The Burpee Home Gardens “I Can Grow” Youth Garden Program Makes A Garden Difference!

Burpee Home Gardens^® Supports 11 Youth Gardens with 2,000 Vegetable and Herb Plants. Happily, I was able to work with William Moss and the Burpee team to help several of the schools build gardens for this years Burpee Home Gardens^® 2011 “I Can Grow” program.

This program assists school and community gardens demonstrating well-developed and staffed plans for youth-centered educational programs that emphasize nutrition and food production, environmental awareness, social responsibility and scholastic integration. In 2011, Burpee Home Gardens provided 2,000 vegetable and herb plants to help establish and maintain school and community gardens at:

• Robles Elementary School— Tampa Bay, Fla.
• West End IB World School— Nashville, Tenn.
• Kid Power, Inc.— Washington, D.C.
• Salem Hills Park Community Garden— Inver Grove Heights, Minn.
• Waterford School District— Waterford, Mich.
• James Weldon Johnson Elementary School— Chicago
• Chicago International Charter School–Irving Park Campus— Chicago
• Stephen K. Hayt Elementary School— Chicago
• Enrico Fermi Elementary School— Chicago
• Academy for Global Citizenship— Chicago
• Common Threads — Chicago

“Seven generations of gardeners have grown with us, and the ‘I Can Grow’ program is our way of helping the next generation of young and novice gardeners get started,” said Diane Hund, director of marketing, Burpee Home Gardens. “Helping students dig in the dirt to plant their first garden and seeing the excitement as they learn where their food comes from is an incredible experience that we’re proud to be a part of.”

Burpee Home Gardens also supported more than 220 “I Can Grow” Youth Garden Award applicants with a selection of vegetable seeds for use in the garden and the classroom, and educational materials, including the “I Can Grow” Guide and Garden Fresh.

To see how the school gardens are flourishing throughout the year, visit the Burpee Home Gardens blog at www.burpeehomegardens.com and Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BurpeeHomeGardens. To start your own school or community garden with the help of the “I Can Grow” Youth Garden Program, visit the “I Can Grow” portion of the Burpee Home Gardens website for details on 2012 program.

*Note – Because the FTC requires it, I am noting that Burpee Home Gardens^® is supplying plants for my personal garden, however, my coverage of their “I Can Grow” program is unrelated – I support the education of students in the field of gardening and nutrition and feel positive about this or any program related to healthy eating and organic living.