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There is a love of gardening.  Teaching hands-on in the garden, allows students to learn outside of a traditional classroom or book learning experience.  Hands-on learning is fun and rewarding.

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There is a love of gardening.  Teaching hands-on in the garden, allows students to learn outside of a traditional classroom or book learning experience.  Hands-on learning is fun and rewarding.

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I volunteer with school children in multiple school gardens.  The students get so excited to plant and harvest while they continue to learn and reinforce what they have learned in (science, and math) as they are in the gardens.

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I volunteer with school children in multiple school gardens.  The students get so excited to plant and harvest while they continue to learn and reinforce what they have learned in (science, and math) as they are in the gardens.

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Be prepared for any question and if you don't know the answer, tell them you will get the answer and get back to them.  Children are curious.  Make your gardening time with the children FUN!

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Be prepared for any question and if you don't know the answer, tell them you will get the answer and get back to them.  Children are curious.  Make your gardening time with the children FUN!

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It seems that many school gardens lack funding to create a successful school garden. Especially when starting up, funds are needed to get the gardens up and running. We face this problem too. Additionally, we have a hard time keeping consistent volunteers. Having the kids working in the garden helps with some of this.

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The desire to have a successful school garden is a common theme. Some of the challenges that most face are; funding, volunteers, community involvement, and organization.

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I recently attended a garden summit in Jefferson County Colorado. While I was there, I learned of a few community partners that work in the city. I was able to reach out to one of them and hopefully our school will get some support with our schools' garden. Before this summit, I was unaware of some of the community based garden resources that our district has. I would suggest reaching out to your district to see if there are community partners that are available to support local gardens.

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I hear a good handful of us have challenges that if we had just a bit more in our budgets or in donations we could address. I also see that weather and school calendar which we have no control over is a challenge as well.

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Two of the participants in this class are also at my school. I am new to living in the mountains so it was interesting to hear about the challenges they know about with living up here.

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I think we all struggle with the money aspect. We just have to get creative and figure out how to fund the things we feel are valuable.

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Many schools talk about funding being a challenge. I hope the awareness of the benefits of school gardening waken investors and schools are able to launch their dreams and projects.

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It would be great if there was a way to share funding possibilities like grants and such.

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Funding and not having a lot of volunteers seems to be the common theme in these videos.

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Funding and not having a lot of volunteers seems to be the common theme in these videos.

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Sometimes with my volunteer work we are really short on volunteers and there may only be two of us that are working on a project.

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Sometimes with my volunteer work we are really short on volunteers and there may only be two of us that are working on a project.

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Where to go for funding in my community. 

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Where to go for funding in my community. 

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How were you able to overcome a certain challenge and what was that ourcome?

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How were you able to overcome a certain challenge and what was that ourcome?

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Just reaching out to your local community to see if there are any resources available. 

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Just reaching out to your local community to see if there are any resources available. 

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After watching some of the videos and listening to what challenges of each one, I realized that most talked about the limited budgets that they are facing to get the things they need to make and/or maintain their garden. I believe the many resources and research we may be able to find some ways to get the things we need without having to feel challenge of having a limited budget.

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Man power and red-tape seem to be a common theme of issues throughout. Getting help can be difficult and getting timely answers for activities/funding/etc can be difficult. Also growing season and weather issues. I never really think of those, since I feel like they are out of my control, but yes, both of those can be an issue.

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Yes I have experienced many of the challenges that are listed on these videos. One lady addressed pests in the garden- and we are in the same boat. We want the gardens to be easily accessed and welcoming, but we also have to have large fences and gates around the vegetable beds (not so welcoming!).

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All of the challenges I have faced have been dealt with fairly successfully just by not giving up. We keep searching for funding, and for volunteers. Well, by joining with local school districts we were able to help get kids volunteer hours, and have the school help provide things such as tools and soil. It's the constant searching and pushing for a way to make something work. We also found that local grants are very successful and a quicker turn around than some of the larger state and national grants.

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How are you managing pest control (such as deer or ground hogs, not small bug issues)? This is a constant struggle at our 20 acre botanical garden. I hate fencing everything, but it defeats the purpose if the kids don't get to produce anything. My struggle is with keeping the space inviting and pest controlled.

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I am constantly in contact with local gardening groups and with the members of our botanical garden. I try to seek help (manual and monetary) from people already interested in gardening and what we have going on at our location. Once people begin to invest time and work, they spread the word and bigger things can happen.

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I agree with the other posts that have discussed pests and this is something my school site struggles with every season. We have many critters and we haven't found the best solution yet. Another huge (and common) challenge is money! We are trying with grants this year though!

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Some common themes I observed are our love of gardening, teaching hands-on, allowing students to learn outside of traditional classrooms, and the desire to have a successful school garden. The challenges most of us face include enough volunteers, community involvement, buy-in from faculty, funding, the weather, and when school is in session.

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Enjoy what the children are able to do and grow from there.  Don't be too hard on yourself as both you and they are learning.

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Enjoy what the children are able to do and grow from there.  Don't be too hard on yourself as both you and they are learning.

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Funding always seems to be an issue as well as finding adults that are open and willing to engage with children in these spaces.  

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Funding always seems to be an issue as well as finding adults that are open and willing to engage with children in these spaces.  

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Yes, struggling with funding and volunteers.

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Yes, struggling with funding and volunteers.

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Always working with our local Master Gardening groups, Scouts, Elks and Senior Centers - for volunteers - sometimes they even have some $$$ to share.

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Always working with our local Master Gardening groups, Scouts, Elks and Senior Centers - for volunteers - sometimes they even have some $$$ to share.

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Short on staff and resources.

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Reach out to local politicians, like alder people. Also, local community centers and food pantries for volunteers.

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Do you think if you presented your ideas to the school board you might get more support?

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Short on resources and support.

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Funding and weather were some of the common themes that I observed.

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I have absolutely experienced similar issues especially with weather living in Northern Wisconsin. We have talked about extending the garden season with row covers, hoop house, greenhouse, etc. but I feel that funding and maintenance of this would be difficult.

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Needs of Consistency in Community Support 

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Needs of Consistency in Community Support 

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There might be a lack of community and organization involvement.

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Since we are a small school, all the classroom teachers are already busy with many other responsibilities. Many faculty acknowledge the importance of garden-ed and appreciate nature-based and hands-on learning. However, It is not always necessary to bring them to come out of the garden on weekends or after school to do the garden work
and get their hands dirty in the sun with me.

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Some common themes I observed in garden challenges are:

1. getting enough volunteer help.

I think it would be awesome if schools paid for a separate gardener along with an educator.

2. Weather

3. Community involvement/building excitement.

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Some common challenges I found in the videos were weather issues, funding, space issues, and getting teachers or community members to participate in the garden.

Karen, Children's Librarian, New Brunswick Free Public Library

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Common themes:

1. Getting help from community/volunteers

2. Maintaining the garden

3. Maintaining the garden over the summer

4. Consistency in getting teachers to use the garden and consistency in program delivery for garden educators.

I have experienced these challenges also.

My advice is to keep trying.

I think it would be beneficial if schools could budget for a separate gardener who works in collaboration with the garden educator. That person would coordinate maintenance, help build community, and take a lot of the work off of the educators plate. More educators need to speak up and ask for this. Not doing all the work themselves. It can’t be done, and it’s not fair to be expected to work without being paid for the extra time.

Another solution to get work done is to have small groups of students help at recess or before school. 4-8 students who are well behaved work best. Then as they become good workers the group can get larger. It’s ok to admit you can’t handle everyone at once. If kids are playing in an unsafe way they can return to recess or their classroom.

How did you get help? Are the kids able to help?

A resource that has helped me is a FB group for my area San Diego garden educator super stars. It’s nice to be able to discuss issues with educators in my area. Also the Master Gardeners of San Diego have been a great resource for grant funding, irrigation installation (we paid someone who is a master gardener), coming to bring microscopes to our school science discovery day, and helping plan during site visits and over text as questions arise.

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Funding is definitely something that is always on my mind. The Friends of the Library kindly donates some money to the Youth Services Department each year, so I am able to use some of that for the garden. But I am always on the lookout for grant opportunities to supplement those funds.
Karen, Children's Librarian, New Brunswick Free Public Library

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I have found the KidsGardening.org website to be very helpful in a variety of ways. With respect to funding, the site and the online community are great at providing information about grant opportunities and other resources, such as companies that donate free seeds.

Karen, Children's Librarian, New Brunswick Free Public Library

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Unfortunately, in the videos I watched, I only heard challenges that had yet to be overcome. But my follow-up questions would be:

1. Did you find a way to get more teachers to bring their classes into the garden?

2. Did you have success lobbying for a full-time garden educator to be hired with salary/benefits as opposed to an independent contractor?

3. For those who live in the northern United States, is it possible to do indoor garden activities until the weather is warm enough outside?

Karen, Children's Librarian, New Brunswick Free Public Library

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I mentioned this in a previous answer, but I have found a lot of good resources and advice using the KidsGardening.org website and participating in its online community. The site itself has many resources, links to other helpful sites, and activity suggestions. But the online community is a good place to post about a challenge you're having and see if others have any suggestions. Or you could just read through previous discussion topics to see if any match your issue.

Karen, Children's Librarian, New Brunswick Free Public Library

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We have challenges with volunteers also. The community and teachers are so supportive and excited about the garden program, but when it comes time to work in the garden it seems like all the volunteers have prior commitments and we are left with the usual handful of people who always help.

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Have you had any success keeping volunteers or recruiting new ones?

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We are creating relationships with local garden centers, organic farms and the recycling center.

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Finding time and volunteers is the biggest struggle for me also. Everyone is busy and sometimes it just gets to be a lot for me also! I have good intentions at the start but then it seems I run out of steam about half way through because of the time involved and not getting volunteer help.

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The most comm theme seems to be weather related. Either the weather is too cold to plant while the children are still in school or the length of planting time does not correspond with the school days.

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The most comm theme seems to be weather related. Either the weather is too cold to plant while the children are still in school or the length of planting time does not correspond with the school days.

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I have not been a part of a school garden as of yet, but I am learning!

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By listening to these little stories, I have learned some of the obstacles one has to face when developing a school garden.

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I would ask MM about the acceptance of the white couple who instituted a garden in a black neighborhood and if the vandalism is continuing or the youth finally accepted the garden as a gift to their community.

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I think the students with the cold weather problems could plant vegetables that they may see develop while school is still in session such as lettuce or spinach.

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The need for community involvement to help maintain and expand gardens.

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for any teachers in NJ they are amazing and easy to get grants from

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Lack of resources. We have the food but now we have no programming to educate the community.

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Lack of resources. We have the food but now we have no programming to educate the community.

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We did have the recourses for the first 5 years. We hope to get more funding for future education. I'm looking at collaborating with other now.

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Some of the videos mentioned community engagement being a challenge and I would agree with that.

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Both limited funding and lack of volunteers seem to be fairly common themes.

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Yes! Our school's Home and School Club generously agreed to provide some funding to get the gardens started this year, however, finding enough volunteers to get the work done is what I've been struggling with. There is so much work and it's going slowly with the handful of volunteers who show up to our garden work days.

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When the weather was way too rainy and muddy to be out planting in the gardens here, I had students make seed tape. We are going to be planting it in the garden this week. It seems like it would make planting much faster, so you could prepare your seed tape during the bad weather, then plant quickly once the weather cooperates.

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From the videos I watched, there seem to be a few different challenges that others are experiencing. One of those was lack of man power or support with the work needed to maintain a garden. Another was struggles with the weather, growing, and harvesting. Difficulty with the physical location of the garden was another issue for a few. Lastly, lack of support from the district in terms of financial support and hiring a coordinator was another difficulty.

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Our district has experienced a lack of help maintaining the garden spaces when school is dismissed for the summer. A lack of consistency in the garden coordinator position has also resulted in an overall lack of the space and materials being cared for, including our high tunnel spaces.

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I don't have any specific advice to anyone but I just hope everyone keeps trying because it's worth it.

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Funding, funding , funding is a common theme I heard. 

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Funding, funding , funding is a common theme I heard. 

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Similar challenges with getting enough volunteers to help

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Similar challenges with getting enough volunteers to help

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Reach out to master garderners and church groups, and business to get volunteers, as well as universities for students to get their student service learning hours

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Reach out to master garderners and church groups, and business to get volunteers, as well as universities for students to get their student service learning hours

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For cafeteria staff that really aren't wanting to utilize the fresh produce in the meals, has your school admin thought about hiring a chef? That seems to be the ways some schools are going and chef's like fresh produce to prepare meals

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For cafeteria staff that really aren't wanting to utilize the fresh produce in the meals, has your school admin thought about hiring a chef? That seems to be the ways some schools are going and chef's like fresh produce to prepare meals

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If your city has a food policy council you may want to consult with them. 

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If your city has a food policy council you may want to consult with them. 

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I have noticed children will FLOCK to help with absolutely everything in the garden.

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We lack funding AND staff to be able to make the impact that is really possible. I've taken that I do what I can and often spend my own money.

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Several class members reported having enough people to do the work of the garden is their main challenge. - Sheila C., Arkansas Child Nutrition

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I have seen this as a similar issue in my state. A school will start a school garden because they have a "garden champion." But when that person leaves, is reassigned or just gets tired of the added responsibility the garden goes away.

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Several people talked about needing to find garden "helpers" or volunteers. I would suggest that maybe an add be placed in the school newsletter or on the school web site. Sometimes people just don't know that help is needed. Have a "work day" on a Saturday morning. Then put a bunch of pictures of the before and after on the school FaceBook page. Be sure to thank all the volunteers. People who feel appreciated will work til dark.

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One of the videos was from a Master Gardener that does not currently work with the school. You are a jewel, just in waiting for someone to pick you up. Call the local school district and say, " hey, i have these skills. Do you have anywhere that needs a little sprucing up with some plants or flowers?" When you get in good with the administration, you can suggest the school teaching garden. Talk to your local gardening club and see if any of the other members would want to volunteer.

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For those living in the North, I'm sure that you have investigated already, but I like those tower or wall planters. They don't take up a lot of room and could certainly give you an extended grow time, with starting seeds early, etc.

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Building capacity both within and outside the school, scheduling issues for teachers, funding for a hired garden educator, volunteers, weather and climate challenges...

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Building capacity both within and outside the school, scheduling issues for teachers, funding for a hired garden educator, volunteers, weather and climate challenges...

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Absolutely. These are issues we hear about often from our garden network. We offer professional development sessions, consultations, and educator classes on many of these topics but with the high turnover in schools, they can continue to be problems.

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We have a 3-phase development process for community groups and schools that wish to start gardens. Part of this process includes building a garden committee and asset-mapping. We ask school to identify and build mutually beneficial relationships with about 6 assets outside of the school. These can be cultural or social organizations, local institutions or government entities, or even individuals with particular skills or knowledge. These folks support the garden in some way, and the garden can provide space, beautification, food donations, etc. We also ask that schools make sure to have a good mix of parents, teachers, and administration on their garden committees. We also offer lots of resources on curriculum, capacity building, and best practices. This part of our website will be getting an update in the coming months, but feel free to poke around! seedstl.org

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Funding is an issue, volunteers are an issue, growing seasons are short when school releases for summers. 

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Funding is an issue, volunteers are an issue, growing seasons are short when school releases for summers. 

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My challenge right now is time.  Being a home daycare provider I have duties throughout the day cooking, potty training, preschool and pre-K curriculum preparations, and then keeping up with the gardens activities.  There are so many hours in the day and I find they go really fast lately. 

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My challenge right now is time.  Being a home daycare provider I have duties throughout the day cooking, potty training, preschool and pre-K curriculum preparations, and then keeping up with the gardens activities.  There are so many hours in the day and I find they go really fast lately. 

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Funding-  I have moved to growing as much from seeds as possible instead of purchasing plants.  We have now purchased most of the equipment (raised beds, water hoses, soils, containers, ect) so now it is just planting and maintaining the plants. 

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Funding-  I have moved to growing as much from seeds as possible instead of purchasing plants.  We have now purchased most of the equipment (raised beds, water hoses, soils, containers, ect) so now it is just planting and maintaining the plants. 

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How to approach local stores for donations of plants and supplies to upgrade your program.

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How to approach local stores for donations of plants and supplies to upgrade your program.

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I don't really know, but now that I read the list below, I think master gardeners would be a wonderful resource.  I am going to check that out! 

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I don't really know, but now that I read the list below, I think master gardeners would be a wonderful resource.  I am going to check that out! 

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I agree with most of the course members that the common themes are: funding and volunteers. It is important to have a solid group of volunteers that can help with the different garden chores as well as organizing events. We made our volunteers sign a commitment letter, for minimum 6 months, which I think helps.

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I agree with most of the course members that the common themes are: funding and volunteers. It is important to have a solid group of volunteers that can help with the different garden chores as well as organizing events. We made our volunteers sign a commitment letter, for minimum 6 months, which I think helps.

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My personal opinion, from my experience in school gardens, is that the program has to be very well structured and has to be delivered by a professional, a school garden coordinator/facilitator (teacher or master gardener or horticultural therapist) 100% dedicated to the garden classroom. This person will hold meetings with teachers and parents to let them know what is going on in the garden, how are children behaving or responding to the activities, and get their feedback. It is important to do this on a regular basis to demonstrate the impact of the garden on the child's performance. This helps get support from the community: teachers and parents, and helps finding volunteers for the program.

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Understaffed, funding, connections and relationships with community and parents, using the garden.

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Understaffed, funding, connections and relationships with community and parents, using the garden.

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Yes I could relate to some degree to every challenge that other garden-based teachers have experienced. I have found that a key to survival is perserverance. It always gets better.

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Yes I could relate to some degree to every challenge that other garden-based teachers have experienced. I have found that a key to survival is perserverance. It always gets better.

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I have found that collaboration with at least one other passionate gardener is key. Together problems get solved .

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I have found that collaboration with at least one other passionate gardener is key. Together problems get solved .

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Getting into the classroom. Teachers have a specific curriculum they are expected to present to the students, plus they are playing "catch up" post covid with lessons and test scores. Someone coming into the classroom, for some teachers, is just a distraction.