Research & reports

Megan Shearer, Amy Dabbs, Zack Snipes, Vicky Bertagnolli, Joshua Weaver · TigerPrints (Clemson University) · United States (South Carolina)

The South Carolina Statewide School Gardening program has established over 150 school gardens, but teachers report that fire ants are overrunning the gardens and negatively impacting student experience. This FAQ addresses how to safely manage fire ants in school gardens.

Crippina Lubeka, Judith Kimiywe, Hudson Nyambaka · Research Journal of Food Science and Nutrition · Kenya (Makueni County)

This study assessed the effect of school garden interventions on improving serum zinc, iron, and retinol levels, and diet diversity, among pre-school children in Mulala ward, Makueni County, Kenya. A quasi-experimental design was adopted with 63 children, where intervention early childhood centers provided vegetables and animal proteins from school gardens for six months. Post-intervention, a significant difference was found in the mean dietary diversity score between the intervention and control groups, and a significant positive correlation was observed between serum hemoglobin, retinol, zinc levels, and dietary diversity in the intervention population.

Fernando Marcelo Cardozo, Ramiro Bastos · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Brazil

An experiment conducted in Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, between 2016 and 2019, involved over 40 events focused on constructing spiral herb beds in various city neighborhoods. These events, structured as permacultural workshops, aimed to transmit knowledge and stimulate knowledge exchange among participants. Lectures covered topics such as agroecology, urban agriculture, ancestral peoples, and community gardens, using technical, popular, and artistic languages to engage diverse audiences.

Ananias Lima dos Santos, Ruandra Kaienne da Silva Laranjeira, Rodrigo Pereira, Maria Raquel de Carvalho Cota, Lionete Viana da Silva, Everton Ramos de Souza · Brazilian Journal of Development · Brazil

This study aimed to demonstrate that non-formal school spaces can serve as an alternative teaching-learning method for environmental education. The project, conducted with 5th-grade students at Escola Estadual Thomé de Medeiros Raposo, showed significant results from proposed activities and comparative questionnaire data. Students gained practical experience in conscious citizenship and adopted new behaviors through creating a school garden using recycled materials.

Dana Guglielmo, Sicha Chantaprasopsuk, Christi Kay, Eric T. Hyde, Chris Stewart, Julie A. Gazmararian · Journal of School Health · United States (Georgia)

This cross-sectional online survey assessed nutrition policies, practices, and environments in 113 Georgia SNAP-Ed elementary schools from 2015-2017. While most schools had wellness policies and provided nutrition education, fewer had policies limiting sugar-sweetened foods in classrooms or established school gardens. Minimal significant differences were found across school-level demographics.

GONZALO MARÍN OVIEDO, OLIVEIRA, ALESSANDRO SILVA DE · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Brazil (Anápolis)

The Federal Institute of Goiás, Anápolis campus, aims to contribute to overcoming socio-environmental problems affecting vulnerable communities in the region through sustainable agriculture in a community garden. This initiative proposes developing critical environmental education, discussing theoretical and practical aspects of the critical approach and its relationship with praxis. Historical-Dialectical Materialism guides the theoretical-methodological aspects, and Action Research is used for practical aspects.

Peter Loxley · · Global

This chapter presents three topics to help teachers guide children in understanding the scientific concept of interdependence, observable in school gardens and other outdoor learning areas. It outlines a progression from Key Stage 1, where children explore plant growth conditions and animal feeding, to lower Key Stage 2, focusing on plants as food producers and food chains/webs, and finally to upper Key Stage 2, where students learn about dependence and competition for resources within ecosystems. Subject knowledge for teaching this concept is provided.

Christine Lux, Brianna Routh, Lacy Stephens · Journal of Human Sciences and Extension · United States

This exploratory study surveyed 21 parents from a campus-based preschool in the northwest United States during the 2017-2018 school year to understand the impact of the "Harvest of the Month" program on children's nutrition behavior at home. Findings indicated that a variety of program foods were served and consumed at home, but parents prioritized knowing food origins over serving local foods. Parents' knowledge of farm to ECE, reported farmer's market purchases, and CSA participation were limited, suggesting a need for targeted parent education.

Sun Jin Jeong, Eun Ha Yoo, Jae Soon Kim, Hye Sook Jang, Geun Woo Lee · Journal of people, plants, and environment · South Korea

This study assessed research trends in domestic agro-healing in South Korea from 2010 to 2018 by analyzing 83 selected articles using frequency analysis, t-test, and one-way ANOVA. Agro-healing articles peaked in 2010 and declined thereafter, with most published by the Society for People, Plants, and Environment. The main targets were preschoolers, children, and adolescents (52.4%), often special participants needing special care. Psychological and emotional areas were the most studied dependent variables (42.6%), with programs typically having 9-12 sessions (36.7%) and over 20 participants (39.8%).

Endang Purwatiningsih · · Indonesia

This qualitative single case study describes the role of the school in strengthening students' environmental care character at SMK Muhammadiyah Kartasura in Indonesia. Data collected through interviews, observation, and documentation revealed that the school strengthens environmental care character through five steps: providing advice on environmental values, socializing the importance of maintaining the school garden, involving students in creating or repairing garden equipment, engaging students in cleaning groups, and imposing penalties for breaking cleaning rules.

Lucy Diekmann, Marcia Ostrom · · United States

This chapter reviews participatory extension approaches and demonstrates their application to urban agriculture through five US Extension case studies. The selection of these case studies was informed by a 2015 nationwide survey of Extension personnel working on local, community, and regional food systems. These examples illustrate how urban agroecological knowledge and networks are being developed and applied, and suggest directions for future Extension work.

Marisa Menezes Leal, Bianca Motta Dolianitis, Jaqueline Rambo Anschau, Janessa Aline Zappe, Rosana Santos de Moraes, Marcelito Cavalheiro, Jean Carlos Robattini, Bruno Luan da Rosa Machado, Kelen Dal-Souto Frescura, Viviane Da-Souto Frescura · Ciência e Natura · Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul)

This study aimed to implement school gardens using recyclable materials in several schools in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Pet bottles, tires, pallets, and shingles were used to prepare beds and support plants. The activities were carried out by members of the "Living Garden Extension Project at School" in collaboration with students and teachers, and the garden space was utilized as an environment for teaching various subjects.

Elsie Rockwell · History of Education · United States

This article explores the history of school gardens in early twentieth-century US educational projects, finding that gardening activities were primarily for urban children lacking farming experience. It compares gardening's role in northern experimental schools with proposals for rural and segregated southern schools. The analysis identifies various logics, including arguments for promoting or dismissing school gardening and rationales for educating or retaining specific labor forces, highlighting a paradox between "return to nature" and "love of labor" in the discourse.

Cristiana Guimarães Alves, Bráulio Silva Chaves, Lucas Araújo Dutra Rodrigues · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Brazil

In August 2017, the CEFET-MG Project "Cabana do Pai Tomas. to the Aglomerado da Serra: links between science, technology and education" in Brazil conducted activities to connect science, technology, and education. As part of this project, a ten-module Agroecology Course was offered, providing training to residents of Casa da Cabana, CEFET-MG students, and the general public on knowledge related to urban agriculture, food security, agroecology, the creation and maintenance of urban gardens, and social technologies.

Susan Veldheer, Christina Scartozzi, Amy Knehans, Tamara K. Oser, Natasha Sood, Francis Puleo, Joie Cooper, Daniel R. George, Alicia J. Cohen, Renate M. Winkels · Current Developments in Nutrition · Global

This systematic scoping review analyzed 46 manuscripts from 30 studies published between 1990 and 2019 to understand clinical strategies used by healthcare organizations to increase patient access to fruits and vegetables (F&V). Six program models were identified, including garden-based programs and CSA. The overall quality of the included studies was weak due to selection bias and incomplete reporting, with only 6 out of 30 studies including a control group. While some studies showed improvements in dietary intake, objective health markers such as blood pressure and BMI had mixed results.

Karen Charlton, Teagan Comerford, Natika Deavin, Karen Walton · Public Health Nutrition · Global

This systematic literature review identified key characteristics of successful experiential nutrition interventions aimed at changing nutrition-related cognitive and behavioral outcomes in primary schoolchildren. From 3800 articles identified across five databases (CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, Medline, Academic Search Complete), 67 were eligible, and 42 were defined as successful. Nutrition education (when combined with taste testing), cooking-related activities, and gardening interventions increased children's willingness to taste unfamiliar foods, improved their cooking and food preparation skills, and increased nutritional knowledge.

José Silveira Filho, Marcelo Rodrigues Tenório · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Brazil

This qualitative research, based on Paulo Freire's dialogical pedagogy, aimed to develop environmental education awareness in elementary school students through organic agriculture and sustainable cultivation techniques in a school garden. Semi-structured interviews with students revealed that activities in the school garden contributed to modifying their habits and attitudes towards nature. The study found that the school garden fostered a sense of solidarity, group work, and the development of citizens capable of addressing social and environmental problems.

Beatriz Sinelli Laham, Francisco Melo Aires, Gabriel Akira Teshima Soto, Gustavo Lopumo Arruda · Brazilian Journal of Development · Brazil (São Paulo)

A mixed-methods approach was used to identify knowledge constructed during the implementation, maintenance, and didactic usage of school gardens in 15 municipal schools in Butantã, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Main difficulties identified were human resources, school staff integration, and financial resources, with a demand for specific training, especially for didactic usage. Access to quality soil posed the primary obstacle for garden maintenance, yet a general perception of positive effects on students' behavioral and pedagogical aspects was observed.

Wahyu Sulistiadi, Ibnu Malkan Bakhrul Ilmi, Dian Luthfiana Sufyan, Sri Rahayu · Jurnal Bisnis Indonesia · Indonesia (Depok)

A community service activity in Depok, Indonesia, aimed to establish vegetable consumption habits among residents by utilizing limited space for verticulture. The training employed organic and non-organic waste as growing media, using participatory methods and demonstrations. Participants practiced planting vegetables from seeds to harvest using verticulture, and the activity was deemed successful as most participants were able to harvest their own crops.

Rima Melati, Suratman Sudjud, Sarni Sarni · Jurnal Pengamas · Indonesia

This study addressed food security issues in Ternate City, Indonesia, during the Covid-19 pandemic by socializing urban farming with a mixed farming pattern. The socialization involved observation, discussions, and providing horticultural seeds to participating farmers. As a result, participating farmers understood urban farming with mixed farming, with 80% clearing vacant land and 70% planting vegetables from the provided seeds. Farmers still require further guidance on diverse crop maintenance.

Nisa Maidah Rahmawati, Joko Winarno, Agung Wibowo · · Indonesia (Jakarta)

This study investigated community empowerment activities through urban farming in Marunda flats, North Jakarta. The flats' irrigation has deficiencies and group working is not yet fair, leading the society to choose to do agriculture activities by themselves. The research identified external factors (natural resources, environments, group dynamics, networking, human resources, policy, facilities and infrastructure) and internal factors (skill, non-formal education, and income) that obstruct empowerment activities.

Lucy Diekmann, Leslie Gray, Chan L. Thai · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · United States (California)

This study measured the social, educational, civic, and nutritional impacts of four types of urban food system activities: home gardens, community gardens, farmers' markets, and CSAs, through a survey of 424 gardeners and 450 direct market shoppers in California's San Francisco Bay Area. While nutritional impacts were consistently high, significant differences were observed in social interaction and civic engagement between activity types. Gardens generally fostered greater learning, connection, and civic participation than direct marketing.

Selda Cansu TEMEL · GRID - Architecture Planning and Design Journal · Turkey

This study analyzed the planning and design criteria of public primary school gardens in Üsküdar district, Istanbul, Turkey, to determine their proficiency levels against national, international, and academic standards. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, including on-site observation, the research identified architectural disadvantages and inadequacies in the school gardens. The findings indicate deficiencies in the current state of these outdoor recreation areas.

Emilita Monville‐Oro, Imelda Angeles‐Agdeppa, Irish P. Baguilat, Julian Gonsalves, Mario V. Capanzana · · Philippines

The Nutrition Center of the Philippines (NCP) collaborated with the Department of Education to develop nutrition education modules for elementary schoolchildren, integrating classroom, garden, and home activities. A survey in two towns found that pre-school children in households with home gardens ate vegetables more frequently and had higher dietary diversity scores than those without. NCP also promoted nutritional values through TV ads featuring student-written poems, which received an award in 1985.

Paloma Silva Oliveira, Alaine Azevedo Barbosa, Alícia Cynthia Bispo dos Anjos, Aldaisa Oliveira da Silva, Ana Paula de Souza Cunha, Carlos Henrique Silva, Iasmin Adami Almeida Rolim, Vinícius Santos Barros, Charles Souza Santos, Gisele da Silveira Lemos · Saberes Plurais Educação na Saúde · Brazil

This descriptive study, conducted from July 2019 to February 2020, described the experience of eight PET-Saúde Interprofissionalidade students implementing Situational Strategic Planning (PES) at a Psychosocial Care Center for alcohol and drugs (CAPS ad) in Brazil. Students identified problems like physical structure issues, team disharmony, and lack of collaborative therapeutic projects. The PES process, which included a community garden, qualified user assistance and provided a more effective work basis for the health team.