The Burgess-Peterson Academy garden, in partnership with the Education Committee of the East Atlanta Community Association, is dedicated to getting East Atlanta and Reynoldstown's children to happily want to eat the vegetables and fruits that they grew -- at least some of the time.
Teachers, administrators, parents and volunteers from the neighborhood are joining together to promote healthy, home-grown, organic fruits and vegetables and to give the students the knowledge they need to grow their own. The garden is made up of three areas:
- raised garden beds in the school’s large courtyard
- an orchard behind the school
- an outdoor classroom in a wooded area on school property.
Lessons in the garden are planned with the school’s curriculum and goals in mind. Along with these lessons, the gardening gets done. Old crops are cleared away along with the sunflower harvest. The kids get to dig in the dirt as they fill the beds with new soil once they know its makeup. The courtyard garden includes a butterfly garden to attract beneficial insects. The orchard includes varieties that will expand the students’ taste buds, such as pomegranate, paw paw, figs and a jujube tree. The outdoor classroom offers these city kids a chance to experience a forest and learn about plants native to Georgia and their role in the state’s history. Gardening is about giving plants life and life is about learning.The Burgess-Peterson garden aims to help students do both.
