Royal Bank of Canada: Blue Water Project
REEVES-REED ARBORETUM
Awarded $6,000 from Royal Bank of Canada
Blue Water Project for Innovative Square Foot Garden Initiative
Summit, NJ The mission of Reeves-Reed Arboretum is to engage, educate, and enrich the lives of our constituents to become better stewards of nature and the planet. One of the most important and compelling ways that this goal is achieved is through the extraordinary environmental education programs that stress nature, horticulture, and sustainability. The professional educators of RRA craft each program and lesson plan to coincide with the Next Generation Science Standards – federal content standards developed to improve science education for all students. A high-quality science education means that students will develop an in depth understanding of content and gain key skills – communication, collaboration, inquiry, problem solving, and flexibility - that will serve them throughout their educational and professional lives. And one of the newest and most consistently successful programs of the Arboretum has been the Square Foot Garden Initiative.
Originally developed for underserved, urban communities, the goal of square foot gardening is to teach healthy eating, nutrition, and the importance of organic gardening and water conservation to a broader and more ethnically and economically diverse constituency. "Square foot gardening is at the core of environmental stewardship and conservation," according to RRA Executive Director, Frank Juliano, "and we are delighted by the continued support and dedication RBC Wealth Management and their local representative, and our advocate, Christopher J. D'Orsi, have shown towards the programs here at the Arboretum. Our corporate partners have demonstrated over and over again that they recognize the important role Reeves-Reed Arboretum plays in educating our community about the environment and sustainability. It's a win/win situation where we all benefit from the outcome."
For more information about the Square Foot Garden Initiative (Let's Get Growing!), and events, programs and workshops at Reeves-Reed Arboretum, please visit our website at www.reeves-reedarboretum.org or call 908-273-8787 x 1010.
About Reeves-Reed Arboretum: Celebrating over 40 years as a historic public garden and education resource, Reeves-Reed Arboretum engages, educates and enriches the public through horticulture and environmental education, and the care and utilization of the gardens and estate. Open 7 days a week from dawn till dusk, the Arboretum is listed on both the National and New Jersey State Historic Registers. Funding for RRA has been made possible in part by the NJ Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State, through a grant administered by the Union County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs, Dept. of Parks & Community Renewal.
Reeves-Reed Arboretum....a place to grow, for everyone!
