Seeds for Schools: Winner #5 - Allen at Steinbeck K - 8

Allen at Steinbeck K through 8

San Jose, CA

# of students: 800 to 900

Gardening Program Started: 2006

San Jose is well represented this year in our Seeds for Schools program. Allen at Steinbeck is 1 of 2 schools chosen from the San Jose area (we will talk about the other San Jose winner, later in the week).

Allen at Steinbeck is a large urban area school catering to the Kindergarten through 8th grade student body. Their gardening program was started 6 years ago when they moved into their new building and includes 8 beds where they have been growing plenty of herbs, veggies and pumpkins.

"We work with each grade to get kids into the garden going through the entire planning, weeding and harvesting process," says Shawn Shahin, a teach at the school and submitter (along with Kristen Corpuz) of the application. "The pumpkins we grow are used each year to decorate our school."

Allen at Steinbeck plans on using the seeds they will receive as a means to teach more indoor gardening, starting seeds indoors and of course to get more kids gardening. They would like to use "garden time" as a positive reward for their students.

#91:Pest Free Vegetable Gardening

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You are not alone when you see your vegetable garden get ravaged by pests, many of which are unseen. Listen in as Mike gives you some tips and tricks you can implement to get your pest problem under control. For information on pest free vegetable gardening, be sure to visit http://www.averagepersongardening.com or join our vegetable gardening Facebook page.

About the Author

Mike Podlesny is the author of Vegetable Gardening for the Average Person: A Guide to Vegetable Gardening for the rest of us, the moderator for the largest vegetable gardening page on Facebook and creator of the Seeds Club.

Watch the video below to learn more about Mike`s Seeds of the Month Club:

Vegetable Seeds for your School Garden

If your school has a gardening program or is thinking about starting one, then you are in luck. Mike the Gardener Enterprises, has announced they are going to award ten schools with three year subscriptions to their Seeds of the Month Club (averagepersongardening.com/seedsclub). “We want to give back to communities and being able to offer up our vegetable seeds to help enhance and grow school vegetable gardens, is a great way to do just that,” said Mike the Gardener owner Michael C. Podlesny.

Ten different schools will be chosen to each receive a three year subscription to Mike the Gardener’s Seeds of the Month Club. Schools that are awarded, will receive 8 packs of vegetable, fruit and/or herb seeds their first month and then 4 packs every month thereafter for three years.

To enter your school for a chance to obtain one of the ten, 3 year subscriptions, visit averagepersongardening.com/schoolapplication and fill out the online application form. The deadline to submit your application is January 31st, 2012. Winners will be notified on or about February 17th, 2012 and schools will start receiving seeds in March of 2012. Just in time for spring.

“There are so many possibilities for tying in vegetable gardening with learning, that it comes as no surprise that we see school gardens are on the rise,” continued Podlesny. “Once kids learn how easy and fun it is to grow fruits, vegetables and herbs from seeds, they will want to carry this beneficial skill with them for the rest of their lives.”

Introduction to Home Vegetable Gardening

Our own Mike Podlesny, author of the book "Vegetable Gardening for the Average Person" and administrator of the largest vegetable gardening group on Facebook, will be holding a 2 hour free class at the Burlington Country Library Westampton Campus in Westampton, NJ on Thursday May 27th, 2010.

This course provides a fundamental working knowledge of the varied aspects of home vegetable gardening. This course prepares students to start and maintain a home vegetable garden. Students will increase their awareness of what types of plants grow well in the area and simple techniques to enhance success.

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Properly plan a home vegetable garden
• Know which vegetable plants will grow best in their area
• Know when to start planting seeds both indoors and outside
• Understand basic soil fertility
• Obtain a basic understanding of companion planting, plant rotation and attracting beneficial insects

The text material required for this course (to be supplied by instructor):

• Frost Zone Map
• Soil Temperature Chart
• Seed Depth Chart
• Vegetable, fruit and Herb pH chart
• One pack of vegetable seeds (variety depends on availability)

The class is free but space is limited. To reserve your spot, register online at: http://engagedpatrons.org/EventsRegister.cfm?SiteID=8954&BranchID=1000000812&Branch=Main%20Library&EventID=63921

or call the library directly at 609-267-9660

Introduction to Home Vegetable Gardening

Our own Mike Podlesny, author of the book "Vegetable Gardening for the Average Person" and administrator of the largest vegetable gardening group on Facebook, will be holding a 2 hour free class at the Burlington Country Library Westampton Campus in Westampton, NJ on Thursday May 27th, 2010.

This course provides a fundamental working knowledge of the varied aspects of home vegetable gardening. This course prepares students to start and maintain a home vegetable garden. Students will increase their awareness of what types of plants grow well in the area and simple techniques to enhance success.

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Properly plan a home vegetable garden
• Know which vegetable plants will grow best in their area
• Know when to start planting seeds both indoors and outside
• Understand basic soil fertility
• Obtain a basic understanding of companion planting, plant rotation and attracting beneficial insects

The text material required for this course (to be supplied by instructor):

• Frost Zone Map
• Soil Temperature Chart
• Seed Depth Chart
• Vegetable, fruit and Herb pH chart
• One pack of vegetable seeds (variety depends on availability)

The class is free but space is limited. To reserve your spot, register online at: http://engagedpatrons.org/EventsRegister.cfm?SiteID=8954&BranchID=1000000812&Branch=Main%20Library&EventID=63921

or call the library directly at 609-267-9660

Free Sugar Beet Seeds

I wanted to try growing some sugar beets this year, but I could only find them in large quantities, therefore I have more than I will ever need. If you want some send a self addressed stamped envelope to:

WHILE SUPPLIES LAST

Mike the Gardener
PO Box 1773
Burlington, NJ 08016