Young greenthumbs reap the rewards

Surfside Primary School won its second Best Edible Garden prize at the Victorian Schools Garden Awards.
The school also received an award for the south-west region best garden for primary and special schools with more than 280 students.
The 40th Annual Victorian Schools Garden Awards were held at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Melbourne and the award was presented to Surfside Primary by Paul Crowe (OAM).
School representatives and Rachel Ford (The Kitchen Garden Specialist) accepted the award.
That makes three years in a row that Surfside has won two awards for its vegetable garden, which is used as part of the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden School program.
The school received $1350 in prize-money, after a long process in the selection criteria and categories.
The school plans to purchase equipment that can be put back to maintaining and upgrading the garden.
Next year, Surfside plans to introduce beekeeping to the garden.