Leanna Killoran says it well:

“As many new gardeners can attest, the idea of planning your summer garden while the weather is still grey and cold can be a daunting challenge. As seed catalogues arrive in the mail and the days hint at becoming a little longer, we can use this time to let our imaginations run wild. What does my perfect garden look like? How many colours do I want to see? What do I want to spend my summer eating? And for those growing commercial production we enter another realm of who am I growing for, what do they want to eat? Will I have enough to satisfy my customers? In a world that seems to be less weather predictable this can feel like an overwhelmingly impossible task. Breaking it up into bite size pieces can be both rewarding and enjoyable.

Read the rest of Leanna’s article here in the Orchard Garden’s February edition of Field News.

Perhaps an educator you might ask these questions to your class. How do your students envision the perfect garden? How many colours do they want to see? What might they enjoy eating together?

Also in the February edition, Stacy Friedman offers four categories of crops that are great for raised beds in your school gardens! Read on, Reading on.

Interested in more information? Join the Orchard Garden for their upcoming workshop on garden planning which will be held on March 8th! Here’s the synopsis:

“Join us for our garden planning workshop in order to prepare for a wonderfully fruitful year of growing! Spend an afternoon dreaming up your bountiful vegetable garden. Learn tricks for successful and sustainable planting year round!

Topics will include:

• Choosing what to grow
• Ordering/purchasing seeds
• Planning your gardening space
• Amending your soil
• Planting your crops
• Tracking your progress, discoveries and challenges

We’ll see you there!