Thirty-five children at St. Wilfred's Preschool in Sarasota now have their own vegetable garden, and the crops they plant will count as classwork.

The school opened its "Liberty Garden" with a ribbon-cutting ceremony July 17, giving students ages 2 to 5 an outdoor space to grow carrots, cucumbers, radishes and loofah, a gourd whose dried fruit doubles as a sponge for art projects. Director Tiffany Brown said the garden will become a permanent part of the curriculum, connecting classroom lessons to the full cycle of planting, tending and harvesting.

"It'll provide hands-on experience for the children," Brown said at the ceremony. "They can learn how to grow vegetables from seeds all the way to actual vegetable."

The project grew out of a partnership with the Daughters of the American Revolution. DAR member Cindy Millar said the idea started with regent Megan Moffitt, who keeps garden beds at home and wanted to bring that work into the community. Millar connected Moffitt with Brown through a shared teacher group, and the preschool became the site.

American flags line the garden beds, tying the project to the nation's 250th anniversary celebration in 2026. All 35 enrolled students helped build the garden and sang "Yankee Doodle" at the opening.

St. Wilfred's Preschool, located at 3773 Wilkinson Road on the grounds of St. Wilfred Episcopal Church, has operated since August 2005. The school serves children year-round and participates in Florida's free Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten program and the School Readiness Scholarship.

The DAR's Sarasota-area chapter, the Sara De Soto Chapter, has a long history of education-focused community work, including an "Adopt a Classroom" initiative and a Good Citizenship Award for local high school seniors, according to prior Sarasota Observer coverage. The Liberty Garden is part of a series of 250th-anniversary projects the chapter launched in 2024.

Brown and Millar said they hope the garden model can be replicated at other preschools in Sarasota and that the St. Wilfred's plot can expand. Families interested in enrollment can reach the school at 941-923-3088.