As communities across the state sprout school gardens, one situation hasn’t changed. School gardens are rarely included in the school budget. Sometimes parent-teacher organizations contribute funding, but more often than not, teachers must turn to external funding sources to initiate and sustain school gardens.
Fortunately, there is a growing pool of resources available to teachers to support planning and maintaining teaching gardens through grant packages. here are some examples:
• Some popular grants, such as the annual National Gardening Association Youth Garden Grant, allow teachers and students to go shopping for garden supplies with $500-$1,000 gift cards. The grant deadline is Nov. 1 at kidsgardening.com.
• Seeds and plants are one part of the school garden budget. Third-graders can grow to the head of the class through Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program. Teachers register their classes at bonnieplants.com, and each student receives a cabbage plant to nurture and compete for the biggest head across the state.
• Tomato Bob, a family-owned heirloom vegetable and herb seed company, offers a free selection of seeds to school gardening projects at Tomatobob.com. Add an orchard to campus with a Fruit Tree 101 grant from the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation at ftpf.org.
• Teachers trained in Project Learning Tree may apply for GreenWorks! Pollinator Garden grants for a maximum of $1,000 toward butterfly, bat, hummingbird and insect gardens. Application deadline is Dec. 1 at plt.org.
• The Herb Society of America Grant for Educators rewards innovative herbal education projects. Deadline for 2010 applications of up to $5,000 Dec. 31 at herbsociety.org.
• Schools are surrounded by corporate good will, and several companies provide support for environmental education. Check out grant guidelines at internationalpaper.com, gp.com/foundation (Georgia Pacific) or beyondourrails.org (CSX).
• State Farm makes grants available to schools for service learning projects integrating curriculum with community service. Grant deadline is Oct. 31at statefarm.com.
• CVS Caremark Community Grants are available to public school programs that include children with disabilities participating alongside their peers (info.cvscaremark.com/community/our-impact/community-grants/public-schools).
• The National Education Association and Target have teamed to offer Green across America Grants of $1,000 each to programs that excite students in going green and in creating sustainable futures. Check out community outreach at target.com.
• Everyday kitchen products may have grant potential behind their labels. Welch’s, in partnership with Scholastic, supports school gardens with Welch’s Harvest Grant. Two schools in every state will receive an indoor/outdoor garden package of tools, seeds, educational materials and more. Deadline for submission is Feb. 11 at scholastic.com/harvest. The Heinz Wholesome Memories Intergenerational Garden Award connects all ages in the garden. The grant is awarded to an adult who gardens with school-age family members. Each year 57 families are awarded a grant package of tools, markers, gloves, compost bin, cedar raised containers, watering can, vegetable seed collection, and garden journals valued at $500 (kidsgardening.org/grants/heinz.asp).
Grants are highly competitive, so an application must be written to stand out. Recruit parent volunteers or colleagues with editing experience to proof the application before pressing “submit.”
Gardening with Kids is published monthly. Marturano is coordinator of the S.C. Garden-based Learning Network. Read more of Marturano’s garden writings at suite101.com.
Stimulus packages for school gardens
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