The American Swedish Institute (ASI) and Parents in Community Action (PICA) Head Start Park Place and Portland Village have an ongoing partnership that invites preschool students to ASI to participate in a variety of activities and utilize their outdoor campus for open play. PICA Head Start Park Place and Portland Village locations do not have outdoor play facilities or safe spaces appropriate for elevated “pop up” gardens. ASI and PICA Head Start see gardens as a place for wonder, learning and unexpected joyful play. These gardens have the potential to bring young children into meaningful contact with the food they eat, urban nature, and their immediate neighborhood. They believe that gardens can teach children to construct a sustainable future for themselves and the neighborhood and act as play environments in which preschoolers can create meaning and explore sensory elements.