NGA and Youth Garden Grant Sponsor, The Home Depot, look forward to the 24th annual crop of Youth Garden Grants! Over the past 24 years, NGA's Youth Garden Grants program has helped more than 1.3 million youngsters reap rewards and vital life lessons from working in gardens and habitats, and thanks to the generosity of The Home Depot, we can reach many more eager young learners.

The programs we chose as 2006 Youth Garden Grant winners reach children and youth from all walks of life, from homeless teens and special needs preschoolers to rural 4-H programs and at-risk high school students. These gardens supply nutritious produce to needy families; bring people of different backgrounds together in friendship; sooth and heal abused and neglected children; and boost academic, practical, and life skills for participants.

Here are inspiring stories from a few of this year’s winning projects.

Yakima Homeless Youth Committee
Yakima, WA
In Spring 2005, an inner city lot was cleared for the Yakima Community Garden, a project intended to engage homeless youth. Outreach workers and adult volunteers invited homeless young people to participate in planning, planting, and caring for the garden. The garden gives them the chance to learn useful skills, to have positive interactions with community members, and to produce nutritious food. Participants also operate a produce stand, gaining work experience and funds to help pay for personal necessities.

"The Garden is a source of income, nutrition, exercise, and hope for the youth, plus a significant learning experience and neighborhood beautification project," notes Patricia Brown of the Yakima Homeless Youth Committee. "Recently, a man who lives in the neighborhood came by and remarked, ‘This garden is soothing, settling, a feast for my eyes and a comfort to my soul each time I see it.’ Spontaneous good is already happening."

Community Garden Committee Chair Steve Gaulke says, “I’ve seen first hand wonderful interactions with neighbors, passers by that we've never been witnessed before. The Garden is focused on helping people have new and positive experiences, providing a safe place to make new connections and friendships, to learn, and to experience personal growth."

Eisenhower Middle School
Succasunna, NJ
Educator Barbara Delaney uses the school greenhouse and gardens to bring learning alive for her seventh grade special education students. "They take great pride in their outdoor projects. The hands-on activities are excellent tools for learning, and students really profit by developing practical life skills."

Eisenhower Middle School students learn, thrive, and connect with others in the garden.

Barbara goes on to enumerate other exciting benefits of the garden. “Students connect learning to a real-life experience, so daily lessons become more meaningful. There’s something magical about being outdoors, and the kids love the physical aspect of planting a garden. I also find that students are more motivated to learn when they’re looking forward to something!”

She continues, "Another important goal of the program is to help our students feel connected to their peers and to their community. They have opportunities to share experiences with students and adults who are not part of our class, and this has led to new friendships and mutual understanding. The regular education students want to be included with our students, and the special education students feel needed and valued. This boosts their self-confidence, and that carries over into academic areas."

With their 2006 Youth Garden Grant, Barbara's class is planning to add a Japanese garden to the school courtyard. Students will be involved in every step of the process from planning to maintenance. They’ll share ideas and experiences with a California middle school class that is installing their own Japanese garden.

Designing the new garden will provide many opportunities for academic and personal growth. Each student will have an assigned job during the process and work in small groups to accomplish their tasks. Barbara notes enthusiastically, “My students gain confidence and self-assurance when high expectations are placed on them. They rise to new challenges when they are in a nurturing and supportive environment."

Butterfly Hope
Denver, Colorado
"Our program was founded with a community garden in mind, and as a result, the community has something beautiful to see and participate in," says Butterfly Hope Executive Director, Julie Dale Carr. The nonprofit science and creative arts program provides much needed education enrichment to at-risk children. Kids take part in programs that foster discovery, skill building, and fresh experiences. "Faith, a third grade student who participated in Butterfly Hope's Summer Enrichment Program, was eager to tell her new teacher about her summer,” says Julie. “When it was her turn to share, she bounced out of her seat, stood up at her desk, and told her class about the Three Sisters Garden she had planted. Faith was proud to teach the class about how Native American cultures used the plants and how much fun she’d had at Butterfly Hope. Clearly, Faith had learned a great deal about gardening, history, and the environment around her."

The summer program fills a special need for youth activities that provide safe opportunities to explore healthy, creative outlets and connections with the natural world. A recent parent survey revealed that 90% of participating kids did not have access to other summer enrichment programs, and 21% would have been left at home alone if not for the program.

Butterfly Hope students rotate through gardening, art, and science classes with a cultural theme. Short-term goals are to increase knowledge and strengthen decision-making skills, social skills, and community involvement. Long-term aims are to instill pride in both the community and self, enabling students to make healthy decisions when faced with the day-to-day reality of drugs, crime, and violence.

"The youths blossom from new relationships with fellow students, volunteers, and Butterfly Hope staff," continues Julie. "They learn horticulture, biology, ecology, and plant science, but they also make enormous gains in social interaction, confidence, and the ability to follow through on things. Kids look forward to taking part, and since the garden is on their school grounds, the energy carries from the garden back into the classroom, bolstering excitement and enthusiasm for coming to school each day."

Growing Together Community Garden
Harvard, IL
An intergenerational effort of the 4-H Falcons Club and University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners of McHenry County, the Growing Together Community Garden grows fresh produce and herbs for the Harvard Food Pantry. In 2005 they provided more than 9,000 pounds of food for distribution to the community. The youth involved have gained gardening knowledge and broadened their understanding of the impact of hunger, and the importance of eliminating it.

The food pantry estimates that each pound of donated food is worth $1, so the youth have not only provided nutritious fresh produce to clients, they also saved the pantry enough money that they could purchase a new freezer. Family Nutrition Program Coordinator Kasey Murphy says, “The 4-H Falcons have made a tremendous impact in the amount of food donated to the City of Harvard Food Pantry and fostered a spirit of volunteerism in the community."

Krause Children's Residential Treatment Center
Katy, TX
Krause Children's Residential Treatment Center's "Garden Guardians" class uses gardening activities to bring hope and love to children who are victims of abuse, neglect, and abandonment. Children who are removed from their homes by Child Protective Services are housed at Krause, where they find a therapeutic and safe environment to heal and learn. Many suffer from serious emotional disturbance and come to Krause angry, confused, afraid, distrusting, and suicidal.

This soothing and engaging environment is a place of learning and healing for Krause clients.

Participants learn science and environmental principles at while developing gardening skills, but the benefits extend beyond the classroom. Planting a garden is part of their healing process. Garden Coordinator Aleta Patrick shares that, “Through the garden, students see how hard work, teamwork, and passion can translate into a positive impact on their environment regardless of where they are. This translates into a more positive self-image and improved sense of self worth. It’s a monumental task, but the return on the investment is also huge because it gives these children the emotional underpinnings to positively contribute to their community in a constructive manner in all areas of their life."

Aleta goes on to say "The excitement of the kids and their enthusiasm for each session has created an interest not only in the classes but the garden as well. A lasting memory is made when we culminate the season with a garden party using the vegetables grown in the garden. The kids are so excited to have real salad, one they grew themselves."

Administrators and employees recognize the positive benefits of the kids working in the garden, their enthusiasm in the garden, and the pride in the resulting beauty. Thanks to strong volunteer and community support, the program is thriving and changing the lives of many young people.

Good Beginnings Center
Burlington, WA
Good Beginnings Center is a preschool serving developmentally delayed children ages 2 to 5 years. Executive Director of Special Programs Kathleen Ehman explains, "We provide specially designed instruction to assist these struggling learners in acquiring the skills they need to be successful in school. Active hands-on learning works best for this age group so gardening is a perfect match for their learning style. What a wonderful use of time, energy, and funding!"

The goal of the gardening program is to provide opportunities to increase motor, cognitive, language, and social development through hands-on outdoor learning, so Good Beginnings educators chose "Garden of the Five Senses" as the theme. Teacher Bonnie Gossett notes, "Research tells us that young children learn best through their senses. Digging in the dirt, touching prickly pumpkin vines, and picking, husking, cooking, and tasting fresh corn fit the bill."

One activity they use to hone important sequencing skills is studying and observing the life cycle of pumpkins. "Shayleanne, a preschooler with language and social delays, was walking through some pumpkin vines squeezed in among bushes. She exclaimed to me, 'Teacher Bonnie, Look! A punkin' flower! A orange punkin' flower.' She had made a connection between a real world plant and her sequencing project in the classroom. What a pay off. What a difference!"

Rocky Mountain High School
Fort Collins, CO
Rocky Mountain High's "Project Tundra" is a new project partnering "at risk" and special needs students with students in advanced biology classes to design and plant a courtyard garden. The program serves as an extension of the Alternative Cooperative Program connecting students with local businesses and universities to gain job skills.

The beautification project brings together students from diverse backgrounds and gives participants networking and extension experiences with local industry professionals, as well as opportunities for service learning projects to strengthen community ties. Coordinator Kim Nigro envisions that, “This project will allow students to build bridges to the community and further enhance the understanding of community members as they support students' educational and vocational goals." Special Education Department Leader Karen Bennett adds, "The program helps our students feel like an integral part of the Rocky Mountain High School community and teaches students skills need to be successful not only in school, but in life after high school."

Students have been enthusiastic leaders of the program from the beginning. Kim shares, "We started to talk about our grant and the project, and one student showed up at school the next day with 10 pairs of work gloves and some tools and simply stated, 'Let’s get to work!'"

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For the full list of 2006 Youth Garden Grants winners, visit here.

To download an application for the Youth Garden Grants, visit here.

Want to support a school or youth garden in your community? Check out NGA's Adopt a School Garden program here.

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