Ecovision designs and builds school garden in Fort Myers

A view of the student garden and outdoor classroom at Innovation Preparatory Academy of South Fort Myers.

This spring we completed our first school garden project!  At Ecovision we are teachers at heart, which is why it was very exciting to partner with a local charter school to design and build their new garden and outdoor learning space!

We were contacted in the fall of 2025 by a team of teachers and staff from Innovation Preparatory Academy of South Fort Myers about a potential garden project.  We recognized the enthusiasm and motivation of the school to develop their garden project from day one, so we were glad to assist by providing our design services at no cost.

We met with the team several times to identify goals for the garden and teaching space, as well as learn from their previous experience with a small garden area that had been largely destroyed by Hurricane Ian.  We created multiple garden layouts that addressed various needs of the project and gave them options on how to best utilize the space.

Several design options for the student garden with teacher and staff feedback for each design.

The group ranked the layouts and gathered feedback from a wider group of teachers that would be using the garden and teaching space in the future.  Once all the data had been tabulated, the team from the school selected the design that they felt would best fit the school’s goals.  We then worked to build out the details of the top design and develop an installation plan and timeline.

The school had set aside some funding for the project, as well as a major donation from the food service provider that serves the school, Elior Group.  This allowed the project to move quickly to the implementation phase.  We timed a significant portion of the work during the week of spring break to limit interruptions and overlap with the school’s activities and have full access to the garden space.

A view of the garden under construction, paths are complete, raised bed gardens in the background and some plants staged and ready for installation.

Our crew was able to complete the installation in just a little over two weeks. The school was then able to install a small white fence along the border of the garden.  During their Spring Fling event on April 25, the school held a ribbon cutting ceremony to dedication the garden and thank the donors and contributors to the garden project.  Students and parents from the school were able to tour the newly completed garden and even plant some vegetable seeds in small containers to take home and grow!

A view of the ribbon cutting ceremony for the student garden and outdoor classroom at Innovation Preparatory Academy.

Teachers and parents will be caring for the garden throughout the summer and gear up for back to school planting in September and October.  The upper grade level science classes will be installing a hydroponic tower system in part of the garden in the fall.  The school also has plans to raise funding to build a tool storage shed and pergola in the garden, which will complete the project.

The entire project, from beginning to end, was a great experience and we are excited to see how the garden will serve as a great hands on learning opportunity for the students.  We feel privileged to have been part of the project and look forward to watching the garden grow and flourish in the years to come!