Percy Pegler School’s Whimsical Garden Harvests Success and Community Connection

"Growing" a sense of community, one garden at a time.

The Percy Pegler School Garden in Okotoks has reached a milestone, celebrating its first harvest and marking the culmination of years of planning and hard work. This outdoor learning space, which has been a work in progress for several years, aims to provide students with hands-on experience in growing their own food, exploring ecosystems, and acquiring practical skills.

Parent volunteer Tanya Roberts, who helped establish the garden with Explore Program teacher Kristen Whaley, expressed her excitement about the garden’s progress. “It’s come together faster than we expected once we hit the building phase,” she said. “It was about two years of planning prior to that to get permissions and apply for grants and really put a plan together.”

The garden, which spans approximately 7,000 square feet, features two outdoor classrooms and is maintained by a group of dedicated volunteers, including parent volunteers, local community members, and volunteers from the Okotoks Optimist Club. Produce harvested from the garden is donated to the Okotoks Food Bank, with a large donation planned for the coming weeks.

Looking ahead, Roberts hopes to plant a food forest with fruit trees and perennial food, as well as build a permanent roofing structure to allow students to learn outdoors year-round. The garden also features beds named after children’s novels, with plans to build a free little library to house corresponding books.

The garden has already made a significant impact on the community, with the school hosting its annual Family Gathering night, where parents and families were invited to explore the garden. Roberts hopes to recruit more volunteers to help maintain the garden throughout the growing season.

Stephanie Rees, a parent who has been volunteering with the garden, emphasized the importance of the garden in teaching children about where their food comes from and the interconnectedness of nature. “There’s so many lessons to be learned in the garden,” she said. “This really shows how we can plant a seed, we can grow food, and it goes straight to our plate.”