Margaret - yes and no. There is no specific children's garden, but there is a map / activity sheet made just for kids. The map shows the location of the children's interpretative signs in the garden. As an example, one of the stops is at / in a hollow cedar tree.
There IS a fruit garden, where you can see which varieties have been planted and how they are planted.
Yes - that's right. The Food Garden is probably the most popular for both kids and adults (in general), actually.
I know that it is very difficult to be "all things to all people" and that there are certain mandates and definate financial limitations but it just struct me that if it were possible to make some links with educational and social programmes aimed towards kids in the area the results could be valuable for all concerned. My background is in special education, although I am now retired, and both my professional training and career took place outside BC so I do not know how the systems work here. My guess is though that there are many kids whose lives could be enriched through gardening as it gives so many opportunities at an intelectual, physical, psychological and social level. Anyway just a thought. margaret
I don't think you'd find any disagreement from any of the staff re: the value of gardens / using the gardens for educational purposes. Unfortunately, as you mentioned from the start: financial limitations. We had a budget cut last year that meant not replacing the education coordinator who had recently retired.
Money, or the lack thereof. is a real pain! Would the Department of Education or what ever it is called here be interested in forming a partnership - your garden and their staff? Perhaps there are also gardeners who would be happy to offer their expertise as volunteers to their local organisations. Anyway, as I say, just a thought. Back to pruning the grapes. Margaret
