Hello San Diego Garden Educators!

Summer is almost here and the School Garden Resource Center sends you wishes for a reinvigorating and relaxing break. For exercise and communion with nature, there's no better place than a garden. But what to do about the school garden if most kids and teachers are away? For tips on keeping your garden alive this summer, click here .
If you have time and interest in getting a head-start on grant writing for next school year, visit the Grant Calendar on the San Diego Master Gardener website for links and deadlines.


Teaching Resources

Agricultural Biotechnology Resources for Teachers Visit ucbiotech.org - Science-based information and resources on agricultural biotechnology, developed by the UCANR Biotechnology Workgroup. Some activities and informational handouts available for download. All resources are available on loan; some are available in Spanish. If you are interested in booking any of these materials, or have questions, please contact Barbara Alonso, at balonso@nature.berkeley.edu.

Educational displays:

* "Foods: Past and Present" and "Genes, Genomics and Diversity"

* "Fun & Games with Foods & Genetics" - Display (baseball -style) cards and teacher handout available in Spanish and English

* Tic Tac Grow Game - a game designed to help players make connections between seeds, plants and foods

* GENEie Juice Bar - mimics contemporary juice bars and can be used as a stand-alone activity or can accompany the Foods display and cards. Includes all materials needed for DNA isolation.



Upcoming Events

The City Heights Farmers' Market is turning ONE!
Sat. June 6 - San Diego

We're throwing a HUGE party and we hope you can join us for the festivities! The market will be held during normal hours from 9am - 1pm, at the corner of Fairmount and Wightman in City Heights. But to celebrate its first birthday, there will fantastic activities, contests, and many new faces - enter the tamale contest, a raffle, the Veggie Decathlon. Workshops throughout the day, live music, arts and crafts, CAKE, and no party is complete without the Jumpy House.
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San Diego County Fair
Friday, June 12, through Sunday, July 5. Closed two Mondays, June 15 and 22.

Tunes of all types will be featured at the 2009 San Diego County Fair's celebration of "Music Mania!"
Tucked into the back part of the Sparkletts Water Infield is The Farm, a wonderful place where city kids can see a growing vegetable garden, watch worms turn garbage into fabulous garden soil, view the lifecycles of Bees, Bugs and Butterflies, learn about hydroponic gardening, and experience The World Of Horses. Kid's Contests every day on the Farm: Watermelon Seed Spitting, Corn Husking, and Worm Racing. For more information, click here .
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Public Grand Opening of Hamilton Children's Garden
Sat. June 13 - Encinitas
Noon to 4 pm.

Through thoughtful design and creative programming, the new Hamilton Children's Garden will provide a nurturing environment for children and families to explore the natural world. Ribbon cutting ceremony at noon. Entertainment and activities for the entire family throughout the afternoon to include live music, story telling, crafts, light refreshments and more. Free admission.
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Inaugural Community Garden Festival
Sunday June 14, 3 to 7pm

Sponsored by two loyal supporters of school gardens in San Diego County - SD County Master Gardener Association and Victory Gardens San Diego.
Hosted by the TLC Giving Garden located on the grounds of the Tierrasanta Lutheran Church, 11240 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., San Diego 92124. For more information click here.
* Enjoy garden workshops
* Get a state of the garden report for Community Gardens in San Diego
* Learn about gardening and sharing opportunities
* Network with current and future community gardeners
* A child friendly event with activities for all ages
* Enjoy new friends, food and entertainment

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Community Gardening Class
Sat. June 20 - Oceanside

Open to general public. Free gardening classes at El Corazon Compost Facility. Held from 1:30 to 2:30 PM on the third Saturday of each month. Sponsored by Agri Service, Inc. Taught by Master Gardeners. The June 20th session is all about Summer Crops. Download the information flyer here.
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California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom Annual Conference October 23-24, 2009 in Sonoma County.
The 2009 CFAITC Conference will provide garden and nutrition-based lesson plan ideas, hands-on gardening activities that can be easily adapted for multiple grade levels and abilities, exciting field trips to some of the North Bay's most innovative school garden sites, tremendous networking opportunities, and introduce you to inspirational individuals who have truly transformed their gardens into a living outdoor laboratory. Step into the kitchens of this region's booming culinary culture, and out into the fields that make this fertile valley and its surrounding environs a productive and progressive agricultural hotspot. Please visit our Web site www.cfaitc.org/conference to register, and for additional details.

Register today in order to use your School Garden Grant Funds to pay your way (most districts have deadlines of June 30, 2009 for fund expenditure).

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Upcoming grants

California Fertilizer Foundation School Garden Grant
Deadline: June 15, 2009

Teachers interested in starting or expanding a garden, in a public or private school, are invited to apply for one of 24 CFF School Garden Grants of $1,200 plus educational materials. Preschools must be located on the grounds of a K-12 school to be considered. For more information and to register, click here.
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Home Depot Building Healthy Communities Grant Program
Deadline: June 15, 2009

The Home Depot Corporation is seeking to improve the physical health of communities by supporting projects that involve planting trees, developing green spaces, and/or updating school facilities and community centers so that healthier and more stable communities can thrive. Grants up to $2,500 made in the form of Home Depot gift cards for the purchase of tools and materials will be awarded to selected applicants. More...
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Youth Service America and Disney - Disney Minnie Grants
Deadline: June 15, 2009

Youth Service America and Disney are seeking to fund children's efforts to improve their communities. The Disney Mini Grants are for youth or the organizations that engage them. Selected applicants will be awarded $500 to implement youth-led service projects focusing on the following community issues: sustainable community development, poverty, education, hunger, sustainable community development, environment, and disaster prevention and relief. More...
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2009 Healthy Sprouts Award
Deadline: October 17, 2009 (but you can apply now)

To encourage the growth of health-focused youth gardens, NGA recognizes outstanding programs through the Healthy Sprouts Awards, sponsored by Gardener's Supply Company . These awards support school and youth garden programs that teach about nutrition and the issue of hunger in the United States. Recipients receive gift certificates from Gardener's Supply Company (the top 5 receive a $500 certificate and 15 more receive a $200 certificate), NGA's Eat a Rainbow Kit, seeds, and supporting literature. Click here for details.


If you have received this email as a forward and would like to sign up to receive these monthly announcements directly, or if you would like to remove your email address, please email iana@rcdsandiego.org. The San Diego Regional School Garden Resource Center is a program of the Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego County in partnership with the California Department of Education.