Welcome to our monthly E-Newsletter supporting a network of school garden advocates. We will keep you updated on the latest news and work being done across school gardens programs here in Newark, New Jersey and the best resources from across the country.   

Looking for a specific resource? Interested in having your own resources published? Reach out to us to discuss more at pevans@citybloom.org and we would be more than happy to help.

We are slowly coming to the end of our field trips for all the Pre-K and 1st Grade students! The Pre-K students have been loving their time at Greater Newark Conservancy as they get to pollinate flowers as little bees, hold worms and see them up close, and take a beautiful hike around our Outdoor Learning Center!  

Garden Irrigation & Disease Management Workshop

Virtual

Wednesday, June 7th @ 5:00pm                              

Join City Green’s Director of Agriculture, Henry Anderson, at the Farm Eco-Center on Wednesday, June 7th at 5:00 PM for a free workshop to discuss tips and techniques for successful garden watering and disease prevention!

RSVP HERE

Family Fun in the Kitchen

In-Person

Saturday, June 17th @ 11:00am                                       

Join us for Chef Afi's Family Fun in the Kitchen! This month, we will be making (and tasting!) delicious Tofu, Mushroom, & Tomato Kebabs! Register below to reserve your spot to learn personally from Chef Afi.

All ingredients are supplied and included in the registration price. Registration is required, walk-ins will not be let in!

RSVP HERE

City Green Garden Conference

In-Person

Saturday, June 17th @ 9:00am-2:00pm                                                                                                                        Calling all home and community gardeners! Join us for City Green’s Garden Conference on June 17th at the Farm Eco-Center. This outdoor conference will include a full day of sustainable gardening and homesteading workshops, appropriate for all garden types and skill levels.

RSVP HERE

District-Led School Garden Programs- Engaging With Your District School Garden Community

Virtual

Wednesday, June 21st @ 2:00pm

Ashley and Sara of Prescott Unified School District will explore ways of organizing and facilitating a professional learning community which engages local partners, fosters knowledge-sharing, and responds directly to the needs of the community.

RSVP HERE

Visit us at 32 Prince Street, Newark NJ 07103 as we are your community resource center! We have soil, compost, seedlings, and seeds for our community members at no cost. 

Check out our team's presentation for the 38th Annual ANJEE Winter Conference. Our FoodCorps team discussed the impact of school gardens in their school community! 

FoodCorps is a non-profit organization that believes every child, in every school, should experience the joy and power of food. That work starts in classrooms, cafeterias, and school gardens—and it starts with our FoodCorps Service Members.

Greater Newark Conservancy is one of 39 organizations advancing childhood nutrition security awarded new grants from Newman's Own Foundation in 2022. In this video, Newman's Own Foundation asks the question, "Why work alone, when we can work together?" A coalition of organizations working together on childhood nutrition will be the starting point of change! 

Every year, Jersey Fresh celebrates the Garden State's fruits and vegetables through the Jersey Tastes Harvest of the Month! For the month of June, we celebrate sensational Strawberries! Click this link to check out the activity sheet for the month. This sheet includes videos, fun facts, recipes, and activities for all ages from Pre-K all the way through High School! 

Have a little food scientist in your household? Have them check out this really interesting project where we are able to extra DNA right from a couple of fresh strawberries! With only a few common items around the household, your child could discover the in's and out's of DNA extraction! 

How did the farmer fix his jeans?

“A Cabbage Patch!”

Source: Wisconsin School Garden Network - Melissa Hayes

Register your school garden to be a part of our Newark School Garden Support Network and see where other school gardens are located near you!

Interested in bringing your students to the Outdoor Learning Center at Greater Newark Conservancy to experience the joy of nature-based education? Fill out this Field Trip Interest Form! We offer a variety of field trip programs that will spark the interest of any youth. Whether they are learning about urban habitats, diving into the world of bugs and insects, or seeing how worms can break down our food into a valuable soil amendment, your students will leave our site with a host of knowledge! For more information reach out to soleary@citybloom.org.

Dear Volunteers,

We are currently looking for volunteers who can assist with separating seed packets and potting up seedlings for distribution to Plot-It-Fresh members and the community.

We are appreciative of any time that can be devoted to our mission!

To sign up, register at this link here.

Our FoodCorps Service Members have been working hard on planning their schoolwide Spring Festivals for students to enjoy time outside with various Farm to School activities including taste tests, garden scavenger hunts, seed starting and a station highlighting many decomposers in the garden! 

The work that we do would not be possible without the generosity of our donors. While we had to put some of our on-site programs temporarily on hold during the COVID-19 crisis, we are back to normal operations and ramping up a number of programs and activities at our Outdoor Learning Center, the Hawthorne Avenue Urban Farm, school partner gardens, as well as various virtual workshops.