It's easy...

1 - sign up to our monthly newsletter

2 - get lots of people involved

3 - decide what to grow and where

4 - work out what kit you'll need

5 - get to work

1 - sign up for our monthly newsletter

Click here and we'll keep you topped up with tips to help you plan your planting, harvesting, and teaching activities...

Also, take a look at our blog to see how the original Edible Playgrounds are getting along.

2 - get lots of people involved

You need four things to make your Edible Garden a success:

1. Motivation – get the whole school behind it, proud of it and pleased to part of it.
Find out how to do this here

2. Education – use it as a learning experience and a learning tool

3. Sustainability – plan ahead, start small, know what it’s going to cost

4. Support - cultivating people is as important as cultivating plants, and what you can achieve will depend on the level of support you get for the Edible Playground. So it may be worth asking an experienced gardener with tips to share and time to spare for a bit of help (Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks will need to be carried out before they can start).

Click here to view and print an explanation of the scheme to give to your local garden centre here >

Adapted from: Setting up and Running a School Garden, by Agriculture and Consumer Protection

3 - decide what to grow and where

Firstly, decide on where you’re going to site your Edible Playground. If you have plenty of space and good access, raised beds of 1m x 2m work well. Or, if you only have a little sunny corner, then containers are the way to go. The colder months are the ideal time to be creating your growing area. That way your beds are happily settled before you get planting.

When it comes to deciding what to grow, you’re really only limited by the space available – and your imagination. Of course the busiest time for getting growing is the spring but there are some vegetables you can sow in the autumn term too.

Here’s the lowdown on some plants you might want to grow which you can click here to view and print >

4 - work out what kit you'll need

A good garden needs proper equipment. Take a look at what we think you’ll need click here to view and print >

You can get discounts on equipment from some friends of ours here

5 - get to work

There’ll be plenty to think about – have you set up a rota to manage the garden? Who will look after the plants in the holidays? The RHS has an audit checklist to help you. download it here >

You may want to do some more reading – check out the RHS School Gardening website and the book Playground Potting Sheds by Dominic Murphy.

But for now it's time to roll up your sleeves and do some gardening!