Printed Materials
As a program of Forsyth County’s Cooperative Extension
Service, Forsyth Community Gardening has access to a number of publications
on a wide variety of horticultural and community organizing topics. In addition
to being posted in their electronic form on this page, many of these materials are
also available in hard copy form at the
Forsyth County Agricultural Building. Don’t see the topic you were looking
for? Contact Megan Gregory with any questions or
for more information. Explore our resources on the topics listed below:

How to Start a Community Garden: Organizing, Fundraising, and Administration
Organizing a Garden
Fundraising
Administering Plot (Allotment) Gardens

Legal and Safety Considerations
Building Healthy Soil
General Soil Management

Cover Crops
Composting

Managing Soil Contaminants
Garden Plantings: Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers, and Herbs
Fruits
Vegetables
Flowers and Herbs
Managing Pests: Insects, Weeds, and Diseases
Supporting Beneficial Insects
Paper wasp, a predator of many insect pests, on yarrow. Photo: M. Gregory, Forsyth
CES.
Many insect pests have ‘natural enemies’ – beneficial predators and parasitoids
that keep pests under control. Other beneficial insects help pollinate crops like
tomatoes and cucumbers. The following resources will help you identify beneficial
insects, and create habitat in your garden to ensure they can thrive year-round.
General Insect Pest Management References
Specific Vegetable Pest Profiles
Weed Management
Summer weeds don’t stand a chance beneath this dense cover crop of millet and cowpea!
Photo: M. Gregory, Forsyth CES.
Diseases

Container and Raised Bed Gardening

Youth and School Gardens
General Resources on School & Children’s Gardens
- School & Children's Gardens: Steps to Success: Two-page handout
on creating or revitalizing gardens at schools and child development centers. Includes
information and links to resources on forming a planning committee, organizing volunteers,
choosing the garden site, developing the site, and integrating the garden in the
school curriculum.
- Cornell Garden-Based
Learning: Lessons, program tools, citizen science opportunities, gardening guidance,
and networking opportunities for educators. The Program Tools include excellent resources
on planning and organizing a school or children’s garden, fundraising and promotion,
and evaluation. Use the
Before Going Further Checklist to ensure you’re building a team capable of sustaining the garden project.
-
Getting Started with Garden-Based Learning
- Growing Minds:
School Gardens: How-to guides and links to weekly activity sheets attuned to
the gardening season
- Natural Learning Initiative:
Excellent resources from NC State on outdoor learning environments, including: the
Childcare
Center Production Gardens publication series, the The Green Desk (collection of activities and resources
by category), and
information sheets on design and programming for children’s outdoor learning
environment.
- Safety Guidelines for Youth Working in Gardens
Garden Based Curricula
-
Cornell Garden-Based Learning: Lessons page: Activities and curricula for grades
2-8
- Environmental Education in the Community Garden: A project of
the American Community Gardening Association with lessons on soil nutrients, soil,
nutrients, beneficial insects, pollinators, composting, crop rotation, and other
aspects of environmentally-friendly gardening.
- Garden
Mosaics: A garden-based education program that combines intergenerational mentoring,
community action, and understanding different cultures. The manual contains Science
Pages and inquiry-based learning activities for children and youth. Science pages
are available in English and Spanish.
- Growing
Minds: Lesson Plans: Garden-based lesson plans organized by grade level, from
preschool through grade 12.
- National Farm to
School Network Resource Database: Extensive database of garden-based lessons
grouped by setting (preschool, K-12, after-school, etc.) and topic.
- School Garden Resources:
Garden-based lesson plans from the University of Georgia for grades K-8. Lessons are aligned with earth science, life science, and physical science standards.
Youth Program Resources
- The Food
Project Toolbox: Free manuals, activities, and curricula used in The Food Project’s
ground-breaking youth programs, including their Summer and Academic Year Youth Programs,
Rural and Urban Agriculture programs, and Farmer’s Markets.
- Growing Young
Leaders: Youth Program Guide: Manual from East New York Farms! in Brooklyn,
NY, on how to create an urban agriculture internship for high school youth that
builds leadership, life skills, and farming and food systems knowledge.
Harvesting, Preparing, and Preserving Vegetables
- Harvesting Vegetables: Detailed tips on harvesting vegetables at peak eating quality.
- Harvesting and Storing Vegetables: Tips on when to harvest vegetables, how to store them, and how long they can be stored before using.
- Veggie Fact Sheets and Recipes: Information on harvesting, storing, and preparing many different vegetables, including simple recipes.
- National Center for Home Food Preservation: Quick links to practical, research-based information about how to preserve food safely using canning, freezing, drying, and other methods.
- Freezing Vegetables: Factsheet on how to blanch and freeze vegetables, including a table of recommended preparation and blanching times for different vegetables.
Why Commuity Gardens?
Scholarly Articles: Benefits of Community Gardening

The Local Food System
Publicaciones en Español
- Cultivando Comunidad en los Huertos Comunitarios: Consejos para Involucrar a sus Vecinos
Resumen de dos páginas con estrategias para involucrar a los miembros del huerto, crear estructuras organizativas
que promuevan el liderazgo compartido, y otros consejos para conseguir apoyo de la comunidad para su huerto.
- Guía de Horticultura para Principiantes: Guía básico al cultivo de hortalizas en Carolina del Norte,
incluso la selección del sitio, planificación, preparación de la tierra, siembra, mantenimiento del huerto, control de plagas y enfermedades, y cómo cosechar.
- Guía para Desarrollo de un Huerto/Jardín
Comunitario: Este recurso le guía, paso a paso, a organizar su huerto/jardín
comunitario. Hay información sobre cómo reunir sus vecinos, obtener un terreno adecuado
y permiso para usarlo, establecer el reglamento del huerto, y diseñar e instalar
el huerto.
- El Compostaje es bueno para
su jardín y el medio ambiente: Aprenda qué materias usar en su compostaje, cómo
manejar su montón de compost y cómo utilizar el producto final.
- El Calendario del Huerto en NC: Vegetales y Cultivos de Cobertura para Todas las Estaciones
Este folleto de dos páginas es una guía para planear rotaciones de hortalizas. Contiene los intervalos
en que se debe sembrar hortalizas de Primavera, Verano, y Otoño, y los cultivos de cobertura del
verano y los que permanecen durante el invierno. Finalmente, incluye un ejemplo de un plan de rotación de cultivos.
-
Cultivar Hortalizas del Otoño con Extensión de la Temporada: Este folleto de dos páginas contiene información sobre cultivos recomendados
para sembrar en otoño, fechas de siembra, e instrucciones sobre cómo construir un túnel bajo sencillo para proteger los cultivos de las heladas.
-
Cultivos de Cobertura: Información Básica para los Horticultores: Folleto de
dos páginas; contiene información básica sobre los cultivos de cobertura, sus beneficios,
y opciones buenas para los horticultores en USDA Zona 7
- Esquina de Horticultura:
Varios recursos en español sobre la horticultura de la Universidad de Illinois,
incluso.

- Garden-Based Education Resources
in Spanish: (Recursos para la Educación en el Huerto/Jardín en Español): Una
colección de LifeLab con recursos para educadores trabajando con los huertos escolares
y huertos para niños y jóvenes, incluso:
-
Garden Mosaics “Páginas de Ciencia": Este currículo tiene “Páginas de Ciencia”
relacionadas al cultivo de hortalizas, incluso el compostaje, el agua y riego en
su huerto, control de plagas, las malezas o malas hierbas, y los suelos y su cuido.

- A Garden of Words/Un
Jardín de Palabras: Un diccionario bilingüe de jardinería para escuelas primarias
y programas de jardinería extraescolares.
- Hojas Informatives de Verduras:
Información sobre varias vegetales y cómo cosechar, embodegar, y prepararlas para comer. Haz clic en ‘Hojas Informativas de Verduras’ para información en español.
- La Seguridad Alimentaria en
su Huerto Familiar: Aprenda a cultivar frutas y verduras seguras-libres de bacterias
u otros gérmenes que se les puede enfermar.
- Variedades de Hortalizas Resistentes a las Enfermedades.