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While many of us have challenges with our gardens, it's really nice to hear that people aren't giving up. People are getting creative to find solutions to their problems. It's inspiring and great to hear.

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Khalena Wickstrom from Community Roots Academy

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Khalena Wickstrom from Community Roots Academy

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Were you able to keep parents involved post-Covid?  How did you keep them involved?  How did you or do you plan to re-engage them?

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The key is community - it's involved committed community members that will better share and defend the importance of the program

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Not necessarily funding, but explaining the importance of the program.

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Not necessarily funding, but explaining the importance of the program.

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Reach out to your coworkers and the community!

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Reach out to your coworkers and the community!

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How do you keep up the focus and hope amidst the challenges?

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How do you keep up the focus and hope amidst the challenges?

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Could colder climate spots do hoop houses to extend the growing season?

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Could colder climate spots do hoop houses to extend the growing season?

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I have also had a challenging time implementing new programing. And sometimes too just getting plants to grow!

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I have also had a challenging time implementing new programing. And sometimes too just getting plants to grow!

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Advertising/how to get people excited about the garden and involved

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Advertising/how to get people excited about the garden and involved

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Seems like a lot of the logistics and person-power that go into a school garden are put on one person

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Seems like a lot of the logistics and person-power that go into a school garden are put on one person

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Yes. I found it difficult to find other adults to assist me in the garden at school, specifically because teachers are already so busy with their daily responsibilities. 

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Yes. I found it difficult to find other adults to assist me in the garden at school, specifically because teachers are already so busy with their daily responsibilities. 

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A common theme I learned was encouraging other adults to get on board with the garden efforts. Many explained that others are typically intimidated by the garden or uninterested in assisting with the garden.

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A common theme I learned was encouraging other adults to get on board with the garden efforts. Many explained that others are typically intimidated by the garden or uninterested in assisting with the garden.

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I heard that Covid was a big challenge. The other common one was how to get the garden used by many ages of children.

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Talk to your local elected officials and ask them what non profit groups exist in your community. A lot of times there are several that would love to work with you, but you don't know that they exist. Chambers of Commerce directors as well. Parents of children that are enrolled in your program also have connections to their employers and other groups within the community and may be a great resource that you may not have thought of.

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What sort of partnerships were you able to make and were any from surprising sources?

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Be creative in finding funds, make friends with your local businesses because even a small discount might make whatever you need doable. Don't be afraid to ask families what skills they have and use social media to ask people if they have unused or extra materials, it is amazing how many people are willing to donate to programs and are happy to clean out the garage/basement in the meantime!

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Be creative in finding funds, make friends with your local businesses because even a small discount might make whatever you need doable. Don't be afraid to ask families what skills they have and use social media to ask people if they have unused or extra materials, it is amazing how many people are willing to donate to programs and are happy to clean out the garage/basement in the meantime!

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Money and parent help has been my challenge since I am a family child care provider without staff, if I don't have time outside of my hours of operation  (and we don't always get to it or the kids aren't interested that day)  then the weeds take over and it is impossible to catch back up!

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Money and parent help has been my challenge since I am a family child care provider without staff, if I don't have time outside of my hours of operation  (and we don't always get to it or the kids aren't interested that day)  then the weeds take over and it is impossible to catch back up!

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Money, administrative support, and Covid. Another one was figuring out how to keep the garden going over the summer once school was out and in between summer school, etc. 

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Money, administrative support, and Covid. Another one was figuring out how to keep the garden going over the summer once school was out and in between summer school, etc. 

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Not to give up, have an open mind, think outside the box.

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Not to give up, have an open mind, think outside the box.

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Our biggest challenge seemed to be getting started and figuring out what we wanted to do.  Also finding the time.

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Our biggest challenge seemed to be getting started and figuring out what we wanted to do.  Also finding the time.

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high rates of turnover is an issue I heard about that I also experience!

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high rates of turnover is an issue I heard about that I also experience!

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Administrative support during the COVID pandemic -- there is a lot going on, and it can sometimes be hard to get administration on board for garden education!

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Administrative support during the COVID pandemic -- there is a lot going on, and it can sometimes be hard to get administration on board for garden education!

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Not at this time as I am unsure of those resources in my own community at this time.

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It would be interesting to hear how garden spaces are doing after challenges were faced. Also, how these challenges were addressed in the classroom. How do you measure learning in the garden from a grade perspective.

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Our garden space is not set up yet but I read a lot of similar challenges people faced with their gardens as I am facing with ours. How to set up the space and what the benefits are in having a garden are the same for all.

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Some common themes I noticed included location, how to get the community involved in the garden and funding. Some people were unsure of the future of the garden area as far as who was going to take responsibilty for the future.
People also expressed concerns and challenges with the pandemic and the garden space.

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The time to get started is a similar challenge, as well as getting people to commit to taking on pieces to help. We are all busy.

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The only advice I have is to be persistent, and to share the gifts of the garden so that everyone can see first hand how wonderful the garden can be!

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Yes, and I am working to alleviate any obstacles the classroom teachers may have to incorporating garden learning in their day.

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Covid challenges and having teachers see the value of a garden space

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Covid challenges and having teachers see the value of a garden space

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I see a theme of several posters having difficulty getting teachers to see the concrete value in having the garden program. I have the same challenge, and am working with teachers individually to guide projects with the children, and am physically helping them with specific projects as I am able. It is a lot, but I hope I am "planting the seeds" so they can see the benefits with the students.

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How did you end up engaging students remotely in a garden environment?

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How did you end up engaging students remotely in a garden environment?

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Engaging students remotely is much harder than

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I do not have follow up quesitons, thak you though.

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I do not have follow up quesitons, thak you though.

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We have not experienced similar changes because our major garden is not up and running yet. Fingers crossed next Spring.

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We have not experienced similar changes because our major garden is not up and running yet. Fingers crossed next Spring.

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Who was helpful during the challenge you faced and how can you help to improve the situation so others learn from it and don't have to repeat it. 

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Who was helpful during the challenge you faced and how can you help to improve the situation so others learn from it and don't have to repeat it. 

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It always seems wise to have one person who is ultimately responsible for the garden, but it is important for that one (or two) people to have a committee of others to support them. 

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It always seems wise to have one person who is ultimately responsible for the garden, but it is important for that one (or two) people to have a committee of others to support them. 

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Are you still having the same challenges? After overcoming the problem is there anything you would do differently? What did you do to overcome the problem? Did the ideas that you came up with to solve the problem work?

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This class has been very informational and has a list of resources from other groups like Wisconsin School Garden Network,  and Life Lab. I also like kidsgardening.org. Check with your county extension website. It will usually include Master Gardener's, but they have other programs that may be of use like 4H, Natural Resources, Agriculture, Healthy Families. Also, check your Conservation District. They have a lot of good resources. Sometimes they do workshops and will come to the school. They may even have grants. It depends on the group.  Slow Food Network is also a great resource.

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If you haven't already, build a team to help coordinate different things. For example, one person could be in charge of helping teachers make or find curriculum to use in the garden. Once person could be in charge of out reach to different organizations to help you. One person could be in charge of media. One person could be in charge of getting funding from grants to fundraisers. One person could be in charge of organizing volunteers.

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Yes!!! We struggle with getting families to help, funding, teacher buy in, curriculum, vandalism, rats, and working with all the rules and regulations with Covid.

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Most are still struggling with Covid rules and regulations. Lack of community support was a problem. Funding is a problem. Getting curriculum going and teacher buy in. Vandalism was an issue in Bethany T's garden. It was a problem with ours too even though I didn't mention it.

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The best advice I received when starting the school garden was to start slow. The garden was already created and it is big. I was overwhelmed with weeds and all the ideas I had and lack of support from teachers and other parents. I started slow and just focused on tackling the weeds (with cardboard) and my daughter's Kindergarten class. It was a success with her class and gave me confidence to do more with other classes. Every year we have more volunteers and more teachers engaged.

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The best advice I received when starting the school garden was to start slow. The garden was already created and it is big. I was overwhelmed with weeds and all the ideas I had and lack of support from teachers and other parents. I started slow and just focused on tackling the weeds (with cardboard) and my daughter's Kindergarten class. It was a success with her class and gave me confidence to do more with other classes. Every year we have more volunteers and more teachers engaged.

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No, unfortunately

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What could be done differently?

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No. Just keep your head up and keep trying!

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We have faced challenges with covid as well.

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Funding and covid seem to be common among many videos.

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I read a post about having a facebook page to help out with resources when faced with challenges.

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How do you have families help out or get families to help out with the gardening before covid and now?

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None. We have a nature specialist who takes care of the garden and teaches the children.

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I work with older toddlers so they have a limit activites to do but still engage them in the gardening now that the weather is nicer.

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Funding and space

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Everywhere and everyone is still facing covid related issues

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Generating and sustaining interest in outdoor education activities.

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The pandemic has created many similar challenges, with no volunteers being allowed in the building.

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Funding and education is a common theme.

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Connect with the local garden center or CSA or farms. Ask families to see if there is anyone comfortable coming in to share their experiences and garden knowledge.

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challenges of getting people on board with gardening being essential in the community space and receiving support from the school or organization

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challenges of getting people on board with gardening being essential in the community space and receiving support from the school or organization

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university extensioon programs in local states often have wonderful resources and can offer on the ground support

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university extensioon programs in local states often have wonderful resources and can offer on the ground support

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how would you build a relationship with the community to gain support in funding?

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how would you build a relationship with the community to gain support in funding?

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getting in touch with local farmers or growers for challenges with the garden. creating a consulting team for yourself or bringing in people from outside to share their knowledge in the classroom

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getting in touch with local farmers or growers for challenges with the garden. creating a consulting team for yourself or bringing in people from outside to share their knowledge in the classroom

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Yes, funding is a huge impact on gardening for me. My coworker planted strawberries for me to help make it easier for me to maintain in my gardern.

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Yes, funding is a huge impact on gardening for me. My coworker planted strawberries for me to help make it easier for me to maintain in my gardern.

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Funding, availability of staff and community members to help

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Funding, availability of staff and community members to help

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Time management and motivation can be challenging.

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Time management and motivation can be challenging.

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Many hands make light work and
working with co-workers and sharing the load and skills sets
can really help with this challenge.

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GHS School Garden did not have staff or student help from

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GHS School Garden did not have staff or student help from

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March 2020-recently, due to stay at
home orders and local health department recommendations.  We are fortunate to have a 10,000 square foot fenced garden, and have not yet felt growing pains.
Funding or fundraising is always an ongoing struggle to maintain and
sustain our garden.

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Common themes throughout the flipgrids that I watched were:  COVID inability to have in person learning; Availability of space for garden & Funding

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Common themes throughout the flipgrids that I watched were:  COVID inability to have in person learning; Availability of space for garden & Funding

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Reach out to master gardeners University Extensions and even other local schools and community outreach Programs sometimes that an untapped resource around your block.

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How did you break the cycle and create a new habitual long maintained garden presence in your Program>?

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Yes plus I do think CO-VID has thrown all of us off (common circumstances).

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$$$ money and difficult to rally!

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we ended up limiting people in the gardens, and then did some "garden mentors" remotely.

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we ended up limiting people in the gardens, and then did some "garden mentors" remotely.

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COVID has really been a challenge for folks to get out in the garden.  Creativity helps, but a year off makes things challenging@

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COVID has really been a challenge for folks to get out in the garden.  Creativity helps, but a year off makes things challenging@

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Work at making the janitorial staff your friend.

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Yes, most definitely.  Finances seem to always be challenging.  Another person said staff turnover was also a challenge, seemed like starting over every year .

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I saw common challenges of COVID and finances.

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Yes! I too am struggling with how to get started.

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I noticed a lot of COVID related issues. There also seemed to be the hurdle of where to start/how to gather up the knowledge and staff needed to get a garden program running.

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I noticed that there seemed to be a lot of COVID related issues (no surprise there

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Call your local Extension office if you need help with planning or planting a garden. The services they provide are free and specific to your region. 

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Call your local Extension office if you need help with planning or planting a garden. The services they provide are free and specific to your region. 

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Lack of funding or space. Lack of knowledge or resources to have successful plantings. 

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Lack of funding or space. Lack of knowledge or resources to have successful plantings. 

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With covid being a huge challenge in 2020 and still in 2021, I also saw concerns about funding which is probably also covid related. Space for having the garden of our dreams is another hurdle, but most seem to be moving forward with baby steps.

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It seemed to be a common theme of challenges! Figuring out how to balance in person learning with the virtual learners! We have all been challenged to be creative, flexible and hopefully given ourselves grace during this unique year.

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I understand the challenge of having groundscrew not understanding what we are doing with our outdoor space. We are very grateful for the assistance with mowing the grass but having our garden/plants mowed over has been hard!

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too much funding, then no to little funding.  Managing volunteers.

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Reach out to your local gardening organizations for support with plants and garden questions.

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Were you able to come up with several different solutions?

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Were you able to come up with several different solutions?

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A lot of teachers talked about making a garden classroom at their school. Set a block of time aside each week to help reach your goal.

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In our future garden, I would suspect teacher buy-in might be challenging. However, I could be wrong!

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I heard in several videos that gophers and rats can be a big problem. Keeping these rodents out can be challenging due to the amount of work needed to provide adequate protection.

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I  haven't yet. I'm a family based garden and starting small. If I would decide to go larger, I can see funding being an issue. 

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I  haven't yet. I'm a family based garden and starting small. If I would decide to go larger, I can see funding being an issue. 