Increasingly, school gardens are becoming the focal point for improving the attitudes, health and well being of school children who may be used to overly processed and manufactured food.

Whether using a window box to grow herbs in the classroom or turning a portion of the school property into a full-fledged vegetable garden, the hands-on experience of growing something and having the opportunity to pick it is changing how children see fruits and vegetables and the living world they inhabit.

Below are some general resources to get you started or inspire you further!

School Garden Resources

• edWeb’s Growing School Gardens Online Learning Community
• Princeton School Garden Cooperative Guide to School Garden Planning for All Grades
• Garden State On Your Plate (Princeton School Gardens Cooperative)
• Life Lab School Garden Resources
• The Edible Schoolyard Project

School Garden and Nutrition Education in New Jersey

Camden Children’s Garden (Camden County)
Contact: Mike Devlin, (856) 365-8733

City Green (Passaic County)
Contact: Jennifer Papa, (973) 800-8197

Fernbrook Farms Education Center (Burlington County)
Contact: Larry Kuser and Brian Kuser, (609) 298-4028

Garden State Urban Farms (Hudson County)
Contact: Lorraine Gibbons, (973) 885-3894

HealthBarn USA (Bergen County)
Contact: Stacy Antine, (201) 891-2066

Isles, Inc (Mercer County)
Contact: Jim Simon, (609) 341-4709

Master Gardeners, Rutgers Cooperative Extension (statewide)
Contact: Nicholas Polanin, (908) 526-6293

New Jersey Agricultural Society (Mercer County)
Contact: Kris Guttadora, (609) 462-9691

Rutgers Gardens (Middlesex County)
Contact: Bruce Crawford, (732) 932-8451