Success StoryGrowing your own Pizza Garden



Growing your own Pizza Garden

Author: Leslea Barnes

Planning Unit: Crittenden County CES

Major Program: Agriculture

Plan of Work: Increasing Knowledge in Agriculture, Home and Community Environment

Outcome: Long-Term Outcome

Agriculture provides almost everything we eat, use, and wear on a daily basis and many youth and families are not aware how agriculture effects their lives and how important it is to their future. National Ag Day is celebrated in March each year to recognize and celebrate the contribution of agriculture to our everyday lives. It encourages Americans to understand and appreciate the role agriculture plays in our lives.  Because of this, Crittenden County Extension Service wanted to take part in celebrating and helping their community understand how agriculture effects our lives. The FRYSC (Family Resource Youth Service Center) and the 21st Century program in our local school system were required to conduct virtual family events throughout the school year. Because of this, 4-H Youth Development Agent Leslea Barnes saw a way to collaborate with community partners and create the idea of "Pizza Night".  A district wide event was created for all students at CCES, CCMS, and CCHS to help celebrate National Ag Day.  Families "drove through" to pick up a "kit" that included ingredients to make a pizza at home with their family that was provided by FRYSC, Crittenden County Extension Service provided seeds including tomatoes, peppers, oregano and basil as well as soil to start their own Pizza Garden at home along with instructions on how to start and care for your plants, Kentucky Soybean Board provided educational activities for families to do about Agriculture Sustainability and GMO information, honey sticks and pollination information was provided as well as information about where pizza ingredients come from.  SNAP ED pizza recipes were also provided.  The Crittenden County 4-H Homeschool Club set up a story walk at the City/County park with a fun family book called "Growing Your Own Pizza Garden".   This event was held March 23, 2021 from 5-6pm with great success while serving 350 families with "kits" to help educate them on raising your own vegetables. recipes to use those vegetables, a healthy meal for their family as well as other great educational agriculture related material. As an extra way to help celebrate National Ag Day and recognize local farmers, 4-H Agent Leslea Barnes teamed up with CCMS Agriculture teacher to conduct a lesson on writing a Thank You note. Students wrote thank you notes to local farmers recognizing them for their hard work and thanking them for their contribution to the agriculture industry.  Through this event, awareness was raised about agriculture to many families in our community and celebrated through a delicious pizza and starting their own Pizza Garden. 






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