WORTHINGTON, Ohio — In a Columbus, Ohio suburb, a school-run community garden serves as a hub for students learning about sustainable agriculture. From native plant cultivation to regenerative farming, the Linworth School Community Garden offers hands-on experience in growing crops to meet local food needs, while supplying plants and produce to area residents.

The community garden is part of Worthington’s renowned Linworth Experiential Program. This alternative high school, housed in a historic building, was founded in 1973 to offer immersive, hands-on learning experiences for students. The garden took root in 2014 as part of a farm-to-table class, with help from a Growing to Green grant from Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus. That program’s goal is to have a community garden within walking distance of everyone in Columbus. From the beginning, the garden has provided fresh food for the Worthington Resource Pantry, helping support local families in need.

Over the next decade, several faculty members stewarded various types of gardens. In 2022, Monica Shaner, an educator and gardening enthusiast with ties to the Worthington Partnership Green Team, took the reins. By the time she’d arrived, the garden was virtually abandoned. She revitalized the project, shifting the focus to regenerative agriculture and permaculture practices. Her vision is to teach students how to grow food sustainably in a small tract, while also encouraging them to take responsibility for the garden’s growth and success. 

Getting students hands-on is particularly important to Shaner because she recognizes how suburban kids often lack connection to the food cycle. “City kids don’t understand the hard work behind food production,” she said. “Their experiences in the garden help them understand what goes into agriculture.” Shaner’s class focuses on how small-scale agriculture can work viably in non-rural settings. “We’re rooted in thinking about sustainability in an urban environment,” she said, adding, “How does the city become more sustainable and help support its own needs?” 

Students learn how to implement farming techniques in small spaces where traditional methods may not work. “We practice several different kinds of agriculture and a lot of soil science,” Shaner said. “We do row soil blocking, traditional cropping, regenerative agriculture, Hügelkultur, and look at how each affects yields.” Shaner added, “We even get into prep issues, like food safety, washing, and packaging,” noting that “students learn you don’t just pick something and hand it to someone…but we address how that’s done on a small scale.” 

Hügelkultur is a sloped and raised planting bed filled with topsoil, wood, and organic materials. 

Along the way, students have needed to problem-solve, such as when their hose watering system wasn’t effective. They built an overhead system but faced powdery mildew, so they switched to a drip irrigation system. Each challenge helped them understand the costs of running a viable operation. The financial realities have been addressed in a variety of ways. Students have raised funds by selling native plants at the Worthington Farmers Market. They’ve also learned the importance of community connections, and collaborating with alumni, volunteers, and local partners. After Shaner arrived, a grant from the Harding-Buller Foundation helped build a greenhouse. Additionally, a grant from Franklin County Soil and Water underwrites a program training both students and the public about native edible foods in Ohio.

The garden has yielded impressive results. Students have grown 4,000 native plants from seed, selling thousands through outlets like the Worthington Farmers Market. It also includes creative projects like “Plant Your Pumpkin,” where recycled pumpkins are turned into pollinator pockets, giving local families a head start on their spring gardens. Winter projects teach winter sowing, while ongoing efforts like vermicomposting engage students in sustainable practices, including composting school lunch scraps. The garden participates in the area’s Pollinator Pathway and the Linworth Taxonomy project teaches students about local ecosystems and biodiversity using tools like iNaturalist. Shaner likens the garden to an “ecolab,” essentially a living laboratory that is valuable across the Worthington area and beyond. “Any teacher could take lessons from that garden,” Shaner said. 

Community involvement is an integral part of extending experiences beyond the classroom. Students are currently working toward a goal of supplying 500 pounds of food to the Worthington Resource Pantry, tracking their progress through yield calculations. The students’ self-named “phyte club” plants, grows, and harvests fresh produce to donate. That service aspect teaches students the importance of giving back and further demonstrates the real-world impact of local, urban/suburban food systems. Through their work with the food pantry, students learn that farming is more than a livelihood — it’s about meeting the needs of those around them. 

The garden has come a long way from its modest beginnings. The growing space has been expanded and new crops — including native bushes, berries, and vegetables — have been introduced. Recent upgrades include a garden labyrinth, vertical gardens, solar-powered systems, deer fencing, and rain barrels. Over a third of the school is now involved in the garden, with some Linworth students now attending meetings of the Worthington Green Team. “Some students have eyed agriculture as a vocation,” Shaner mentioned. “One is interested in viticulture, so we’ve put five grapevines in the garden for him to tend.” Another is interested in farm-to-table food service.

As the Linworth Community Garden continues to grow and its community partnerships deepen, the future looks promising. It not only serves as a hands-on learning space and local provider of plants and produce but also helps fight food insecurity in its backyard. This school-sponsored garden remains a powerful example of how agriculture can thrive in suburban areas, positively impacting both students and area residents.