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Garden To-Go Kits

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Gardening Webinar Series

View the Imperial County’s University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE-Imperial) Building Our Local Foodshed: Gardening Webinar Series that took place in Fall 2020.

These workshop recordings cover a variety of topics, including beginning a garden in the low desert; setting up a water-efficient irrigation system; maintaining your garden; organic pest management; and incorporating livestock into your gardening system amongst many other topics. 

Click here to view the recordings

Edible Garden: Instructional Videos in English and Spanish

UCANR Instructional videos on how to start an edible home garden.

Topics include:

  1. Getting Started. Topics include designing your garden; the right garden for you; site selection; summary of tools, supplies and materials required; nutrition and benefits of home gardening; square foot gardening
  2. Seed Germination. Topics include seasonal crops, sprouting techniques, temperature and optimal conditions
  3. Desert Climate. Topics on how to prepare your garden and plan in Imperial County include seed, soil, harvesting, IPM. 

Videos in English

Videos en Español

For more information, contact Yu Meng at ucmeng@ucanr.edu 

Garden Kit Teacher Resources

TWIGS Curriculum: Please complete this form to request a copy of the TWIGS virtual curriculum on PowerPoint (Grades K-8) Teams With Inter-Generational Support (TWIGS) focuses on gardening and how the foods we grow are used in our bodies as building blocks and as energy providers. Students from kindergarten through eighth grade are given the tools to plant and care for a garden. This curriculum is flexible and the lessons can easily be used in a classroom, after-school program, or club. Please contact Paul Tabarez at pjtabarez@ucanr.edu if you have any questions.

Additional TWIGS Resources:

TWIGS- Youth Gardening and Healthy Eating

Additional Resources:

UCCE Imperial Planning Calendar

Imperial Valley Planting Calendar (English and Spanish)

California Foundation for Ag In the Classroom Teacher Resources

Learn About Ag...Plant Nutrients: Just like people, plants need nutrients in order to grow! This page serves as a collection of materials explaining the relationship between plants, chemistry, fertilizer, the environment, and food and fiber production. Materials are tailored to age groups ranging from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Explore this variety of materials to help students discover the fundamental plant nutrients and the science of growing crops. All lessons and activities are aligned to the current California Education Standards, including Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.

Learn About Ag...California Specialty Crops: Specialty crops are fruits and tree nuts, vegetables, herbs and spices, nursery, floriculture, and horticulture crops. They're the commodities that are not considered staple foods. California produces more than 400 different commodities, many of which are specialty crops. They're all around us!

Props to Specialty Crop Newspaper- In English and Spanish

Growing Plants in Science and Literature, More Than an Empty Pot (Grades K-2) Students will use the story of The Empty Pot to explore literature and science, practicing story mapping and learning about the needs of plants and the importance of soil and water. Like the characters in the story, students will plant and observe the growth of seeds.

Desktop Gardens (Grades 2-5) Create a tiny garden for your students’ desktop! Add small toys, rocks, labels or marbles to this oasis in a lid.

Plants Around You (Grades 3-5): Students will categorize plants into groups, describe what plants need for healthy growth, and start their own garden by planting seeds inside a cup.

Garden in a Glove (Grades 3-8): Bring seeds to life and create a ‘handy’ little garden.

Nutrition to Grow On (Grades 4-6):  An innovative curriculum that offers teachers a direct link between the garden and nutrition education.

Successful Container Gardens: How to select, plant, and maintain a container garden.  A resource from the University of Illinois Extension.

Meet the Beneficials: Natural Enemies of Garden Pest

Fertilizers: what does it all mean?

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