This UMN Extension website developed in 2019 from a pilot project to identify food safety needs for school gardens. This website has a host of resources for developing safe food handling protocol within your school district or school.

Sign-up Genius is a friendly online volunteer management tool that allows one to set up dates, time slots, and collect email and phone. See an example of a Summer Care Sign-up (adopt the garden for a week) and an example of a Planting Day Sign-up

This hour long webinar was produced by SGSO (School Garden Support Organization) on 1/28/20 and features presenters from across the nation.

This 6 page overview covers the greatest hits for food safety in the school garden and how to handle its edible harvest. Developed by USDA and Institute of Child Nutrition (2016)

UMN Extension hosts a number of resources on their school garden webpage. It includes a list of sources for lesson plans, how to get started, and how to connect to SNAP-Ed, SHIP and other public programs supportive of school gardens.

This Campaign has it all! Awards, training, lesson plans, training for teachers, online resources, and stories!

Minnesota Grown, a program of MN Department of Agriculture, connects consumers with Minnesota Farmers and has poster of what is in season (1p). Check out their online database to find farmers near you that are interested in selling direct and potentially connecting with your classroom or serve on an advisory committee.

MSHS established a gardening resource hub with links to all sorts of helpful How-tos (and what not to do!)

Do you have Master Gardeners in your county? Connect with your local chapter to see if and how they woud like to support your school garden program. They can co-teach on horticulture, assist in garden programs, and potentially mini-grants for annual supplies or projects. Click here to learn more about this UMN Extension Program

This page lays out some Minnesota based resources for determining how to choose plants for your pollinator garden and advocate on behalf of our pollinators.

Johnny's Seeds has a number of instructional videos and planning tools in their online Grower's Library.

UMN Extension hosts an online weed identification tool to help see if what you're seeing is a weed or not. If it is, go ahead and take a photo and share it out. This is a good opportunity for the younger grades to pull them out and check out the plant parts while helping out in the garden!

Seeds purchased in stores will have their packing year stamped on the packet. If stored in cool, dry and out of sunlight, they can have strong germination rates for 1-2 years after. Some crops have even stronger viability and some varieties may surprise! See the chart from High Mowing Seesds for guidance. Consider conducting a germination test by gauging the percentage of seeds that germinate on a moist paper towel in a week before composting old seeds.

Food Forests are popping up around the world. They are perennial growing spaces where people can forage for food. They include trees, bushes, and more. While they do require care and maintenance, these are plants that don't require replanting so soil does not need to be dug up, seedlings and seeds carted in. Moreover, some are discovering crops that they didn't know but actually native to the area. Learn more!

Food Forests are popping up around the world. They are perennial growing spaces where people can forage for food. They include trees, bushes, and more. While they do require care and maintenance, these are plants that don't require replanting so soil does not need to be dug up, seedlings and seeds carted in. Moreover, some are discovering crops that they didn't know but actually native to the area. Learn more!

May this Picture Guide of school garden features bring you and your garden team inspiration! Please check with your Grounds/Facilities Department for standards and procedures for building a school garden.

Washington, DCs school district has a robust school garden program, and one of the resources they developed is this organized photo album of various school garden features.

Please check with your Grounds/Facilities department to learn about their standards, process, and recommendations for designing your school garden.

Seeds and seedlings are available throughout the spring and summer through MN State Horticultural Society (MSHS) MN Green Program. Typically $55/year for public gardens, such as school gardens, sites sign up in the early spring and receive notifications when gardening resources become available. Click to learn more

Slow Food USA is a national organization offering PLANT A SEED PROGRAM which provides seeds for a set of crops that represent different US growing regions. Each year, they present a unique set of seeds that members can purchase, but available to schools for free.