Summer plans? Yes, friends, you made it! Giddy with garden freedom, Anne and Mary Jo talk about their summer plans and reintroduce last year’s Summer Gardening Episode. Whether it’s a needed daily summer garden fix or a hands-off, peace-out-see-you-in-August approach, this episode will help you plan what your school garden will look like this summer.

Podcast Outline

00:42: Introduction to summer episode: our summer plans and previews of future episodes-think shelf stable foods and gathering data for your garden program

07:40: Watering

09:08: Weeding

09:45: Solarizing

11:16: Humidity and air ventilation

12:16: Harvesting

13:27: Putting Beds to Bed!

14:06: Cover Cropping

15:20: What Can We Still Plant in the Summer?

16:55: Pests in the Garden

19:20: Thinking and Planning for the Fall

21:40: Making Shade

24:03: Produce Slow-Down

26:26: Pickle Update!

29:10: Conclusion and Wishing Everyone a Great Summer Break … in the Garden or out.

Pickle Recipes:

Here is the recipe I used for the ⁠Dill Pickles⁠. I particularly enjoyed putting in flowering dill heads into my brine as my plant is at this stage - it gave it such a mellow dill flavor.

Here is the recipe I followed for the ⁠Bread and Butter Pickles⁠ (minus cloves, as I don’t like cloves and I went 1/3 less on the sugar).

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Yes, you read that right - Sweetpotato all one word - it’s official! Join Anne and Mary Jo as they slip into everything you need to know about making sweetpotatoes a staple in your school garden this summer. From spellbinding Latin taxonomy to a classic classroom Venn diagram - this episode has it all.

Plus, Mary Jo may be packing her bags for North Carolina and discover just how far Anne will go in pursuit of the perfect sweetpotato cure. It’s science and storytelling with a huge helping of classroom-to-garden goodness.

Podcast Outline:

00:20 - Intro

00:42 - Welcome to the Sweetpotato Episode

1:06 - How was your week? Counting in 2s with Basil

05:23 - Intro and History of The Sweetpotato Plant

08:13 - Growing in Colder Climates

09:05 - The North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission - Website and Resources https://ncsweetpotatoes.com/curriculum/

Sweetpotato is one word! Sign the Petition here

14:45 - The Differences of Irish and Sweetpotato - Venn Diagram Style!

20:02 - Starting Sweetpotatoes by Slips

25:05 - Breaking off / Harvesting Sweetpotato Slips

26:08 - Ornamental and Non-Ornamental Sweetpotato Vines

28:52 - How to Plant Sweetpotato Slips

31:05 - Caring for Sweetpotato Plants

34:10 - Harvesting Sweetpotatoes

38:48 - Curing Sweetpotatoes and Storage

43:11 - Eating and Tasting

44:56 - The North Carolina SweetPotato Commission Jingle!

47:19 Outro

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Pop the kettle on and join Anne and Mary Jo as they spill the tea! Listen alongside as we show you how to celebrate your garden in a cup. From herbal teas to fresh water infusions, refreshing aguas frescas, and smoothies—garden tastings don’t have to be just about eating… sipping with your students is just as sweet! Plus, Mary Jo creates a manifesto where every household owns a teapot and Anne ponders the notion of cold days.

Podcast Outline

00:41 - Intro

01:31 - How Has Your Week Been, Anne?

03:29 - Introduction to Teas in the Garden

05:50 - Reasons Why We Should Incorporate Tea into Your Garden Program

12:24 - The History of Tea

14:02 - The Origins of Tea: From Medicine to Daily Taste

16:45 - The Tea Plant: Camellia sinensis

21:17 - Using Fresh Herbs for Tea

25:44 - Using Tea Bags and Dried Herbs

32:12 - Equipment and Materials Needed

34:41 - Hot Water Considerations

35:40 - Other Considerations for Tea Making

36:54 - Kids Pallets and the Sweetness Situation

40:08 - Butterfly Pea Tea: Color and Science.

43:57 Can we eat it? Edible or Ornamental

45:48 - Water Infusions / Cold Teas

49:20 - Agua Frescas

51:00 - Smoothies

Listen to the After School Cooking Club Episode

53:15 - Outro

Helpful Resources

Butterfly Pea Plant

Butterfly Pea Tea

Herbal Tea Combinations and Drying Herbs.

Agua Fresca recipes

Garden Smoothies

For more tasting and smoothie ideas, listen to Season 2. Episode 9 - The After-School Cooking Clubs Episode

Are you and your garden committee in need of some support and mentorship? In this episode Mary Jo talks with Laura Thomas and Peggy Word from The Eden Project UT. Listen along as they discuss their organization and share details about their nationwide school garden coaching program, SproUTing Teachers.

With two pathways to choose from—Individual Teaching Coaching or Group Garden Leadership Coaching to support your whole committee—this mentorship course is designed to set you and your garden program up for long-term success and sustainability.

Applications for the 2026–2027 school year are open now through May 1st, 2026.

Eden Project UT Website:

https://www.edenut.org⁠

More Information about the Coaching Programs:

https://www.edenut.org/programs

Application Link:
SproUTing Teachers

Small crop, big impact! Join Anne and Mary Jo as they dig into the when, how, and why of growing microgreens—and why this lightning-fast crop deserves a big place in every school garden program.

Along the way, Mary Jo makes a GSA, Anne contemplates the fine art of flushing, and we explore how this tiny crop can inspire macro-sized entrepreneurial ideas for older students.

Because when it comes to microgreens, a little really does grow a lot.

Podcast Outline:

00:40 - Episode Intro

01:40: How Was Your Week - Embrace the Scruffy!

06:33 - Microgreens Introduction

08:31 - What to Grow and Why Grow Them

- Quick Growers - Radish, Broccoli, Mustard, Kale, Cabbage (green and red), Arugula and Turnip (0 - 2 weeks)

- Longer Growers - Sunflowers, Peashoots, Basil, Carrot, Beet, Chard, Cilantro, Fennel, Dill, Parsley (2 - 4 weeks)

11:09 - Amaranth

Red Garnet Amaranth - True Leaf Market. Link here

16:11 - How to Grow Microgreens

21:41 - When Are They Ready and Harvesting

22:45 - Classroom Activities with Microgreens

28:10 - Making a Business or Fundraiser from Microgreens - ideal for older students

36:10 - Outro and Thanks for Listening - Keep Flushing!

Educator Bonus Episode

Looking for a grant to support your school garden efforts?

Then, look no further than the Whole Foods Market Foundation's Garden Grant program. Listen in as Mary Jo talks with Ashley Ellis, the Edible Education Program Lead on the Improving Children Nutrition Pillar of Whole Foods Market Foundation.

Listen quickly and act quickly! The deadline for this grant round has been extended to March 15, 2026.

Learn more and apply here: https://www.wholefoodsmarketfoundation.org/our-work/childrens-nutrition/garden-grant

Time to peel away the layers and re-know your onions!

Join Anne and Mary Jo again as they talk through all things onions and why your students will be crying if you don’t plant this awesome vegetable in your school garden this season.
Podcast outline:

2:50 - Why grow onions?

3:33 - What part of the onion do we eat?

4:24 - Onion Family

4:43 - Planting onions

5:30 - How do onions grow

6:40 - Where to buy onion slips and sets

7:28 - How to plant onions and connections to the classroom

9:00 - Book Connection - ⁠Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens ⁠

10:23 - Caring for your onions as they grow

11:10 - Watering

12:46- Signs of growth

13:15 - Bolting, going to seed or putting up a flower

15:40 - Harvesting

19:46 - Funny story

22:11 - Kid question: Why do onions make you cry?

Recommendations: Our favorite and recommended feed store in North Texas is Russell Feed and Supply. Find your local store ⁠here⁠.

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Email us: podcast@madegreene.com

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Another helping of potatoes, anyone? We’re digging back into The Potato Episode! Yep, it’s that time of year again—so get ready to plan and plant this student favorite. Your school gardens are about to get spud-tacular!

Chapters:

Encore Episode Introduction - 0:50

Why Should We Grow Potatoes in Schools? - 3:14

Connections to Curriculum - 4:38

Potatoes are a Hungry Crop - 6:52

DIfferent Varieties of Potatoes - 7:52

True Potato Seed or Seed Potatoes - 9:42

Buying the Right Kind of Seed Potato - 11:00

Chitting or Sprouting Seed Potatoes - 11:51

Cutting Seed Potatoes - 14:43

Where to Plant Potatoes - 16:24

Hilling, Banking or Earthing Up Potato Plants - 18:12

Harvesting Potatoes: 20:32

Finding the Mother Tuber - 24:24

Top Tips for Growing Success -25:15

Have a Potato Party! - 27:02

Growing Potatoes with a Class of Kids - 29:00

Caution and Safety Notes: 29:43

Kid Question: What is the difference between Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes: 31:17

Ending

Mentioned Books or Materials

The Enormous Potato - Aubrey Davies purchase ⁠here⁠

Recommended Fabric Growbags purchase ⁠here⁠

Stay in touch with us!

Email us: podcast@madegreene.com

Find us on Instagram and Facebook at MadeGreene

www.madegreene.com