Each year, University of Georgia Extension joins Georgia Organics as they coordinate a statewide campaign to get kids eating, growing, and learning about a locally grown fruit or vegetable during October Farm to School Month. This year’s campaign will be celebrating Pepper Palooza!  To participate in Pepper Palooza at your school, home, early care center, or in your community, visit bit.ly/pepperpalooza to register. Participants will receive access to a free electronic toolkit filled with pepper-themed activities, standards-ba ..read more

Friday, September 30th, join us in celebrating Georgia's apples! Fall is often apple picking time in the North Georgia Mountains.  Most of Georgia’s apples are grown in Gilmer and Fannin Counties and the 2020 farm gate value of Georgia’s apple crop was $9,357,650.  The Mountain Research and Education Center in Blairsville grows almost 2,000 apple trees for research, assisting apple growers in Georgia and North Carolina. Most importantly, fresh apples are delicious. On Friday, September 30th, the Georgia Department of Education School Nutrition Program and the Georgia Departme ..read more

The 2022 October is Farm to School Month campaign Spinach to Win it is now live, meaning folks can start signing up to participate! Spinach to Win It is a state-wide celebration to get kids eating, growing, and participating in Spinach-themed activities. University of Georgia Extension is a proud partner of the Farm to School Alliance. To participate in Spinach to Win it at your school, home, early care center, or in your community, visit bit.ly/spinachtowinit and sign up. Participants will receive free electronic resources to help plan and implement activities.  Resources include standard ..read more

After years of inattention, school gardens are back in focus. It may be a good time for a garden reboot! Spend time rethinking your school garden purpose. Is it solely a horticultural effort or is the garden really tied to the school curriculum?  Ensure that you are getting the most of the garden.  A well thought-out garden plan can be used to teach history, geography, math and English.  Planting a plot of Cherokee Trail of Tears beans can be a segue to history and geography.  Creating a Sarah, Plain and Tall garden is a refreshing way to teach literature.  Use your ..read more

Livin’ La Vida Okra October is Farm to School Month and schools and early care centers across Georgia will be celebrating all things okra! Livin’ La Vida Okra is a state-wide celebration to get kids eating, growing, and participating in okra-themed activities. To participate in Livin’ La Vida Okra at your school, home, early care center, or in your community, visit bit.ly/livinlavidaokra and sign up. Participants will receive free electronic resources to help you plan and implement your activities.  Resources include standards-based lesson ..read more

The 3rd Annual Great Georgia Pollinator Census will be Friday, August 20th and Saturday, August 21st, 2021.  This event brings citizens scientists from across Georgia together for insect education and conservation.  Are those dates on your calendar?  Won’t you join us? Why Count Insects? Understanding pollinators and other beneficial insects is imperative to Georgia’s ecosystem and our economics.  A 2014 economic impact study by the University of Georgia determined that the annual value of pollination to our state is over $360 million.  Any home gardener who has tried ..read more

It is almost that time of year!   March 22nd – March 26th is Georgia Ag Awareness Week.  This is the week to celebrate all things Georgia Agriculture. Happily, Monday of that week is Hands-on Garden Day!  Traditionally, that has meant celebrating our school gardens.  This year is a bit different and the Georgia Department of Agriculture is asking us to celebrating any work in any garden.  So the question is how will you celebrate? How about spending some time as a family in the garden?  Maybe plan what types of food crops you want to grow this year in your h ..read more

School Gardening is a challenge during the best of times but during the COVID-19 crisis it can seem almost impossible.  As school gardens become more active there could be questions on how best to manage the garden while keeping safe.  Georgia’s Farm to School Alliance has developed some resources to provide some guidance.  The Farm to School Alliance is made up of partners from the University of Georgia, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, the Georgia Department of Education, the Georgia Department of Public Health and Georgia Organics. Gardening Covid Guide WEB Taste Test ..read more

Nationally, Americans recognize Arbor Day in April.  Georgia celebrates Arbor Day on the third Friday of February each year because this is a better time to plant trees.  This year Georgia’s Arbor Day falls on February 19th.  By planting in February,  trees have time for root growth before the heat and drought of our summer months. Have you considered fruit trees in your community garden?  They add a nice backdrop to your garden, can provide a bit of shade during the very hot summer days, and produce fruit for the gardeners. Be warned, however, that they can be a lot o ..read more

The Great Georgia Pollinator Podcast has launched!   University of Georgia’s Becky Griffin is the host and she designed the podcast to correspond to the Great Georgia Pollinator Census. If you are interested in pollinating insects, habitat, and research, this is the podcast for you.  It can be found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Anchor.  Each episode is 20-30 minutes so it is easy to listen to at your office desk, during lunch, or on your commute. The first episode explores the Connect to Protect pollinator certification program with Lauren Muller.  As with other social m ..read more