Mission Statement:
Hello all, we are the VOgetables!! We have come together to plant a garden of our own in our school’s community garden so that we can discover new foods, practice sustainable agriculture, and apply what we have learned in class to our life in the real world. To elaborate, we have planted a variety of vegetables that can be used in foods from many different cultures. In addition, the community garden uses a drip irrigation system, the most sustainable method of irrigation. We have also learned about types of soil, agriculture, and climate, which all play an important role in the success of our garden. Our purpose is economically beneficial in the sense that we are growing plants to make dishes, instead of buying them from the supermarket. Our garden does not use pesticides, and does not require paid labor. All these could add up to an expensive fee, so we are all saving money and the environment. On a similar note, the environment experiences a surge in biodiversity because we are practicing the gardening of more than one type of fruit and vegetable in the same space. Our project will benefit society, as well, for it requires the interaction between the students of our school. Whether it be through trading vegetables, exchanging advice, or side conversations while working alongside each other. The communication of our youth is extremely powerful, for we are the next generations to make decisions for our country.
Community Garden Benefits
Planting and harvesting fruits and vegetables in a community garden prove to be very beneficial. In a sense, it promotes polyculture, increases biodiversity, and provides a foundation for strong community bonding and relationships. The garden encourage students to plant a variety of plants to create unique and dynamic dishes. Therefore, students are encouraged to use poly-cultural agriculture in the gardens to create new and different dishes. This further increases the biodiversity of the harvesting land because it encourages many plants to live in harmony with one another. Community gardens also provide many benefits for the people living in them, such as the opportunity to build lasting relationships. This can happen within groups or outside of groups, for, at times, some families might trade harvest or receive gardening advice from each other. Students also learn the life lessons of trial and error and problem solving in the event that a certain gardening method or planting a specific vegetable is unsuccessful. These abilities are proven to be crucial to possess later in life.