For these reasons and more we awarded Ingels

Elementary first place in the 2012 Garden

Contest Competition!

T h o m a s U l t i c a n

Elementary won second

place in the Garden

C o n t e s t f o r t h e i r

outstanding garden and

community involvement.

Janice Smith, pictured

below, is the PrimeTime

afterschool coordinator at

Thomas Ultican. She

works with 3rd, 4th, & 5th

grade students who helped

build, design, plan, and

prepare the garden beds.

Janice partners with FFA high school students to

mentor the children during the Eating from the

Garden Program. They assist in gardening and

nutrition activities. Janice

also involves parents,

volunteers, and older

students in the school.

Pictured on the left is

Janice receiving her second

place prize, a golden

trowel! Congratulations

to Ingels and Thomas

U l t i c a n f o r t h e i r

outstanding programs in

2012. Thank you to all

those who applied. We

will do the contest again

spring 2013.

The 2012 Gardening season was a success for

many of our Eating from the Garden sites this

past school year. Two

schools that stood out

a s o u t s t a n d i n g

schoolyard gardens with

a high level of school

a n d p a r t n e r

involvement were Ingels

Elementary and Thomas

Ultican Elementary.

Ingels Elementary won

first place in the

Garden Competition

this spring. Christine

Hines, pictured right, is

the 4-H afterschool leader at Ingels Elementary.

In this picture she is being presented with a

plaque at the Volunteer Recognition event.

The 4th and 5th grade

students grew tomatoes,

kale, collards, carrots,

radishes, bell peppers,

herbs, and garlic. They

also have a strawberry

and raspberry bed!

Children harvested their

produce and enjoyed

delicious dishes from

chef Chis. Christine was

able to get produce bags

donated from Price

Chopper to allow the

ch i ld ren to t ake

produce home to their families.

2012 Garden Contest Winners

Garden E AT I N G F R O M T H E

U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S O U R I E X T E N S I O N A u g u s t 2 0 1 2

EATING FROM THE GARDEN PROGRAM

The University of Missouri

Extension Eating from the

Garden program is a nutrition

and gardening program for

second, fourth- and fifth-grade

students. Eating from the

Garden provides research-

based information through

nutrition and gardening

activities to increase

consumption of fruits and

vegetables by tasting

vegetables grown in their

gardens or locally from their

area grocer. The program also

improves nutritional habits by

understanding My Plate, learn

important nutrients and habits

for healthy eating, and learn

basic food safety and food

handling practices. The

students learn basic plant

science concepts through their

own outdoor vegetable garden.

The children and teachers/

program partners plant,

maintain and harvest their

produce from the garden.

By James Quinn and David Trinklein

Supplemental irrigation for gardens is usually

necessary throughout the Midwest,

especially during the hottest summer

months. When irrigating, avoid shallow,

frequent doses. It is best to water

thoroughly and less often. Shallow watering encourages shallow roots, which makes

plants more susceptible to drought. The best time to water is early morning, about 6 to

8 a.m., because leaves will dry more quickly than in the evening. Evening watering is also

fairly efficient, but plants that are susceptible to leaf disease are more likely to be

infected if leaves remain wet overnight. The least efficient watering time is during midday

when temperatures are high and evaporation is rapid.

Efficient irrigation systems can save a lot of water. Trickle or drip irrigation, including the

use of soaker hoses, is the most water-efficient of commonly used systems. Overhead

sprinkling generally is less efficient than watering at the soil surface or within the soil.

During hot weather, overhead sprinklers lose considerable water to evaporation and

runoff. During dry weather, plants need about 1 to 1-1/2 inches of rainfall or irrigation

water each week. During very hot weather, their need for water is greater, and watering

may be increased up to 2 inches per week.

Vegetable crops have periods of development when water use is most critical. These

periods depend on the type of crop, as indicated: (1) Root crops, during root

enlargement; (2) Sweet corn, during tasseling and ear filling; (3) Cucumbers, pepper,

tomato and melon, during flowering, fruit set and fruit development; (4) Onions, during

bulb development; (5) Potatoes, during tuber initiation and development.

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Kansas City Community Gardens

University of Missouri Extension

Master Gardeners of Greater KC

MU Extension Family Nutrition

Education Program

Funding by the

Healthcare Foundation of

Greater Kansas City

* Supplies or donations to help support youth

gardens are greatly appreciated *

vegetable W A T E R I N G Y O U R

G A R D E N

UPCOMING TRAININGS

EATING FROM THE GARDEN TRNG

Monday August 27th, 2012

Blue Springs Extension Center

1106 W. Main St, Blue Springs

8:30-4:00PM

Tuesday August 28th, 2012

Kansas City Community Gardens

6917 Kensington, Kansas City

8:30-4:00 PM

KANSAS CITY COMM. GARDENS

Sept. 28: Raised Bed Gardening

Discover the many benefits of raised bed

gardening. Learn how to construct your

own raised beds and how to plant in

them for maximum efficiency.

Presented by Andrea Mathew, KCCG

Program Director.

GARDEN WORKDAYS

Holy Cross Elementary this Friday

at 9am to clear out overgrown

weeds. We will have the tiller, but

please bring your weeding tools and

garden gloves to help tackle the job.

Please contact Molly

fusselmanm@missouri.edu to sign up.

Holy Cross Catholic School

121 N. Quincy Ave. KCMO

Burke Elementary this Friday at

9am to clean out the 4th and 5th

grade beds. Please bring garden tools

and your favorite weeding tool. We

need your help so please contact

Molly at 816-252-5051 to sign up!

Burke Elementary

1115 Bennington Ave., KCMO 64134

equal opportunity/ADA institution

extension.missouri.edu

JACKSON COUNTY

1106 W. Main St.

Blue Springs, MO 64015

2700 E. 18th St., Suite 240 Kansas City, MO 64127

816.482.5850