News & Events 2020-2021 School Year and More!

  

  • 8/11/21  After School Care returns -- this time for real!  Please see our After Care page for more information.  Limited pick-up and transportation available.

 

  • 6/07/21 Summer Farm Camp begins!  After a year of maintaning a fixed enrollment group LGPF is again welcoming newcomers!  MWF afternoons from 1pm-5pm.  Masks required.

 

  • 3/15/21  Spring has sprung!  Come see what's new at the farm as we resume our outdoor-only play & learn program.  (LGPF will be closed for Spring Break)

 

  • 12/9/20   Winter Closure.  The cold weather has come and the days are running shorter.  Little Garden Patch is closing for a long winter's nap.

 

  • 8/10/20   It's Endless Summer at Little Garden Patch!  Join us MWF afternoons from 1-5 pm for outdoor play and imagination, stories, games, and arts & crafts.  Masks required.  Will continue throughout the Fall.

 

  • 6/15/20   Little Garden Patch Farm reopens for Summer Camp!  Alumni and continuingn clients may join us MWF from 11am - 3pm for fun in the outdoors at the farm.  Limited enrollment.  Masks required.

 

  • 3/16/20 Little Garden Patch is closed until further notice in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the county order to shelter in place. 

 

  • 1/06/20   No School Join us for a winter farm camp day at Little Garden Patch!  Summer farm camp alums welcome. Priority enrollment for those in our after school program.  Little Garden Patch is open full day from 8:30 am to 6 pm. 

  • 12/23/19 Winter Break  Little Garden Patch is closed for two weeks of winter vacation.

  • 11/25/19  Thanksgiving Holiday Break  Little Garden Patch will be closed Wednesday 11/27 through Sunday 12/01 and will reopen on Monday 12/02.  We MAY be open on Monday 11/25 and Tuesday 11/26 if we have sufficient interest from our enrolled families!
  • 11/01/19  Teacher In Service Day, Soquel Unified Elementary schools!

  • 10/21/19  Harry Potter Week Begins!  Little Garden Patch is open early all week for the all grade minimum days at Soquel Elementary and Main Street Elementary. 3 extra hours of fun, Monday-Thursday -- regular hours on Friday.
  • 10/17/19 Green Family Living:  Connecting Kids with Nature  Be sure to check out the editorial by our director Linnaea Avenell in Growing Up in Santa Cruz.  Includes information about how and why we do what we do at Little Garden Patch, as well as tips for sharing the magic at home.   https://growingupsc.com/green-family-living-october-2019/


  • 10/07/19  Halloween arrives early at Little Garden Patch for a whole month of silly spooky fun.

  • 9/03/19  Back to school here means back to the farm!  This Tuesday we kick off a whole month of farm immersion with our County Fair theme!  Parents, don't forget to take the kiddos out to the Santa Cruz County Fair this month!  The fair opens Monday September 11th and runs through Sunday September 15th!

    9/02/19 LABOR DAY!  Little Garden Patch is closed today for the Labor Day holiday.

  • 8/27/19   School resumes in Soquel schools!  Little Garden Patch is currently FULL. 

  • 8/26/19   No School!  There is no school on Monday August 26th for Soquel School District.   All enrolled families may contact us to see if there is space remaining to join us for a fun Farm Camp Day!

  • 8/16/19  Farewell Summer Farm Camp!  It all went by so fast!  See you all again next year.







PAST NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

  • 4/01/19  New Chicks!  This is no April Fools -- 4 new chicks have joined the farm!  2 golden Buff Orpingtons, 1 white Brahma, and a lovely black with white lacey Wyandotte.

  • 3/29/18   New chicks!  Welcome brand new little baby chickens Marshmallow, Cupcake, Brownie, and Francesca (aka Franky).  As the name might suggest, Marshmallow will be a white chicken (Delaware).  But right now she's a yellow ball of fluff.  Sweet friendly Franky will be a black and white barred rock.  And Brownie and Cupcake will be black (update:  black with brown).

  • 11/24/17   Farewell to Dawson.   We are sad to announce that our dear little black doggy Dawson has passed on.  Words cannot express the void he leaves behind in all our hearts.  Dawson was a long-haired chihuahua and (we think) Dachshund mix whose courage, sunny personality, patience, and charm won him many admirers here at the farm.  Even the UPS carrier -- his professed arch nemesis -- has expressed his sorrow at the passing of  "the little Alpha", our pack leader.  Dawson was a pound puppy whose real age was not known, but we believe he was about 12 years old.  We know for sure that he gave our family 10 wonderful years of love, laughter, and courageous loyalty. 

  • 6/01/17  Presenting Cookie and Pearl!   Mia the pony now has two new friends, miniature ponies Cookie and Pearl.

  • 5/12/17  Welcome ducklings.   Jellya Duck hatched out her babies! 

  • 7/31/16   Farewell Friend   On this day we lost our wonderful male goat Elliot to kidney and digestive tract problems.  He was a loving gentle giant with tons of personality and will be deeply missed. Learn more.

  • 10/26/15  A new friend has arrived at the farm.  It's Mia the pony.  Mia is an American Shetland, a breed supremely well suited to pull a cart or carriage.

  • 12/2914  Meet our newest friend, Lilly the baby minature pot bellied pig.

 

  • 1/25/14  Daphne's Baby Goats have arrived!  FINALLY!   The adorable baby girls, Oreo & Penelope, were born January 25/26th in the wee hours.  It was a long night, but well worth it!  These sweet babies love to play and love to cuddle with children.  In fact, they might not let you leave.  "Waaaaait!  Come baaaack!" 

 

 



 

Here is a highlight from the article:

Local mom Linnaea Avenell and her family recently made a move that affects not only her own family’s connection with the land but also extends that connection to local children. “For many years my husband and I have been very much committed to the idea that connecting kids with nature would help them become more caring stewards of our Earth and of the other creatures that share it,” Linnaea explains. “Our most recent project in this vein is transforming our home/property here in Soquel into ‘Little Garden Patch Farm.’ Our goal has been to provide a space where children who might otherwise be stuck indoors all afternoon can enjoy child-led time playing outdoors the way so many kids no longer do.” Rather than sell the property in Soquel where she grew up and where her children and their friends got to roam, Linnaea’s family decided to move in and make it their business. Little Garden Patch Farm now welcomes children five and up for gardening and nature time. “I love watching a child arrive here after school—tired, batteries running on empty—get thoroughly recharged from running about outside playing games of make believe, playing ‘farm’ with the toys in the sensory tables, shucking corn husks from the garden to feed the goats, laughing at the chickens, exuberantly chasing a ball, and giggling along at story time,” Linnaea says. “It makes all the farm chores and maintenance I do around here feel totally worthwhile!” 

 

 

  • 9/04/13   We have some new arrivals at Little Garden Patch Farm...  Welcome Juice, Ginger, and Daphne.  They are all very sweet and adorable.  They would love to have some more little hands to pet them!

 

 




  • Little Garden Patch Farm is fully licensed and open for business as of August 20th 2013.  

Come join us for fun, learning, and reconnecting with nature!  

We offer a small family child care facilty set on an urban microfarm and homestead with ducks, chickens, goats and more.

  • Be sure to  "Like" us on Facebook to see more news and to help us spread the word about this developmentally based, child led program for school aged children.