Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden
Bianca Tondo
Garden Specialist
Autumn in the Kitchen Garden
As the weather cools and the mornings become crisp, the SAKG Garden continues to be a busy and exciting place full of learning, discovery and growth.
Over the past few weeks, students have proudly harvested more than 35 kilograms of potatoes, along with beautiful eggplants and colourful capsicums. There is always great excitement when students dig beneath the soil and discover what has been growing underground — especially when harvesting potatoes! These moments remind us just how rewarding patience, teamwork and care for the garden can be.
With the changing season, students have also been busy preparing for winter crops. Cauliflower, broccoli and celery have all been planted, with students learning that some vegetables, like cauliflower and celery, can take up to 20 weeks to grow. Gardening certainly teaches us patience!
A few weeks ago, students discovered over 40 caterpillars happily feasting on our cauliflower and broccoli seedlings. While the caterpillars were impressive to find, they also reminded us why we use our recycled milk bottle protectors over young plants. These clever little covers help keep bugs away while also acting like mini greenhouses, protecting seedlings from the cold and helping them recover after our unexpected caterpillar attack.
Around the garden, new crops are beginning to establish themselves, including beetroot, radishes and a variety of leafy greens which will thrive during the cooler months ahead. Our mandarin tree is also almost ready for harvest and students are eagerly checking the fruit each week waiting for the perfect picking day.
A friendly reminder to our school community that the fruit and vegetables growing around the school are for student learning and kitchen classes. Students absolutely love the job of harvesting produce themselves before taking it into the kitchen to cook, prepare and share together. We kindly ask that produce is left on the plants so every class can experience the joy and pride that comes from harvesting their own food.
The hens are continuing to do well and remain very popular visitors in the garden. We have recently put the nesting boxes back in place to help discourage our cheeky hens from breaking and eating their eggs — they certainly like to keep us busy!
As we move further into autumn, the SAKG Garden remains a wonderful place for students to connect with nature, learn new skills, work together and experience the changing seasons firsthand. We are looking forward to watching our winter crops grow over the coming months.