Libraries and Gardens: Growing Together - Softcover

Scott Banks, Carrie; Mediavilla, Cindy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0838918557 ISBN 13: 9780838918555

Publisher: ALA Editions, 2019

Synopsis

Roman philosopher Cicero once remarked that "if you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." Today, libraries nationwide are beginning to incorporate gardens into their public services. Libraries in the southwestern US, for instance, are creating drought-tolerant gardens as neighborhood demonstration projects, while elsewhere gardens are being used to promote community engagement and even STEM learning. Citing examples of library gardens around the world that are thriving, this first-ever book on the subject not only demonstrates the many benefits of library gardens but also provides a complete overview of issues applicable to all library types and geographical environments. Featuring a full-color photo insert showcasing several beautiful library gardens, among the topics covered in the book are

• a brief history of libraries and gardens, with an overview of such "demonstration gardens" as medicinal and herbal gardens, native plant gardens, xeriscapes, and gardens as wildlife sanctuaries;
• the use of plants, such as living walls and rooftop gardens, to create ecologically healthy, sustainable environments;
• gardens as learning environments and spaces for storytimes and active play;
• food gardens, seed libraries, sensory gardens, outdoor reading areas, prison garden programs, and many other ways that libraries can engage communities;
• guidance on designing for inclusivity, planning, funding, staffing, recruiting volunteers, and planting and maintenance, complete with advice on determining the best plants to cultivate; and
• ideas on evaluating the effectiveness of library gardens and the program opportunities they offer.

Readers will not only be inspired to create and nurture their own library gardens and programs, they will receive practical advice on how to proceed and sustain them.

About this title

About the Author

Carrie Scott Banks has worked with and on behalf of children with disabilities since high school. Taking over Brooklyn Public Library's Inclusive Services in 1997, she created their gardening program in 1999. Ms. Banks taught inclusion at Pratt Institute from 2013 to 2015 and conducts inclusion trainings across the United States and Canada. She has had many roles in ALA: ASGCLA (Association of Specialized, Government and Cooperative Library Agencies) board member, committee member and chair, program organizer, and co-drafter of resources and tools for serving people with disabilities. Her substantially revised edition of Including Families of Children with Special Needs: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians was published in 2014.  Cindy Mediavilla is the author of several books, including Creating & Managing the Full-Service Homework Center, which has been called the quintessential guide to the practicalities of setting up a formal homework help center to provide one to one homework assistance to student patrons (Intner, Homework Help from the Library, ix). In the early 1990s Mediavilla managed a homework center, called the Friendly Stop, for the Orange (CA) Public Library, and she has been studying after school homework programs ever since. She has published several articles on the topic and has evaluated homework programs for the Long Beach and Los Angeles public libraries. She has made presentations on homework help programs at the conferences of several major library associations, and she has also conducted many workshops on the topic. In 2007, Cindy and her husband converted their home lawns to drought-tolerant California native plant gardens. Their home has been featured on several garden tours, including Theodore Payne Foundation's prestigious annual tour. A former public librarian for 18 years, Mediavilla has both an MLS degree and a doctorate in library science from UCLA.

Edition details

• Publisher: ALA Editions
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0838918557
• ISBN 13: 9780838918555
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 160