Comboyne Public School

Growing, Sharing, Learning, Caring

Telephone02 6550 4174

Emailcomboyne-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Kitchen garden

Comboyne Public School has a major community project in progress.

It started with the Comboyne Community Futures Forum whose aim was to examine ways of keeping Comboyne as a viable and sustainable community.  One of the ideas from the environmental group was to establish a community garden.  Consequently we created a partnership between the school and the Community Centre and applied for a Schools First Award. 

The award

We invited all the stake holders to a celebration and cheque handover last year.  We enjoyed the support of many parents and community memebers as well as representatives from DET and the NAB.

Planning

This was a series of maths lessons that saw the students taking the concept of raised beds from an idea to a drawing to an on site plan.  It involved accurate measuring of length and angles, planning,drawing and mapping areas and it was a real and relevant mathematical reason.

Marking out the prospective area for the garden beds.
Image: Marking out the prospective area for the garden beds.
Student's doing the math for the garden planning.
Image: Student's doing the math for the garden planning.
Student's doing the math for the garden planning out on the grass.
Image: Student's doing the math for the garden planning out on the grass.

The garden shed

Comboyne Tennis Club had an old club house they donated to the project.  It was originally built with volunteer labour in 1966.

Comboyne Tennis Club's old club house.
Image: Comboyne Tennis Club's old club house.
Loading the old club house onto the truck.
Image: Loading the old club house onto the truck.

The old club house loaded on the truck and leaving it's old site.
Image: The old club house loaded on the truck and leaving it's old site.
Image: The old shed being delivered to the school.

Ian Lawrence and Bill Frewen spent many voluntary hours preparing the shed for transportation.  Pinky Hollis donated his truck, time and expertise to move the shed up the hill to the school.

This motley crew were all community members who volunteered to concrete the shed floor.
Image: This motley crew were all community members who volunteered to concrete the shed floor.

The next step is for the students to measure some old shelving we have stored and plan the interior fitting of the shed.

A verandah and water tank are the next features to be fitted, then a paint job!

School and Community Working Bee

Early in Term 2 of 2011, the school held a working bee and parents, teachers, community garden committee members and many others from the community worked together to build and fill the raised beds. 

We were on our way!

Panorama shot of our working bee building the garden beds.
Image: Panorama shot of our working bee building the garden beds.

Busy bees building garden beds.
Image: Busy bees building garden beds.
Filling the garden beds with dirt.
Image: Filling the garden beds with dirt.
Some students cutting up onions for the bbq to feed the busy bees.
Image: Some students cutting up onions for the bbq to feed the busy bees.
Some busy bees managed to enjoy a ride in the wheelbarrow.
Image: Some busy bees managed to enjoy a ride in the wheelbarrow.
More dirt to fill the garden beds.
Image: More dirt to fill the garden beds.
A sausage sizzle to feed the hungry bees who helped build our garden beds.
Image: A sausage sizzle to feed the hungry bees who helped build our garden beds.

Planting

Once the garden construction was finished, they were filled with soil donated by Gordon Burch, a local avocado grower.  Seedlings were donated by several of the working bee participants and our first planting was underway.

Digging dirt to fill the garden beds.
Image: Digging dirt to fill the garden beds.
Now that the garden beds are full of dirt the fun can start.
Image: Now that the garden beds are full of dirt the fun can start.
Planting the seedlings in our waist height garden beds.
Image: Planting the seedlings in our waist height garden beds.
Planting seedlings in another garden bed.
Image: Planting seedlings in another garden bed.

Stephanie Alexander Grant

The enthusiasm and involvement of the community in the garden and the success of the canteen cooking program led us to apply for the Stephanie Alexander Foundation Kitchen Garden Grant.

In term 4 of 2011 we were informed we had been successful. 

Building of the kitchen began in January 2012 and we are on schedule for the program to be running sometime in Term 2, 2012.

22-05-12

Our program has begun in a modified form. We have broken into three groups and each Thursday the students spend time gardening, cooking and researching and planning the recipes for the next week. Some of the recipes the children have enjoyed can be found in our 'Weekly Recipe' section.

As part of the project we also built a kitchen to prepare our gardens produce.
Image: As part of the project we also built a kitchen to prepare our gardens produce.

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We would like to pay our respects and acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land and also pay respect to Elders both past and present.

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