Friday was a busy day, setting up a new garden for a Franklin County elementary school.  Here are some photos, starting with a “before” photo we took last year when we went to meet with the school.

Elementary school's garden location is selected

Tilling begins

Tilling under way

The Monster Tiller at work

After two rounds of tilling and edging

Garden tilled, raked, and rows run

Garden tilled, raked, and rows run

Today was “specials” day in the greenhouse.

Frank and I had purchased a small supply of unusual seeds to plant, which we donated for Grow And Share’s use. These included Black Sea Man Tomatoes, Tigger Melon, Mexican Miniature Watermelon, Hokkaido Black Watermelon, Micro Tom Tomato, Jicama, Amazing Egg Tree, and Tom Thumb Pea.

Grow and Share will use these special plants as gifts to donors.

Some of the Tom Thumb Peas and Micro Tom Tomatoes (small plants) were given to the Franklinton girl scouts during our presentation in February. The scouts were also provided with some hand decorated, beautiful pots which had been donated by Karen M. and they may be seen on this page. The plan is for the scouts to use the pots for these “small plant” seeds. These seedlings will then be given to some of the residents at the Senior Center the scout troop is gardening for this year. The Franklinton troop will take their harvest to the senior center to ensure the residents have healthy food available. The fancy pots and tiny plants are an “extra” for some of the residents who might want to have green, growing veggies on their windowsills.

I was surprised by the Jicama. Its seeds are poisonous, according to the insert that came with it. I was careful to use gloves while planting. Now I’m off to the Internet to confirm whether they are poisonous during transplanting! If so, we’ll need to add that to the educational information handed out with the plants.

Speaking of which, we are seeking some writing help! With each type plant given away in April, we will provide gardeners with data regarding that plant, what it bears, how its harvest may be cooked, and known allergy issues (relevant for food banks to know), and whatever nutritional data we can gather and distribute. Especially with the wide variety of plants, we want to ensure everyone gets some basic information on what to expect.

One final note for today: On Tuesday, we are giving a presentation at a Girl Scout meeting. If anyone would like us to visit their scout troop or school, contact us by phone or email. There is no fee, and we’ll be happy to bring planting supplies and help them “walk the walk” after we talk about plants and healthy foods.

Thank you!

Local non-profit is seeking seed. If you have any packets you won’t be using, or even parts of leftover packets, we would love to have them. See left border of this website for our address/phone to donate by mailing seeds or to arrange pickup for larger amounts of seed.

We focus on shared and community gardening to fight hunger. Donate your un-needed seed, we will grow your seeds into plants, and in April we will give the plants away to gardeners in many NC neighborhoods — and beyond NC as we expand and more gardeners call this year to help! The food grown on those plants will be shared with neighbors, strangers in need, and food banks.

Help us get lots of healthy garden produce into the hands of the needy, and to help US residents eat healthier from local gardens!

We ESPECIALLY need tomato seeds and greens seeds. All vegetable/fruit/legume seeds are welcome. No flowers, please, unless they are edibles.

Thank you in advance for your donation!

School Gardens Will Grow Food to Eat, To Learn, And To Share

November 9, 2009 – Zebulon, NC USA

Elementary school teachers are going green in Franklin County, NC with installation of school gardens. Teachers are adding gardening to their lesson plans for science, nutrition, and other subjects. Produce grown in these gardens will feed the students, the teachers, and other local residents.

Working with Franklin County school teachers and Dale Byrns, Creative Education Office, several gardens are being installed. In Spring 2010, over 100 elementary school students will be growing food for themselves, learning about nutrition, working in the garden, and sharing their produce in the local community.

The first gardens — five raised beds — were installed November 4th at Long Mill Elementary. These raised bed gardens are overseen by several first grade teachers, first graders, volunteers, and representatives from Grow And Share. Over three tons of organic garden soil was used to build the gardens, with all the soil donated by Old Castle Lawn and Garden of Louisburg. Woodlief Supply Co. of Youngsville provided greens seed for some experimental Fall planting.

“It was great to see businesses in the community dive in and help these schools. Their contributions kept the total garden costs under $50 for all the school gardens,” said Frank Whatley of Grow And Share. Grow And Share, a local non-profit, delivered the supplies and donated landscape timbers for the beds. Additionally, Grow And Share will provide the students with free garden plants in April.

At Long Mill Elementary, the teachers are using this gardening experience to teach the students hands-on about the parts of a plant and how plants grow (a science objective). Growing the plants lines up with the teachers’ objectives of teaching science lessons on what a plant needs to grow. “The students will also be learning about health and nutrition as part of our health initiatives… good choices, food pyramid, etc.,” says First Grade Teacher Laurie Baker.

“We’re working with schools, girl scouts, brownies, and other children,” said Kay Whatley, Creative Director at Grow And Share, “helping the next generation hear the message: you can grow your own food. As adults, each will decide if gardening is something they want to do. We’re glad for the opportunity to work on youth-oriented projects like the school gardens.”

From Kimberly Ferrell, Long Mill Elementary School Principal: “It was an awesome opportunity for our First Grade students to see and understand the process of starting a garden. At Long Mill Elementary School our goal is to educate our students about healthy living and choices. This project is part of our Wellness program that leads to greater rewards in living fit.”

An additional school garden is planned for Franklinton Elementary, with groundbreaking expected in the first quarter of 2010. Students 1-5 in the AIG program at Franklinton Elementary will grow produce in the garden, and then share it with a local senior center.

Michelle McGhee, AIG Specialist at Franklinton Elementary, is in charge of that school’s garden. She says, “I am excited about getting in the dirt and providing my students hands-on gardening instruction. We will be learning about plants in our science study and will integrate the study throughout math and reading in my AIG classes for grades 1-5. My students will engage in planting seeds, pulling weeds, and harvesting the produce. We will distribute the vegetables at our local senior center where we can also provide community outreach. We just can’t wait to experience our own gardening.”

“Franklin County Schools recognizes that proper nutrition and healthy living habits are very important for a child’s education,” Franklin County Superintendent Dr. Eddie Ingram said. “We are thankful for the efforts Grow And Share is putting forth to help the children and staff of Franklin County schools make healthy decisions.”

Both schools’ gardens will be in full swing by April, designed to allow students to harvest food before school ends for Summer Vacation. All students participating in the program will be able to give back to the community while learning to feed themselves.

About Franklin County Schools
Franklin County is one of the fastest growing counties in North Carolina. For additional information on Franklin County Schools, contact Dale Byrns at (919) 496-7349 or visit www.fcschools.net.

About Grow And Share
Grow And Share is an organization fighting hunger from the ground up® by growing interest in gardening and local foods. Activities include plant giveaways, gardens promoting, and gathering food for local organizations to distribute free. Grow And Share provides plants and assistance to North Carolina residents willing to plant “Sharing Gardens(TM)” on their own land. These gardens allow each person to provide food for their family with some to share with their community. New and existing gardeners pick up free garden plants each April and sign a pledge to share their harvest in their communities. By providing the plants at no charge, Grow And Share is ensuring even those who do not have the funds to spare can start gardening and grow food.

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Kay Whatley
Creative Director
Grow And Share
70 Harrison Street
Zebulon NC 27597
919.269.5414
info@growandshare.org

Zebulon, NC, September 18, 2009 - Grow And Share, a non-profit fighting hunger at the local level, recently received a grant from Annie’s Homegrown of Napa, California. This “Grants for Gardens” award provides some funding for Grow And Share’s gardening programs in Spring 2010.

The grant will be used to purchase garden seed and growing supplies. During the Spring, a planting event will be held during which children will learn about growing their own food and assist with seed planting. The resulting plants will later be distributed to local gardeners who pledge to share their harvests in the community.

“This grant from Annie’s is going to help fund our children’s gardening activities, allowing us to teach young people about growing their own food,” Kay Whatley of Grow And Share said. “Across their lifetimes, it can impact how they think about healthy foods.”

The grant is one of several awarded to gardens across the United States. “At Annie’s, we believe that gardens are important places to connect kids with real food,” said Aimee Sands, Marketing Director at Annie’s Homegrown. “There’s something magical about watching a child sample the lettuce they’ve grown, or dig up new potatoes for the first time. We’re proud our Grants for Gardens encourage and support this type of education at community gardens across the country.”

From the Annie’s website, www.annies.com: Annie’s Homegrown is driven by a team of folks who are passionate about three things: food, people, and the planet we all share. The Napa-based company’s philosophy is “Eat Responsibly. Act Responsibly.”

Grow And Share is a NC-based organization fighting hunger at the local level by growing interest in gardening and local foods. Activities engage residents in gardening as a way of improviding their community food supply. Grow And Share conducts plant giveaways, gives supplies to new gardeners, and organizes food giveaways with local organizations to distribute produce to those in need. Their goal is to provide help residents provide food for themselves and extra to share with their community.

Frank and I had the pleasure of catching up with two Sharing Gardeners™ today. Mari B. and Levon C. gave us some good news about their garden, including the extra tomatoes they were still getting and sharing with folks at their church. They have enjoyed gardening this year, they said.

Not only did Mari say they have been sharing, but they have had Grow And Share announced at their church, and told their friends about the idea of growing and sharing. They are enjoying what they do, and spreading the word. This short visit left us feeling uplifted, and charged up for our own efforts.

We’re glad to have gardeners like Mari and Levon, who give so much of themselves and share the fruits of their labor. We hope that they will continue with us next year, and join us for the Garden Plant Giveaway in April 2010!