School Garden Workshop Sprouts House Dedication slated for 11/7/2025

Oct. 31, 2025
sprouts house

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Dear School Garden Friends,

October in the Sonoran Desert is the season of marigolds, monarchs, and migration! 

Bird migrations peak during the month of October as monarchs move south through our region into Mexico to their overwintering grounds. Reptiles migrate underground to bromate for the winter months and the sun moves lower in the southern sky as daylight hours continue to wane. Marigolds adorn our school gardens and their strong fragrance that deters pests is said to help guide the souls of our loved ones home during Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead).  In the garden, October’s warm, shortening days are also the perfect time to plant fruit trees and cool season crops like greens and root vegetables. My favorites for planting now are fava beans, snap peas, radishes, carrots, and cilantro from seed, and kale, broccoli, and bok choy from starts (seedlings).

For the School Garden Workshop, October has been a whirlwind of events, groundbreaking on new ambitious endeavors, and monumental projects coming to fruition! Earlier this month, School Garden Workshop team members worked with Tucson High students and Chef Feng Feng from the Chinese Chorizo Project to host a cooking demonstration at Tucson Meet Yourself. Tucson High students prepared egg, potato, and Chinese Chorizo tacos using both a pork based and a mushroom based Chinese Chorizo. The Chinese Chorizo Project celebrates the blended Chinese American and Mexican traditions from a time in Tucson when those two cultures existed side by side in our barrios.
 
Community is at the heart of the School Garden Workshop, and this month the community showed up for us in a way that’s both humbling and inspiring. Long time supporter Ray Flores and the Si Charro family of restaurants hosted School Garden Workshop as the beneficiary of their annual Day of the Bread bazaar and showcase. The event featured artisan and cottage bakers, live music, and was a beautiful reflection of this region’s culture and heritage. We are beyond grateful to the Flores and Charro family, and to all of our friends who purchased tickets to help support our work! 
One of the pillars of our program is cycling schoolyard grown produce back into the cafeteria where it appears on the lunchline, and earlier this month we did just that at Gridley Middle School on the East Side. School Garden Workshop team members went out to Gridley and helped harvest 81 pounds of Asian pears from their amazing pear tree, and those pears showed right back up on the cafeteria trays of Gridley students.

Finally, we leave you with a very important save the date! Mark your calendars for November 7th at 10am for the dedication of Sprouts House, our new program hub, professional development center, and garden-to-table culinary center.

 

 

Also, connect with us by joining us in the garden for a work project, bringing a friend on a school garden tour, or making a gift to sustain this good work. For more information or to get involved, please contact Debra Rodriguez at debraz@arizona.edu. We hope to see you soon!

 

Warm autumn regards, 

 

Moses, Greg, Sallie, and the School Garden Workshop team ☀️

To make a gift, use this donate link or send a check to the address below:

 

UAF/School Garden Workshop

University of Arizona, PO Box 210137

Tucson, AZ 85721-0137