Our School Garden

Veggie Garden

Mascot Public School has had a veggie patch since 2009. It has grown, changed and morphed during this time. The veggie garden has seating for two classes to enjoy the shade under the big Gum Tree! This makes it so easy for students and teachers to use the garden space. 

In the garden students discover ideas and concepts first-hand, through real-life experience. Food education can be integrated into any curriculum and  learn life skills that they can take beyond the classroom that will help them to make healthier choices into the future.

While students learn to grow fresh, seasonal produce and use it to prepare nutritious, delicious food. Students are given all the skills, experiences and role modelling they need to learn to love their veggies and make healthier choices about what to cook and eat, for life.

Students at Mascot Public School love spending time in the garden because they’re fun. They experience the joy of digging in the garden, picking fresh veggies, smelling and tasting the food they prepare, and sharing the experience with their classmates.

We rely on local businesses to support us in our garden. Bunnings at Alexandria are a vital part of our garden's progress. They often donate gardening needs to our school. We rely on many local businesses to support our school garden. If you would like to donate to our school garden please email mascot-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

So what is planted in our veggie garden and orchard? 

The Pepino

This is a South American plant. We grow it because its fruit is yummy! It has the consistency of a melon and tastes like a cross between a rockmelon and a banana!!! You know it is ripe when it turns from green to yellow and forms purple stripes on it. 

Bush Apple

Indigeous to Australia, this small shrub grows tiny apples on it!!!! Stage 1 planted it this year so we are waiting for its fruit to ripen to try it

The Orchard

We have many fruits growing in our orchard (some more successful than others). The list includes: apples, pears, nashi pears, limes, oranges, grapefruit, mandarins, pomegranate.

The herb selection

There are many yummy herbs in our garden. This includes mint, bayleaves, oregano and parsley.

Stingless Bees

In 2021 Mascot Public School won the Ecoschools Grant to buy bees and create a native bee garden. The bee hive from Sydney stingless bees (https://sydneystinglessbees.com.au/) has been installed in the school grounds amongst the indigenous garden.

Bees forage far from their hive so Mascot Public School are installing native ground cover and flowers to our existing Gardens throughout the school. Some beautiful blue, purple, white and yellow flowers may pop up around the school. Native bees are attracted to these coloured native flowers. Students planted

While the garden is open all year round students and teachers spend time in the environment educating the students about preservation and protection of our school grounds.

As a part of the grant our school has also purchased some beautiful resources to share with our students including picture books and posters which are embedded into everyday teaching. Teachers are sharing these beautiful picture books with their classes in order for students to have further understanding of native bees and how they live life. 

A further extension of this project where the school plans on creating some mini bee hives for solitary bees. Some bees don't live in a hive with other bees and live by themselves so in consultation with the students the school will be creating some little bee hives for these beautiful bees to live in.