Sponsor: Coles

Summary

The Silver Tree Steiner School applied for a Coles Junior Landcare School Garden Grant in Round 2, 2008, to play a part in the funding of their Kitchen Garden Scheme – A large project costing over $15,000.

A big part of the project itself is building a kitchen where the students can use their produce in cooking, as well as setting up a garden shed, water tank and irrigation. The Junior Landcare grant will help fund an educational, organically managed food garden, which will be maintained by students teachers and parent volunteers. Produce grown in the garden will be cooked in the new kitchen so students can learn about healthy cooking practices.

It will benefit the environment by managing the school grounds in a sustainable way, using organic and biodynamic gardening practices, which will reduce water consumption and improve soil quality. They will also implement a new waste management system of composting and a worm farm.

Initially, the new waste management system will handle the school’s organic waste; however, their goal is to set up a local waste centre for the community as a source of pesticide-free compost for their local area.

The grant funds will be used to assist with developing a kitchen wet area, purchasing tools, gardening equipment, shed, soil, fencing material, waste management equipment and seedlings.

The school has over 120 parents and community volunteers contributing to this project, and is a real team effort.