We will gather at the beautiful Permaculture Skills Center in Sebastopol and begin our day promptly at 9am. Please bring a reusable water bottle and dress comfortably for spending time outside.
Following a brief introduction, Todd Reed, former school garden teacher, will guide the group in Garden Design & Crop Planning. He will offer many resources and will lead participants through the process of planning their school garden for an abundant year ahead. We will also discuss cover cropping, garden bed preparation and harvesting techniques.
Anne Loarie, SGN's Program Director, will facilitate both parts of the Garden Curriculum and Resources sections. Anne will showcase SGN's favorite resources and help participants integrate their plans by sequencing garden activities into a curricular framework. There will be a strong emphasis on NGSS.
Steve Ehrmann, long time gardener and irrigation guru, will teach drip irrigation fundamentals and will offer insight and guidance to help solve your irrigation challenges.
Free plants and seeds available, as well as a plethora of resources to view and explore.
Anne's path in garden education has wound through studies at the University of Oregon, service in Peace Corps Panama as a Permaculture volunteer, time teaching in San Francisco Unified, and non-profit educational work. With her passion for gardening, cooking, the natural world, and social justice, empowering educators to take their students outside to learn has become a personal mission.
Anne is also the Garden and Wellness Educator at Alexander Valley School where she integrates science curriculum with organic gardening practices and food literacy education. She envisions an education system that integrates whole child concepts through authentic, inquiry led, project-based learning so that our youth have the skills and opportunities to self-actualize in an increasingly hectic and yet isolating society.
Steve has worked with the School Garden Network Irrigation Team for the last 4 summers, drawing from installation experience of drip and lawn irrigation on my various residences since the mid-1980's. I've been in the Master Gardener program since 2016, where I present various library talks. I've participated in the California Rare Fruit Growers association for the last 16 years, doing extensive grafting of various fruit tree varieties for my orchard and for friends.