To all the lovely people,
Hello, I hope everyone is well and happy. Years ago when I was teaching junior high school at Walter Colton in Monterey I started a project on gardening and growing plants to eat. We prepared the soil (mostly DG and clay) by adding lots of straw and compost as well as some organic fertilizer and planted our seeds. The students were interested and really took ownership of our garden. I was very pleased with the results. Years later I had the opportunity to teach horticulture to adults and one of the things I stressed was growing at least some of your own food. Some of you receiving this email will remember those days and the wonderful times we had in that class.
Below is a short article I gleaned from “Mike the Gardener” He asks the question, “Should gardening be taught in schools?” I agree with Mike that it should be discussed and debated. I would be most interested in hearing or reading what our young people, the UC, Master Gardeners, and those on my email list have to say about this subject. For my part I am totally in favor of young people and adults learning how to care for our soil and growing their own food crops as well as flowers and trees.
Paul McCollum
Should gardening be taught in schools?
This is the question I was pondering to myself the other day. As someone who loves vegetable gardening, the answer for me would be easy ... an astounding absolutely! But what about someone who may not be into vegetable gardening at all, or only "dabbles" in it? Why would anyone just dabble in vegetable gardening? We'll save that question for another time :) However, I think it is a great debate question. Let's face it, food is "kind of" important and if we can teach our youth where it comes from, how to grow their own, I believe it will go a long way for a more sustainable future. And if gardening is taught in schools, should it be a mandatory class or an elective? I would like to get your thoughts on this? Comment below and let me know.