A TN Aquarium scientist teaches students about bird beaks. Photo by Doug Strickland/Tennessee Aquarium
Park Creek Restoration and Conservation Project
A photo of Mill Creek on Park Creek's property. Photo by Doug Strickland/Tennessee Aquarium
A sign indicating that the area is partners with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Photo by Doug Strickland/Tennessee Aquarium
Fish and Wildlife Biologist Joe Kirsch stands near an unmapped tributary of Mill Creek at Park Creek Elementary School in Dalton, Ga.
Royal Catchfly, a native protected plant, grows at Park Creek Elementary School in Dalton, Ga. Photo by Doug Strickland/Tennessee Aquarium
Amy Wilms holds a Tufted Titmouse while giving a bird banding demonstration at Park Creek Elementary School's Earth Day jamboree in Dalton, Ga. Photo by Doug Strickland/Tennessee Aquarium
Park Creek Restoration and Conservation Project
The project began in January 2021 and focuses on improving the habitat for the threatened trispot darter. The federally-protected fish was discovered in the creek surrounding Park Creek's campus in the fall of 2020, prompting the conservation efforts.
Park Creek is working to restore and enhance the buffer zone between the school and Mill Creek. The project is a multifaceted terrestrial and aquatic restoration and preservation effort that encompasses a robust alliance of conservation-minded professionals and community stakeholder groups representing more than ten private, city, county, state, and federal organizations.
Five acres of floodplain habitat and 0.3 acres of wetland habitat will be restored over the next few years to decrease pollution within Mill Creek.
Additionally, about 2 acres are being restored using native seedlings to improve habitat for at-risk native pollinators such as the monarch butterfly and the royal catchfly.
Educators at the Tennessee Aquarium, Dalton State College, State Botanical Garden and Park Creek Elementary are working together to create curriculum, educational hiking trails and outdoor classrooms within the restoration areas.
“One of our goals for students at Park Creek is that they engage in citizen science projects and learn about natural systems around them,” Principal Will Esters said. “We want real science happening with our future scientists.”
Project Partners
Map showing areas of restoration and conservation of Park Creek property.
Reports and links
- Soil Test Report
- Limestone Valley (SOW) DCS Partner Copy
- UGA Extension and Spanish Language resource links
- Irrigation: Community and School Gardens
Soil Test Report
Limestone Valley (SOW) DCS Partner Copy
these are the minimum required NOTES SECTIONS that will become the legal, binding document for the agreement. Points to remember:
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Each section covers a specific topic – in general, it is not necessary to repeat the same information in multiple sections. Avoid adding items included in the General Terms and Conditions.
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EFG prints in plain text only – tables should be converted to text prior to upload. Graphics and other documents that cannot be converted should be specifically referenced and provided as attachments when the award documents are presented for signature.
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PURPOSE – Introduction, reasons for the project, over-arching goals and relation to NRCS goals |
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The Outreach and Partnerships Division (OPD) within the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA NRCS) provides leadership and funding to ensure that all programs and services are made accessible to all NRCS customers and are treated fairly and equitably with emphasis on reaching the underserved and socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers and landowners. NRCS is providing funding through “Conservation Outreach: Equity through Cooperative Agreements.” This award is in the best interest of the Government and necessary to provide outreach and technical assistance to historically underserved communities.
The Limestone Valley RC&D Council Outreach in Market Gardening for NW Georgia To assist historically underserved populations in Northwest Georgia with an expansion of existing training at 2 schools, Park creek elementary and Brook Wood elementary, in the Dalton Public Schools district. The student demographics in these two schools are: Park Creek- 565 students (85% Hispanic, 8% Caucasian, 1%Asian, 5% African American, 1%other); Brook Wood- 731 students (45%Hispanic, 42% Caucasian, 6% Asian, 3% African American, 4% Other) All students will engage with the garden program. 3rd -5th Grades will integrate curriculum with specialty coaches in the building to learn in the garden about natural resources conservation practices that will introduce the conservation planning process and best management alternatives to address, nutrient management, water quality, water quantity, irrigation water management, soil quality, and other resource concerns that mitigate excessive climate change and the impact to their farming operation and the environment.
Trainings will be offered to include non-English language programs and diversified offerings to include farm bill education, irrigation, market gardening, cover cropping, crop planning and other market garden classes for beginning and small scale or urban gardeners. Spanish language educators are currently working in both pap professional and professional capacities on these campuses and will facilitate interpretation. A bilingual educator will be selected as the lead garden program specialist in order to better address multigenerational language needs such as engaging with parent, guardians, and grandparents.
These project will:
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Objectives– Identify key strategies and project design, alignment of resources and activities, strategic partners and their roles, objectives and goals clearly identified |
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1. Support activities that introduce the concepts of climate-smart agriculture and to assist producers with planning and implementation of conservation practices and principles to address local natural resource issues. This will be focused on Cover cropping for nutrient cycling as well as minimal tillage and irrigation efficiencies. This will be emphasized through market garden innovations that reduce environmental impacts while allowing agricultural production in urban and small spaces. 3. Encouraging existing and new partnerships through emphasizing urban needs and equality in advancing underserved communities’ and small-scale agriculture. This will be accomplished through working within the existing school framework and afterschool programing. Partnerships have already been formed with USFWS, TNC-GA, TNACI, GA State botanical gardens, and the School district. 4. Developing state and community-led conservation leadership for historically underserved producers, including training students for careers in natural resources management. This will be accomplished through offering student training as well as mentorship with Dalton State College.
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BUDGET NARRATIVE – High level summary of the budget, MUST match detailed budget list AND SF-424A. If there is a required match, it should be explicitly stated in this section. If the budget includes Indirect costs, the basis for the IDC is a required attachment. |
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The official budget described in this Budget Narrative will be considered the total budget as last approved by the Federal awarding agency for this award.
Amounts included in this budget narrative are estimates. Reimbursement or advance liquidations will be based on actual expenditures, not to exceed the amount obligated
TRAVEL- Total Cost: $ (Federal Share $1000) 1 Dalton/ project sites Milage Day 1754 miles @ .57 = $1,000
Trip 1 (Approximate Date of Travel MM/YYYY): Travel to be determined based on site availability. 75 miles/ day X 23 trips spread throughout the 2 years. Exact dates TBD based on scheduled training and classes. Travel will be for both the personnel traveling between schools in the district as well as between the LVRCD office and the school. CONTRACTUAL- Total Cost: $ (Federal Share $86,731) A partnership with Dalton City Schools will supply the staffing lead on this program. $86,731 will be contracted to DCS for them to hire and staff the daily classes and trainings. This contract will hire a professional for Teaching classes based on milestones identified in milestone section, presentation development and curriculum translation for Spanish integration, recording notes on participation as well as program notes to improve/ successes. |
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RESOURCES REQUIRED – Items of value other than funding needed for the successful completion of the project. Do NOT repeat funding information. If it is a cooperative agreement, there should be substantial involvement of NRCS staff time or resources, so describe who and/or what is required of each party. For grants, there will be minimal or no other NRCS resources. |
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NRCS will:
Recipient will:
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RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE PARTIES – Actions to be taken by each party. Do NOT repeat funding or contact information (these are stated on the Notice of Award) and do NOT include items addressed in the General Terms and Conditions of the agreement. This section will list the responsibilities other than providing funding that are needed for the successful completion of the project. If it is a cooperative agreement, there should be substantial involvement of NRCS, so describe who and/or what tasks or roles are required to complete the project. For grants, there will be minimal or no other NRCS responsibilities. Reporting and payment frequency must be stated. Template language is provided below. |
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If inconsistencies arise between the language in this Statement of Work (SOW) and the General Terms and Conditions attached to the agreement, the language in this SOW takes precedence.
NRCS will:
Recipient Will:
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EXPECTED ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND DELIVERABLES –High level summary of products and deliverables--what will be done, how it will be measured or presented so that both parties know the project is complete. |
A Lead educator will be hired through a partnership with Dalton Public Schools. This educator will be responsible for teaching 8 classes a week during the school year and throughout the year develop a training schedule that will teach 20 training outside of school. A Target of 150 students and 300 adults will engage in the specific classes and trainings. Sign in sheets and photo documentation will be delivered as proof of success. Lesson plans or notes will also serve as a metric of success. Handouts and class records will be produced in both Spanish and English. To address local natural resource issues. 1a. Improve onsite irrigation water use at school teaching site by modeling micro irrigation use and teaching a training on the assembly and design of micro irrigation.
Encouraging existing and new partnerships through emphasizing urban needs and equality in advancing underserved communities’ and small-scale agriculture. 3.a. Engage students and adults in agricultural classes focused on conservation and food production. Targets for these classes and workshops will be 150 adults, 300 students. The Trainings will be held over the Summer Months on school grounds and the classes integrated into school curriculum during the school year. Examples of classes would be irrigation efficacy and design, Cover cropping for success, How to starting a Garden, Farm bill programs and private lands, Seed starting 101, Nutrient management and water use, other classes or training as the community need may indicate per cohort. Partnerships with NRCS field office for farm bill Q&A, Partnership with UGA for classes on Nutrient management, Partnership with TNACI for training on water conservation, Partnership with State botanical Garden for seed starting training. Developing state and community-led conservation leadership for historically underserved producers, including training students for careers in natural resources management. 4.a. Work with 4 student interns to encourage interest in natural resources. Interns will be involved with the Workshop trainings (minimum 8) and will not be compensated as their time will count toward needed class volunteer hours at Dalton State College. |
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MILESTONES – For each deliverable above, describe the subtasks and their due dates so that both parties know what is expected and when so, that the project is completed within the period of performance. |
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The timeline and specific tasks to implement these components March 2022- Complete scope negotiation and SOW (Completed) April 2022- Contract with NRCS (completed) May 2022- Hire program specialist in partnership with Dalton Schools June 2022 Launch summer training program (10 training- 5 class x2 cohorts) July, Oct, Dec 2022- Quarterly report/ reimbursement August 2022 Launch school based classes ( 8 classes per week ) November 2022 Teach cold weather training (1 training ) March 2023 Teach seed starting in School Greenhouse (Brookwood campus) April 2023 Plan market Spring Garden in school (Park Creek Campus) May 2023 End of School open garden parents and students June 2023 Launch summer training program (10 training- 5 class x2 cohorts) August 2023 Launch school based classes ( 8 classes per week ) November 2023 Teach cold weather training (1 training ) April, July, Oct, Dec 2023 Quarterly report/ reimbursement March 2024 Teach seed starting in School Greenhouse (Brookwood campus) April 2024 Plan market Spring Garden in school (Park Creek Campus) May 2024 End of School open garden parents and students April, July 2024 Quarterly report/ reimbursement
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Optional Notes:
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ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS – if there are required attachment, cite them here. |
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Attachments – Project Proposal “Market Gardening for Conservation in Dalton City Schools” |
UGA Extension and Spanish Language resource links
Here’s a link to the UGA Home Garden publications: https://extension.uga.edu/publications/series/detail.html/71/home-garden.html
And here are some links to Spanish language gardening resources:
Florida CAFE LATINO RESOURCES
https://extadmin.ifas.ufl.edu/teams-and-programs/cafe-latino/resources/
California Materials and Resources en Español
https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=45742
NC State
Lucy Bradley - Consumer and Community Horticulture Professor and Extension Specialist lucy_bradley@ncsu.edu
NM State
Two NMSU Extension gardening publications now available in Spanish
Planting Guide – this should not be hard to translate Georgia Edition
https://pubs.nmsu.edu/_circulars/CR457B_SP/index.html
Georgia version - https://extension.uga.edu/content/dam/extension-county-offices/forsyth-county/anr/homegardenplantingchart.pdf
University of Missouri
MU Extension gardening webinar leads to growth of Spanish-language resources
https://extension.missouri.edu/news/cultivating-inclusivity-4813
For more information on Cabrera-Garcia’s work and Extensión de MU en español, visit https://extension.missouri.edu/extension-de-mu-en-espanol
Extension and NRCS: Your Team for High Tunnel Assistance in Spanish Language
Life Lab cultivates children's love of learning, healthy food, and nature through garden-based education Santa Cruz CA
Spanish Language Garden Resources
https://lifelab.org/2011/07/spanish/
Penn State Extension Victory Garden Program Supports Latino Community
Food Preparation etc. in Spanish
https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/nutrition-education/spanish-language-materials
Planttalk ColoradoTM – Español
https://planttalk.colostate.edu/planttalk-coloradotm-espaol/
Irrigation: Community and School Gardens
Irrigation
Community and School Gardens
David Berle and Robert Westerfield
University of Georgia Horticulturists
Irrigating a community or school garden can be a challenge. The layout of the garden and the way in which the garden area is allotted can make a big difference in deciding what type of irrigation system to use. The water source is equally important, as it will determine the method of watering and how much plants will be watered. Community and school gardens can be watered by hand with a watering wand and hose, overhead with a portable sprinkler or by drip irrigation. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.
Water Needs
Georgia generally receives an adequate total amount of rainfall for plants; however, it is not always evenly distributed throughout the year. To set fruit and vegetables, plants need water all summer. Planting a garden, especially a summer garden, makes little sense unless there is some provision to supplement the natural rainfall.
Water needs will vary depending on the season, the weather in a particular year, soil type, crops being grown and cropping practices. In general, a garden needs about 1 inch of water per week during the spring and fall and as much as 1.5 inches per week in the peek of the summer heat. This translates to about 1 gallon of water for every
square foot of garden space. A small 10’ x 20’ garden plot would require 200 gallons of water per week to continue growing at a healthy rate.
Types of Irrigation Systems
Overhead Sprinkler
Overhead sprinklers are the easiest and cheapest irrigation system to install, but also the most wasteful and therefore most expensive to operate. One big advantage of an overhead sprinkler system is that, in a community or school garden, it is very fast and easy to set up. While a lot of water could be wasted by watering non-garden areas, at least the entire garden will be watered. Impact, rotary and micro-sprinklers are three common options for overhead watering.
Depending on the water pressure, a basic impact sprinkler positioned in the middle of the garden area can water a 50’ diameter circle. One $15 sprinkler set on a tripod sprinkler stand connected to a garden hose may cover an entire community garden. The sprinkler can be moved around as needed and be adjusted to throw water at various distances and to water half-, quarter- or any partial-circle pattern. Overhead watering with impact sprinklers is great from the point of view of installation cost and ease of use. Unfortunately, water is truly “thrown” into the air -- some lands on plants, some lands on pavement or walkways and some simply evaporates.
Since water is landing on top of the plants instead of directly on the roots where it is taken up by the plant, there is additional potential for evaporation. Also, when leaves remain wet for an extended period of time there is an increased likelihood of disease problems.
Rotary sprinklers like those used for lawns are about the same price as impact sprinklers, require less water pressure and water flow, and tend to be less “sloppy” in the application of water. Rotary sprinklers move by an
internal mechanism, creating less movement and more stability of the sprinkler stand. They are just as easy to adjust for the area to be watered as impact sprinklers. Manufacturers even make rotary sprinklers that run on very low pressure with nozzles that keep the angle of the water stream closer to the ground, thus reducing loss from evaporation.
A third type of overhead sprinkler is called a micro-sprinkler. There are many different styles of micro-sprinklers, some of which are more like misters and are not recommended for gardens. They are very inexpensive and can be installed on special plastic stakes or steel rods. Some styles spread water in a similar pattern to impact and rotary sprinklers, but the water droplet size is large and the rate of water delivery is slow. This allows time for water to soak in, making the best use of the water and reducing runoff. Some micro-sprinklers water only a 6-foot circle, making it easier to be more precise in watering small garden areas and avoid wasting water on non-crop
areas. Micro-sprinklers are perfect for areas of the garden planted in leafy greens where there are no rows.
Hand Watering
Hand watering can be very efficient if it is done properly. Each plant can be watered based on its needs, and water can be applied directly to the ground rather than solely overtop as with the overhead sprinklers. Kink-free hoses are commonly available and most garden centers sell a good quality wand and “water breaker” to create a rain-like shower. In a community or school garden, where many different people might have small individual plots, hand watering allows each person to water their area to their liking. The big disadvantages to hand watering are the time required and inability to use a timer. Also, if someone is inexperienced, there is a good chance plants will either be over- or under-watered.
Drip Irrigation
In the last 30 years, drip (sometimes referred to as “trickle”) irrigation systems have become popular among commercial fruit and vegetable growers, as well as landscapers. The principle is fairly simple: water travels through a pipe or tube close to or just underneath the soil surface and is released through tiny holes or emitters. Drip irrigation systems require low pressure and can run with very low flow, making them perfect for community gardens that are watered from a house spigot. Because the pressure is low, the system can be put together with unskilled labor and fittings that require no gluing or screwing. A drip system consists of a pressure regulator,
filter (those holes in the tube are very tiny and can be clogged by soil particles) and tube connector. The rest is a series of elbow, tee and tubing running down the row, approximately 12 to 18 inches apart. Drip irrigation parts are available at most garden centers and discount hardware stores, in addition to irrigation supply companies.
The advantages of drip irrigation systems are the fairly low cost, ease of installation and being able to apply water directly to the soil where the pants will soak it up. Evaporation is not a problem and the plant leaves remain dry. A disadvantage is that in a community or school garden, those tubes running on top of the ground can get in the way, sometimes acting as a trip hazard. If the community or school garden has framed raised beds, extra work is required to route the tubing into and around the beds. Another fairly common problem with drip irrigation
systems occurs when mice and rats chew holes in the tubing.
Circular 1027-12 February 2013
The University of Georgia and Ft. Valley State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and counties of the state cooperating. Cooperative Extension, the University
of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, offers educational programs, assistance and materials to all people without regard to race, color,
national origin, age, gender or disability.
The University of Georgia is committed to principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action.