When I go into the classroom and ask the students where their food comes from, 90% of the students   answer Kroger or Walmart.  I teach a lot of the ag lessons in my school clubs.   Our District Board purchased land and it was just sitting there not being used, so I ask if I could start a garden club.  So a plot of 100 ft. by 150ft. was prepared to grow a garden.  Carroll County Cattlemen group put a fence around the garden plot.  I held the first meeting with 12 students and their parents attending.  This is the items  that we discussed at that meeting:

Growing a Garden to teach the following:

1. Importance of growing our own food
2. Prepare a budget
3. Seek grant funding
4. Preparing the garden for planting
5. Deciding what vegetables and flowers to plant
6. Planting vegetables and flowers
7. Teach Flower Arranging (Our FCS agent taught this class to the garden members)
8. Preservation of food (Canning vegetables) (Our FCS agent taught this to the garden members) 
9. Join the Farmer’s Market
10. Sell Cut Flowers and Vegetables at the Farmer’s Market
11. Keep Financial Records to determine profit/loss of our summer’s project
12. Goals and objectives were set:
    1. To grow produce and flowers to make a profit
    2. To know how to be an entrepreneur (an Entrepreneur club started )
    3. To become a great communicator (the basics of  Communication skills were taught)

Our final meeting was held.  We learned many things in how to make our garden better for next year.  Profit was not anything to write home about but the experience has taught the students how to grow their own food, can vegetables (the salsa won class champion at the state fair), how to arrange flowers, how to sell at the Farmer's Market, and to have better communication skills. This project was a great marketing tool as we reached so many members of our community through the farmer's market.  100% of the garden  club members are returning next year.