Victorian Schools Garden Program

Every school a garden, every garden a classroom.

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Importance of School Gardens

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Now more than ever, with climate change and sustainability at the forefront, the VSGP want to encourage more schools to increase their greenspace and take learning outdoors.

School gardens provide spaces where children may learn about productive gardens, biodiversity and sustainability, as well as providing a way to engage students, teachers, parents and the broader community.

They also give teachers the opportunity to take learning outdoors and provide students an opportunity to practise and explore fresh ideas in the face of climate change by being involved in the development of green spaces within their own school environment.

Listen to VSGP advocate Costa Georgiadis explain the importance and many benefits of outdoor learning for schools.

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Schools celebrate their 2019 gardening achievements

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On 21 November the annual Victorian Schools Garden Awards were presented at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. Wild winds and high temperatures forced the ceremony from the Oak Lawns to indoors Mueller Hall, with approximately 400 students from around the state, their teachers, parents, volunteers and sponsors, celebrating their gardening achievements.

Garden Celebrities, Costa Georgiadis and Jane Edmanson, were on hand to enthuse the crowd with their knowledge and passion for gardening, with Costa now being the program’s official advocate.

This year’s State winners included Footscray High School for its horticulture and sustainability campus, home to the school’s VET horticultural studies and a source of produce for its hospitality program. Melton Specialist School was another State winner whose gardens are crucial to the learning experience of students with special needs. Maintained by Horticulture Certificate 2 students, the rest of the school contributes art works to its outdoor areas.

Winner of this year’s Kevin Heinze Perpetual Award (the ‘Gold Logie’ of school gardening – and, yes, Costa did bring his along for show and tell!) was Noble Park Primary School. With its open spaces and lush gardens, students can participate in investigative play (which doesn’t exclude tree-climbing or cubby-building), scientific learning in their various outdoor garden and a kitchen garden which is especially popular within this multicultural school community.

Each year Victorian Schools Garden Program’s (VSGP) committee continues to be amazed at the high standard of gardening programs running in our schools. It is comforting to know that we have a new generation of young horticulturist caring for our planet, especially in this time when global warming is at the forefront.

Click here for a full list of the 2019 VSGP Awards Results

Rebranding of Program

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The Committee which oversees the program, recently signed off on a change to the logo and associated branding. The reason behind this change was to eliminate confusion that currently exists with the name Victorian Schools Garden Awards, because the program now includes a grants component as well as the awards themselves.

In an attempt to eliminate the issue while still retaining our heritage, the Victorian Schools Garden Awards (VSGA) has been changed to the Victorian Schools Garden Program (VSGP), including a modernisation of the logo which will gradually replace the old versions.

2019 Grant Results

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Grant applications closed late April and the VSGP Advisory Committee spent May reading and evaluating the 160 entries received from 110 Victorian schools. The 46 successful schools will share in $36,000 worth of vouchers and products to undertake their garden project or add to their school yards.

It’s never an easy task choosing the successful schools with so many high-quality entries for proposed garden projects. Many schools just missed out by only points.

The Maxicrop Edible Garden Grant remained our most popular category entry, with many schools wanting to either expand their current program to include more student participation or include a bush tucker garden to complement their Indigenous studies.

The highest number of product grant entries received were for the Warner’s Outdoor Common Room Grant ($2000 plant and tree supply) with schools seeing the value of including a shared outdoor space for health and well-being.

There is another opportunity for schools to receive funds or products for existing gardens, by entering the VSGP Awards. While assessing Grant applications we read about many existing gardens which could easily qualify for an Award. For more information on the Awards program please click here.

To view 2019 Grant Recipients.

 

 

Green Connections Wows at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show

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Mulch sweeping was elevated to a fine art as the construction team competed with the impending dusk to put the finishing touches on playscape “Green Connections”.

Their tremendous efforts culminated in a feature garden that will stick in the minds of show attendees for years to come.

To say the garden was success would be a vast understatement. The joy it brought to show-goers was palpable through their wide-eyed stares of wonder upon arrival, expressions of joy and jubilant journeys through each of the garden’s many interactive features. It’s no surprise that many wished the garden remained a permanent fixture in Carlton Gardens.

A collaboration between RB Landscapes and the Victorian Schools Garden Program (VSGP), “Green Connections” captivated through its imaginative landscapes and opportunities for engagement.

Visiting each section of the garden was a pleasure in its own right, becoming a complete and robust experience when added to the surrounding areas. Bamboo-lined tunnels led to wetlands through which water was pumped by stationary bicycles and large steps led to a viewpoint where visitors could see log forts, tipis made of grass and boats sinking in water-resembling sand.

Every feature told a story and was visually stunning. It was a garden that was both encompassing and captivating, living up to its well-chosen name. It also educated and encouraged connections with natural materials.

Each section included signs explaining not only the purpose of the element, but also its educational, mobility and sustainability goals. They highlighted the concept behind each of the garden elements and contained a connected string of poetry on each sign, intended for the younger audiences to encourage them to visit each area.

We’re extremely pleased with “Green Connections” and the enormous amount of positive feedback that it generated from MIFGS visitors. A huge thank you to Richard Bellemo, the RB Landscapes construction team including Croxton Specialist School students and all the volunteers who were on hand throughout the week.

Contact us

Tania Karamitos
Program Co-ordinator
Victorian Schools Garden Program
Phone: 03 9576 0599
Fax: 03 9576 0431
Email: vsgp@greenlifeindstryvictoria.org.au