Ruckusroots

The Rebel Garden Project The Rebel Garden Project is an urban gardening and arts internship for systems-impacted teens and young adults in South L.A. In a series of workshops facilitated by local master gardeners and artists, teens learned about urban gardening, ecology and art. Activities included lessons in soil science, native plant identification and natural pest control, with accompanying creative arts projects such as sign painting, garden design and more. Our pilot Rebel Garden Project took place during the Spring of 2022, and planning for our 2023 continuation of the project took place during the Fall and Winter of 2023. Our 2022 program saw a graduation rate of 60% of interns, who were awarded with certificates and stipends. Measured impacts revealed a 26% increase in knowledge about soil, a 13% increase in ability to care for and identify plants, a 19% increase in confidence in designing and decorating a garden and a 22% increase in the ability to work collaboratively in a group. Partners for this program include The Youth Justice Coalition and Chuco's Justice Center.

Art and Ecology Workshops RuckusRoots held several free art and ecology workshops for various communities in 2022. Some of these include "Plant Your Food" which teaches how to create plantable seedling containers using toilet paper rolls, "Earth Friendly Art-Making" at Tustin Memorial Academy Garden, which taught art-making and planting with cardboard; "Magic of Mushrooms," which taught about fungi and in which students made and painted clay mushroom sculptures, "Native Bees and Pollinators," in which students painted bee-themed artwork, and "Garden Play Day," in which participants painted water-wise ollas for drought tolerant gardening. Participants in these programs were multi-generational, and communities impacted include Sun Valley, South L.A., West L.A. and Orange County. Program Partners include Hungry Gardens Urban Farm, FEAST for ALL Los Angeles, Tustin Memorial Academy and Imperfect Foods.

Garden Magic with Native Plants Mural Garden Magic 2022 included both arts and ecology lessons for home schooled youth in the Spring and Summer of 2022 at Hungry Gardens Urban Farm in Sun Valley, CA. In this 3-month program, youth aged 7-12 learned from a local master gardener about native plants, pollinators and ecology. Students integrated visual arts lessons from local artists with ecology knowledge through beautifying the garden by painting a mural on a 200-foot wall. The mural, designed by local arts duo Studio Tutto, incorporated California native plants and pollinators, which facilitators tied into previous lessons. Many visual arts skills were learned in this process: how to prime a wall, grid a mural and different painting techniques and brushstrokes, as well as color mixing and color theory. 100% of our participants said this program helped them feel more connected to their community and taught them about both nature and art.