Check out this short video to learn more about Lower Columbia School Gardens: how it all started, and how we engage kids and families.
Monthly Archives: December 2015
Seed companies make it possible for School Gardens to grow
Over the last year, we have been proud to help students plant 102,000 square feet of space in more than fourteen School Gardens. That’s a lot of growing space! When you’re dedicated to starting your veggies from seed, that much garden space means having plenty of quality seeds around.
We are immensely grateful for the companies who provided us with seeds this past year. We’re still working on the tally, but the amount of fresh produce grown in 2015 far exceeds the amount we were able to grow the previous year.
It is with admiration for the beautiful work they do and their generous giving that we thank:
Adaptive Seeds
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Botanical Interests
High Mowing Seeds
Irish Eyes Garden Seeds
Peaceful Valley Seeds
Renee’s Garden Seeds
Seeds for Our Planet
Siskiyou Seeds
Territorial Seed Company
Tsugawa Nursery
Turtle Tree Seed
Uprising Seeds
Van der Salm Bulb Farm
Xerces Society Pollinator Habitat signs help make School Gardens a haven for pollinators
Earlier this year, The Xerces Society of Portland generously donated Pollinator Habitat signs for all of our School Gardens. Posting these signs with students has started a number of profound conversations about the vital role that pollinators play in our gardens and our food supply.
For some students, these conversations have made them less fearful of insects that they thought were only made for stinging, and others have become more interested in paying attention to the small differences between various kinds of pollinators. The signs have also been a good reminder to simply be aware of the helpers in our gardens that are not always easy to see.
Students have helped to create a great deal of pollinator habitat in school gardens by planting many flowers and other plants crucial to their survival.
Thank you, Xerces Society!
To help protect an essential part of our environment, take the Pollinator Pledge and order a Pollinator Habitat sign for your own garden.
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$250k Kaiser grant expands School Gardens for Longview and Kelso
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 1, 2015
Kaiser Permanente Northwest Awards Grant to Cowlitz County Health Department
Cowlitz County Health Department’s (CCHD) Office of Healthy Communities received $250,000 over
the next three years to partner with Lower Columbia School Gardens and the Longview and Kelso
School Districts to increase fruit and vegetable consumption for school-age children. This collaborative
project will expand access to school garden activities and curricula for children and their families.
This grant will allow Lower Columbia School Gardens to expand their capacity to serve more children in
our county through their 14 school-based gardens, and to integrate their programs and activities more
fully into the school environment. Longview and Kelso School Districts will be able to fully utilize school
gardens as an educational and community resource.
“We are grateful to Kaiser Permanente for this opportunity to engage even more kids in our school
gardens. We know that school gardens work; kids are more likely to eat and enjoy fruit and vegetables
they grow themselves, and they get excited about healthy cooking and eating as they learn about
where real food comes from and how it’s grown. We see that reality in our work every day, and this
new partnership will allow us to share that experience with more children, teachers and families in our
community,” says Ian Thompson, Executive Director of Lower Columbia School Gardens.
Kaiser Permanente Northwest is dedicated to improving the health of individuals and the communities
they serve. Specifically, their work is focused on connecting low-income people to health care,
educating children and families about healthy eating and active living, creating and sharing
groundbreaking research, strengthening health safety nets in communities, and supporting their employees’ community engagement.
CCHD provides broad-spectrum public health services to Cowlitz County residents aimed at improving
and protecting the health and well-being of individuals of all ages. To contact the Health Department,
please call 360-414-5599.