Our Resources

• GARDENS FOR LEARNING: Chapter 5 - Designing Your School Garden
• Educational Garden Design Elements List
• PRESENTATION: CSYSG School Garden Design Element PowerPoint
   

Garden Design Resources Online or for Download

• At Life Lab you can view School Garden Photo Albums and Design Webinar for design ideas and view their Garden Classroom Educational Elements which lists resources and ideas to replicate in your educational garden. View as a educational elements as a text document with live links.
• Getting Started: A Guide for Creating School Gardens as Outdoor Classrooms covers choosing your site, selecting garden elements, and stocking your outdoor classroom, in English and Spanish (created by Life Lab and Center for Ecoliteracy)
• The School Garden Wizard on: Basic garden design principles, site analysis, how to draw your design, working with a contractor, and involving the whole school in the design (created by Chicago Botanic Garden)
• Plant a Seed, Watch it Grow covers Selecting Your Site based on size, sunlight, water, soil, drainage, and security;  Garden Design based on your needs for pathways, common spaces, planting beds, potting areas, compost areas, storage and ADA Accessibility. (created by the Master Gardener Association of San Diego County)
• School Garden Start-Up Guide gives a brief overview of garden design in English and Spanish; Children's Gardens - A Field Guide for Teachers, Parents, and Volunteers gives a simple description of choosing your site. This resource is less comprehensive but it can be easier to start your research with a more simplified overview. (from UC Cooperative Extension, Los Angeles County)

Published Books on School Garden Design

• Schoolyard Mosaics: Designing Gardens and Habitats by Eve Pranis and Amy Gifford
• Steps to a Bountiful Kids’ Garden by Amy Gifford, Spanish edition available
• Asphalt to Ecosystems: Design Ideas for Schoolyard Transformation by Sharon Danks
• How to Grow a School Garden: A Complete Guide for Parents and Teachers by Arden Bucklin-Sporer and Rachel Kathleen Pringle

Go Back to Creating and Sustaining Your School Garden Agenda

CSYSG Downloads

Instructional School Garden Design Elements Sample Complex Garden Map Sample Simple Garden Map