Category: Gardens

By Laureen Dulo

You may not expect it, but Washington State prisons are full of a variety of gardens. Garden types vary depending on the facility’s climate, partnerships, goals, and programs. Most facilities feature a variety of gardens which may include educational gardens to accompany SPP’s Foundations in Gardening classes, produce gardens for donation or on-site use, herb and medicinal gardens, culture gardens for cultural groups, flower gardens, pollinator friendly gardens, small orchards, rental plot gardens, and drought tolerant native plant gardens. These gardens not only enrich the prison environment but also have positive effects on incarcerated individuals, correctional staff, and visitors.

By cultivating gardens and actively using or donating their produce, incarcerated individuals have the opportunity to gain valuable gardening skills, knowledge about healthy eating, and contribute positively to the local communities. Since 2020, almost 200 students have taken SPP’s 4-credit Foundations in Gardening course. In 2024, prisons reported donating 110,399 lbs. of produce to local food banks and using 131,482 lbs. of produce grown on site within the facilities. However, challenges persist, mainly related to incarcerated individuals having access to the fresh produce grown at facilities.

Some plants and flowers from the gardens at Stafford Creek Correctional Center. Photos by Emily Passarelli.

To address these challenges, SPP, with support from former Secretary Strange and other Department of Corrections (DOC) leadership, launched the ‘Garden to Kitchen Project’ (G2K Project) in the Fall of 2021. The goal of this initiative was to create a stronger link between kitchen managers, plant managers, incarcerated gardeners, and various stakeholders to tackle existing barriers and improve access to fresh produce in prisons.

The Garden to Kitchen Project began by collecting information on the challenges and successes associated with utilizing prison-grown produce in facility kitchens. To gain a comprehensive understanding, SPP reached out to plant and kitchen managers across twelve prisons to discuss the limitations and obstacles related to growing, cleaning, and preparing produce. Additionally, the G2K team conducted several in-person listening sessions with incarcerated gardeners to further identify challenges regarding produce access. These gardeners expressed frustration over the waste of facility-grown produce and the lack of formal education on cleaning and preparing it. They also highlighted issues such as staffing shortages, movement closures, small crew sizes, and quarantines. Concerns were raised about the lack of compost and fertilizers, the absence of a formal planting plan, unfair pricing of produce, and the inability to have produce in living unit.

Building on the insights gathered, the Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC) took the lead in piloting the Garden to Kitchen  initiative, with support from SPP. To address the challenges identified, SPP provided resources including composting tumblers, seeds, materials for garden beds, books, and garden tools. These contributions were designed to enhance the facility’s capacity to grow and effectively utilize produce, fostering a more sustainable connection between the garden and the kitchen. Through these efforts, the initiative aimed to overcome the previously identified obstacles and improve the overall efficiency and sustainability of produce use within the facility.

To address more barriers, SPP is actively leading sustainability workshops focused on addressing the challenges identified by gardeners, kitchen managers, and plant managers, like delivering dirty produce to the kitchens.

On April 2, 2025, Stafford Creek Correctional Center hosted an inspiring and thought-provoking workshop featuring Kristen McIvor, Director of Harvest Pierce County. Founded in 2010, Harvest Pierce County aims to bridge the gap between food, community, and the environment by engaging residents in creating a just and nutritious food system. With over 15 years of experience in cultivating sustainable food systems in Tacoma, WA, McIvor brought a wealth of knowledge and passion to the conversation, emphasizing the critical role of community engagement in creating a more just and healthy food system. During her presentation, she discussed the importance of building sustainable systems that promote transforming garden produce into healthy meals

Kristen Mclvor introducing herself to students from Stafford Creek Correctional Center. Photo by Emily Passarelli.

McIvor outlined key programs that were relevant to challenges identified by the facility. Essential practices like basic garden planning, recognizing planting schedules, and understanding food safety were highlighted, with emphasis on understanding your kitchen’s needs, barriers, and limitations

McIvor also shared practical tips that included harvesting techniques specific to various crops, with an emphasis on timing and handling to ensure food safety and quality. Participants were encouraged to engage with the kitchen staff to explore how to prepare their produce, understand any logistical barriers they may face and food safety practices like worker hygiene and proper harvesting methods to mitigate contamination risks.

Kristen Mclvor discusses the work they do at Harvest Pierce County with students from Stafford Creek Correctional Center Photo by Emily Passarelli.

The workshop sparked meaningful dialogue about the unique challenges of connecting prison-grown produce to institutional kitchens. Issues such as food safety regulations, kitchen infrastructure, and access barriers remain significant. Yet, with open communication and a commitment to collaborative problem-solving, progress is possible. Programs like those led by Harvest Pierce County, along with the efforts of the Sustainability in Prisons Project, continue to demonstrate how innovation, partnership, and equity can transform systems from within.

Kristen Mclvor discusses the various programs under Harvest Pierce County with students from Stafford Creek Correctional Center. Photo by Emily Passarelli.

The workshop was a remarkable gathering, attended by incarcerated students, SCCC staff, SPP staff, and Sally Brown, one of SPP’s long-term partners and a UW research professor. As the workshop concluded, students engaged with both Kristen and Sally, asking insightful questions that sparked meaningful discussions. Following this, Kristen and Sally enjoyed a visit to the beautiful gardens at SCCC, witnessing firsthand the incredible progress being made, an inspiring wrap-up to a productive day. To learn more about Kristen and her impactful work at Harvest Pierce County, please visit their website:https://piercecd.org/190/Urban-Agriculture

As we prepare for the next phase of the Gardens to Kitchens Project, we encourage stakeholders, community members, and partner organizations to stay engaged. Together, we can cultivate not only gardens but also thriving ecosystems that support health, dignity, and sustainability both inside and outside of prison walls.

Sally Brown (left) and Kristen Mclvor (right) answering students’ questions at the end of the workshop. Photos by Emily Passarelli.

Nourished by the compost processed on site and tended to by caring hands, the gardens at the Washington Corrections Center (WCC) are impressive bursts of color against the green Pacific Northwest landscape. In the summer the beds are filled with marigolds, cosmos, sunflowers, poppies and more, and they are a source of pride for the incarcerated gardeners.

Flower beds at WCC. Photos by Emily Passarelli.

One garden in particular offers not only an opportunity to learn gardening skills, but a way for indigenous gardeners to connect to their community and culture. The Tribal Sons Medicine Garden is home to medicinal and culturally significant plants such as sage, lavender, and cedar trees. Creation of the garden was spearheaded by indigenous community members, and it now provides a place of solace, growth, and connection.

A sign created by incarcerated individuals for the Tribal Sons Medicine Garden. Photo by Emily Passarelli.

Some of the herbs grown in the garden are used for ceremonies performed by tribal members in the facility. Since Native Americans are incarcerated at roughly 3.6x the rate of white people1, it is crucial to provide opportunities like the Tribal Sons Medicine Garden that allow them to continue stewarding their ancestral lands.

An incarcerated contributor to the garden was recently quoted in a King 5 article regarding his experience of the healing powers of the medicine garden: “This is harmony, this is peace, this is serenity,” he said. “This is healing, this is restoration, this is rehabilitation.”

Medicinal herbs recently planted in the Tribal Sons Medicine Garden. Photo by Emily Passarelli.

During a recent Foundations in Composting class meeting, students performed a soil test in the medicine garden with the help of composting expert Sally Brown. Halfway through the test, the chunk of test soil dropped suddenly back to the ground. “They wanted it back,” one of the indigenous gardeners joked, “the ancestors wanted the soil back.” 

1 Vera Institute of Justice. ​ (2019). Incarceration Trends in Washington. ​ Retrieved from http://www.vera.org/state-incarceration-trends. ​

Horticulture students and teaching assistants from Tacoma Community College (TCC) have been busy growing succulents, flowers, houseplants, produce, and more at Washington Corrections Center for Women (WCCW).

Some of the many house plants and flowers grown in TCC’s horticulture program. Photo by Derek Thedell.

The program, a partnership between WCCW and TCC, provides students the opportunity to earn college credit while developing hands-on skills. Students spend time in the classroom learning about horticulture techniques and practices with TCC instructors and a volunteer Master Gardener.  Students then implement what they have learned about plant production and care in two facility greenhouses and gardens throughout the grounds. 

Some of the many succulents and plants available for WCCW to purchase. Photo by Derek Thedell.

Produce grown in the gardens often makes its way to the WCCW kitchen and is incorporated into menu items.

Some of the produce harvested by TCC horticulture students. Photo by Derek Thedell.

Other plants, like the ornamental kale, go to local businesses and organizations for landscaping.

Ornamental Kale at WCCW. Photo by Derek Thedell.

Some of the plants and flowers even go to the Governor’s mansion for special occasions throughout the year!  Overall, TCC’s horticulture program is the perfect example of the importance of partnerships in delivering high-quality programs in WA prisons.

Text and Photos by Anna Duron, EVM Program Coordinator

EVM Technician Josh Hieronymus showing off microgreens ready to be sent back to the Stafford Creek Kitchen

Generally in the Emergent pre-Vegetated Mat (EVM) nursery, we grow native emergents, grass-like plants that are important for Oregon Spotted Frog habitat. These emergents, though, are dormant in the winter, which leaves the EVM empty of plants and things for us to do during the darker months. This year we decided to work on a new project: growing microgreens.

EVM Technician Josh Hieronymus training other incarcerated men how to harvest microgreens

Microgreens are nutritionally dense and have a mild, fresh taste similar to salad greens. They have a quick germination and growth rate, which makes them a perfect project for the few winter months we are free from growing emergent mats.

Just one of the many bins filled with microgreens after a day of harvest

This was a brand-new learning process for everyone. It gave the EVM program team the chance to learn how to grow edible plants, plus how to safely process and handle the greens. The microgreens grown out in the EVM are being put back into the kitchen at Stafford Creek Corrections Center for the incarcerated men to enjoy.

EVM Technician Joseph Oddo spin-dries microgreens so they can be packaged and sent to the kitchen.

We discovered that growing and harvesting of microgreens is a tedious process. Many steps and careful observations are needed for these tiny plants to succeed. 

Carl Elliott, SPP Ecological Conservation Nursery Manager, and Josh Hieronymus, EVM Technician, discuss the health of microgreen plants.

We harvest about every two weeks. With each harvest, we get approximately 15 pounds of greens — that’s about 16 gallons! These microgreens have been a great addition to the salad mixes in the SCCC  kitchen.

At the beginning of the project, EVM Technicians Joseph Oddo and Josh Hieronymus sowing microgreen seeds.
After sowing, we cover the mats with plastic to keep moisture in and ensure germination.
Josh Hieronymus and Scott sifting through harvested microgreens before they are sent to the kitchen

By William Rathgeber, SPP Biological Science Technician. Photos by Marisa Pushee.

In early 2018, the Sustainability in Prison Project (SPP) partnered with Symbiotic Cycles to bring aquaponic gardening to Cedar Creek Corrections Center. I joined the program in spring of 2019 and I’m excited to be a part of this project because I view sustainability as a critical element of food security. This program exposes incarcerated individuals like myself to a new skill set required for maintaining alternative agriculture practices. I have also been excited to learn that this rapidly growing field is gaining momentum worldwide both as a backyard hobby and as a larger-scale means to harvest produce without tilling and weeding.

From left to right: SPP Biological Science Technician William Rathgeber, Symbiotic Cycles Co-founder Nick Naselli, and SPP Biological Science Technician Sanchez Bagley.

Aquaponic gardens can produce food naturally and organically with much less water than a conventional garden. Aquaponics is also more sustainable than traditional farming practices. The project comprises of an aquaculture system based on a symbiotic relationship between bacteria, plants, and fish in a closed ecosystem. The plants grow in a soil-free aquaculture and the plant roots clean the water for the fish while the fish provide nutrients for the plants. The plants and the fish work together so the water can be recycled indefinitely. Only evaporated water needs to be replenished. 

Environmental, economic, and health concerns are excellent reasons to adopt an aquaponic garden. Aquaponic gardening offers a chance to reduce our carbon footprint because the produce being harvested doesn’t have to travel hundreds of miles to your grocery store. It also doesn’t add fertilizers that can pollute the local water reservoir or harm the local flora and fauna. Additionally, aquaponics is becoming popular among young and old locavores (people who buy local) concerned with nutrition, avoiding artificial additives, and protecting the environment.

Kale has been a consistent success in the system, growing well through the winter.

In an increasingly environmental and sustainable focused world, these alternative agriculture practices prepare incarcerated individuals to have skill sets that will compete with the changing times. While incarcerated, we are not only educated in this alternative aquaculture practice but we get to provide the fruits of our labor to the kitchen for mainline meals. The Cedar Creek aquaponics system is supported by the design team at Symbiotic Cycles. They also provide consultation and informational on-site visits conducting hands-on question/answer seminars for Cedar Creek SPP Technicians and Centralia College Horticulture students.

By Marisa Pushee, SPP Ecological Conservation Program Coordinator

Note: please be aware that individuals featured in this story and in these images have victims who are concerned about re-victimization; any sharing or promoting should keep that risk in mind.

This week, students and Ecological Conservationists gathered in the greenhouse at Cedar Creek where Anna Duron led a workshop for the aquaponics program. Anna serves as the SPP Coordinator for the Emergent Vegetated Mat (EVM) program at Stafford Creek and drew from her background in utilizing aquaponics for Ecological Conservation initiatives. The workshop focused on best practices when working with aquaponics and the chemistry behind maintaining a stable system.

SPP Coordinator Anna Duron and SPP Biological Science Technician Will Rathgeber show workshop participants how to test pH, nitrite, nitrate, and ammonia for the water in the Cedar Creek aquaponics system.
Anna describes her work with the EVM aquaponics system at Stafford Creek, detailing the differences between varying approaches to aquaponics.

SPP Biological Science Technicians as well as students and TAs from Centralia College‘s horticulture program joined for the hands-on learning opportunity. They tested the pH, nitrite, nitrate, and ammonia levels of the water in the aquaponics system, discussing why certain results were more desirable and how the plants respond if any of the readings are too high or too low.

Many of the workshop participants were current TAs or students in the Centralia College horticulture program at Cedar Creek.
Workshop participant watches the fish enjoy their breakfast.

Since many of the workshop participants were horticulture enthusiasts, they compared successes and challenges, finding commonality in obstacles like plant nutrition and integrated pest management. We look forward to continued collaboration with such an engaged group of students!

Workshop participants discuss plant health.

Text and photos by Graham Klag, Ecological Conservation Nursery Coordinator

This year’s pumpkin and squash harvest

Halloween pumpkins in prison! In addition to growing important prairie plants, technicians at Stafford Creek Corrections Center also grow a cornucopia of produce for Grays Harbor County’s Coastal Harvest Program. Their hard work and harvest provides food for hungry families and Halloween pumpkins for people in prison to enjoy. Happy Halloween!

Ecological Conservation nursery technician Dale King and the crew tilling new rows for the new season
From hoop house to table
A week’s worth of produce harvested and headed out to the community

By Carly Rose, SPP Curriculum Development Coordinator and Emerico, Gardening Curriculum Author

Gardeners tend to the soil in the gardens at Monroe Correctional Complex – Washington State Reformatory Unit. Incarcerated authors at MCC-WSRU are working with SPP to author chapters on Vermicomposting, Bokashi Composting, and Soil Science. Photo by Joslyn Rose Trivett.

For the past six months, gardeners at Stafford Creek Corrections Center and Monroe Correctional Complex – Washington State Reformatory Unit have been helping to build the new Gardening Curriculum. To develop course chapters, authors are combining expertise gained through personal experience with knowledge from scholarly research. Authors are working on a voluntary basis: they elect to share based on their desire to explore and describe a particular topic; some of the chapters currently in development include Vermicomposting & Bokashi Composting, Soil Science, the Soil Food Web, Planting and Harvesting Vegetables in Prison, Seed Saving, and Aquaponics.

Developing part of a curriculum while incarcerated requires some creativity. In order to submit materials, authors have provided handwritten work that is then typed and formatted by myself. One author types his work into JPay (social email) and mails it to a family member who mails it back, which gives him a pre-typed manuscript to submit. Most authors also provide their own illustrations and diagrams to be included in the chapter. Authors use a mixture of narrative from personal experience, tips on gardening that are specific to a prison environment, and college-level scholarly research to produce their work. They provide instruction that is created by and intended for incarcerated gardeners across the country. Authors and I send materials back and forth so they may provide feedback and edits on separate drafts of their work. One of the authors, Emerico, offered a personal narrative on his motivation to learn and write about his topic, Aquaponics. 

Introduction to Aquaponics by Emerico

I first became interested in aquaponics after reading a few articles and watching some educational television programs. I was working on the gardening crew at Stafford Creek and when the gardening classes started, I was thrilled to be included. Over time, I have learned every person—incarcerated or not—has a purpose in life. My purpose was building an aquaponics system with no budget. I had to lose my freedoms before I could find my purpose in life. This is where aquaponics all began for me. I had an idea, so I put it to paper and talked to the garden supervisor about the idea.

One of my first jobs on the garden crew was working with the hydroponics system. I found out that this type of system, which requires chemicals to grow plants and vegetables, is expensive and I believe far less healthy. My goal was to get away from using chemicals and go to more of a natural resource system. I thought about a way to build a small-scale aquaponics system that uses fish to feed the vegetables. After many attempts to get it approved, and with the help of the garden crew, we built a recycled materials aquaponics system. The first part of the vision of my idea came to life.

This is part of the aquaponics system built by Emerico, who is authoring a chapter on Aquaponics. He explained that he wants the chapter to be accessible to both incarcerated gardeners and low-income families outside of prison. Photo by Jacob Meyers.

There is a sense of satisfaction when growing your own vegetables whether for self/family or others. I believe also that gardening can relieve stress. This country is blessed; there should not be anyone going hungry. We see too much senseless hunger in our country and throughout the world. There must be a solution to this problem. How can we do this? By making people aware and teaching them that aquaponics is not only a healthier way to grow produce, but is also cheaper. Aquaponics saves money in the long run for people and their families, and is a fun way to bring families together in the garden.

As for me, it is all about giving back and helping those in the community and throughout society that are less fortunate. The purpose is to get a finer perception of aquaponics through research. Anyone can pretty much build a small-scale aquaponics system with a limited budget and few resources. I hope this brief overview has helped you. Above all else, have fun.

From his lab notebook, Emerico shows a diagram of the aquaponics system. Photo by Joslyn Rose Trivett.

Next Steps

The course is projected to pilot in winter of this year. The two teams of authors plan to be part of that process as well; they will be among the first to try out the new program. Their feedback during and after the trial run will help us further refine the course, and then be ready to share it statewide and beyond.

All of the authors have personal experience gardening in prison, working on projects such as this garden at Stafford Creek Corrections Center. This garden is tended by individuals serving a life sentence, and is known as the “lifer’s garden.” Photo by Ricky Osborne.

Text and photos by Marisa Pushee, SPP Ecological Conservation Coordinator.

Following some adjustments this past winter, the aquaponics system at Cedar Creek Corrections Center (CCCC) is now thriving. It took a lot of work and perseverance from Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP) Biological Technicians, but their dedication has paid off.

Earlier this winter, SPP technicians noticed that these plants were looking a little yellow, an indication that they weren’t getting enough iron.

In January, Nick Naselli and Daniel Cherniske, co-founders of Symbiotic Cycles, assessed the state of the system and found that the pH, at 7.8-8, was too alkaline for plant life. The high pH had made the iron in the system inaccessible to the plants, resulting in yellowing of the leaves and stunted growth. In order to combat these problems, Symbiotic Cycles and SPP Biological Technicians changed the system’s bio-media from grow stones to red pumice rock and added iron nutrient to the system. Take a look through the photos to see the impact of these adjustments!

SPP Biological Technician, Lorenzo Stewart, situates the plugs in the system’s raft beds.
With the adjustments to the pH and iron levels, the greens started to take off.
SPP Biological Technician, Donald McLain, checks the plants for insects. Technicians spray plant leaves with a mixture of olive oil, garlic, natural soap, and water to deter the aphids.
Symbiotic Cycles Co-founder, Daniel Cherniske, assesses system progress during a recent site visit to Cedar Creek.

Plants that do well in an aquaponics system include leafy greens like lettuce, kale, chard, mustard greens, and bok choy. Cilantro and chives also thrive, and they even help keep away aphids.
The greens from this system are used in Cedar Creek’s kitchens to help provide the facility’s incarcerated population with fresh, healthy meals.

The greens are looking much better, well on their way to harvest.
After a little TLC, the plants are looking plush! The fan in this photo helps improve air circulation, which is beneficial for the plants and can help deter aphids.

With summer around the corner, SPP Biological Technicians will soon have to combat rising temperatures and increased sun exposure, but the introduction of a fan and shade cloth will help maintain a healthy and productive system.

By Jacob Meyers, Ecological Conservation Nursery Coordinator

For the past year and a half, I’ve had a truly unique and remarkable opportunity. Once per month, I made the hour long trek out to Washington’s coast, not to surf or go clamming, but to teach a garden class to over 50 incarcerated individuals. The garden class began as a way for Ed Baldwin, the Ground/Nursery Specialist at Stafford Creek Corrections Center (SCCC), to support and encourage the gardens at the facility. Former SPP Coordinator, Joey Burgess, joined the effort by offering a superb (and free) introductory gardening curriculum called Seed to Supper. Oregon Food Bank and Oregon State University Extension Service teamed up to create the course which aims to educate and inspire adults to grow a portion of their own food and build more food secure communities. Topics covered range from building and planning to maintaining and harvesting a garden.

A PowerPoint slide from one of the very first lessons of the Seed to Supper curriculum.

During one of my first trips to prison, I got to watch Joey teach one of these classes. Joey made teaching look effortless with a laid back, but confident persona. But the following month, it was me up in front of 50 inmates and not Joey. I’m not a shy person by any means (I acted on stage in college and high school in front of well more than 50 people) but this was a bit different. For one, when I started I was by no means ‘an expert’ on gardening. And two, I wasn’t sure how well my teaching style would be received.

SPP Nursery Coordinator, Joey Burgess, presenting the Seed to Supper curriculum to gardeners at Stafford Creek Correctional Center. Photo Credit: Ricky Osborne

I remember staying up late the night before my first class scouring the material over and over to make sure I could answer any and every question thrown my way. Of course, I had no such luck. But at the same time I find it kind of funny that I was so worried. I should have guessed that the class would be full of smart, thoughtful, knowledgeable and kind individuals, and it was. They asked me tough questions and challenged me. They took what I offered them, and—with their ideas and questions—made it better. I had been too focused not being a gardening expert or  that I am not a perfect teacher. It was helpful to remember that the students weren’t expecting me to be just as I wasn’t expecting them to be perfect students, or any of us to be perfect people. Sure, these men (and women) have made mistakes, but they are people. Many of whom are eager and thirsty for knowledge.

One of the unit gardeners at SCCC raises his hand to ask a question.
Photo credit: Ricky Osborne

So for the past year and a half I’ve made the same trek every month not just to teach a group of men about gardening and growing vegetables, but also to learn from them.

However, in 2019 the gardening education program is transitioning and so is my role in it. I won’t be leading the class at SCCC anymore, but there are exciting developments underway. SPP has signed an agreement with Oregon Food Bank to propose changes to the Seeds to Supper curriculum. SPP staff along with incarcerated students and educators at Monroe Correctional Complex and Stafford Creek Corrections Center, Department of Corrections staff, Institute for Applied Ecology, University Beyond Bars, and Tilth Alliance, will be suggesting revisions to the existing Seed to Supper curriculum, enhancing the course with additional modules on select topics, and transitioning the resources to support a peer-led model. Developing this peer-led format builds on a growing number of efforts to empower incarcerated people with resources and support to increase educational opportunities in prisons across the state. So while it means my time delivering the program has ended, the possibility for reaching more incarcerated men and women and sharing the joys and wonders of gardening has never been higher.

And so to the unit gardeners I had the privilege to teach and learn with and to the staff at Stafford Creek I got to work with, I say goodbye for now. Hopefully someday, I will see you in the garden.

Flowers in full bloom at one of the gardens at Stafford Creek Corrections Center.
Photo credit: Ricky Osborne