Let it grow
This summer, my daughters and I are getting our hands dirty, thanks to their schools and our city. We may live in an asphalt-dominated landscape, but with minimal effort we have found green spaces where we can practice the good, old-fashioned art of gardening.
My 4-year-old’s school, PS 29, participates in the Garden to School Café program. Their vegetable garden, tucked in a sunny corner of the schoolyard, acts as science lesson, cafeteria supplier, and classroom pet. Science teacher Tina Aprea-Reres, featured in a July Daily News article about the program, maintains the garden as part of her curriculum, which extends into the summer months. Children help grow vegetables, which become cafeteria lunches in the fall. Last year, pesto was popular, even with those otherwise wary of green stuff. This spring, kids offered beautiful bunches of radishes from their own “farm stand”.
I decided it would be fun for us to get to know the garden over the summer. The past two Mondays we have volunteered in its upkeep, which equals a little weeding but, mostly, lots of watering. The vegetable beds are fed from rain barrels, which were empty the first time we visited, necessitating trips to spigots on the other side of the building. Our arms were weary, but we were reminded of what a valuable resource water is. My daughters treasured the cucumber they picked. As warty and mottled as it looked, you would think they had found a candy bar, such was their eagerness to try it. It may be my imagination, but ever since that day they seem more enthusiastic about the vegetables on their plates.
We look forward to a session of PS 29’s gardening “mini camp” in August.My 3-year-old has a similar program at her preschool in Red Hook. This winter, they started veggies from seed, scored a plot in a community garden, and planted seedlings once the soil warmed. Their teachers hold special gardening evenings throughout the summer. At the last one, kids got to stake beans, label plants, and water, courtesy of a fire hydrant hook-up. They dug through compost for earthworms then set them free in their little garden. Even bug-shy children held worms in their hands.In addition to teaching children about where their food comes from and empowering them to actually help grow it (and perhaps eat healthier), many of the city’s gardening programs for kids are also free.
Though they may have waiting lists, community gardens are an excellent way for the whole family to get their hands in the soil. Kids can also visit urban farms such as Added Value and Rooftop Farms, which focus on education, sustainability, and local food ideals. The Brooklyn Botanic Gardens offers great nature and gardening classes for kids; the Queens Botanical Garden has a Children’s Garden, and there are year-round programs for families and children at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx.
There are also experiments at home. This winter we planted basil seeds in a pot in our window, and watched them sprout (alas, other herbs did not). We hung one of those upside-down planters outside our door, and are the proud owners of thriving, gravitationally confused tomatoes. The girls check on them every day, and with a mania usually reserved for lollipops, fight for the reddest, sweetest one.
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So inspiring! Thanks for writing this. Now I have a great resource to send to our science teacher at PS58.
Comment by Erin Patterson — July 28, 2009 @ 11:21 am
Now I know what Wednesday’s dinner project will be. We’ll harvest the basil and get cracking on the pesto. Thanks for the inspiration!
Comment by Lauren — July 28, 2009 @ 11:23 am
Thanks for posting this. As a parent invovled in the PS 29 garden, I’m grateful that there is enthusiastic involvement on the part of the principal, teachers, facilitities staff, parents and students to keep growing! It’s been an excellent part of my children’s exposure to science, art, poetry and eating! What if the city mandated that a garden grow in every public school! It’s an efficient way to get kids eating healthier, concerned about the environment, and inspired to write, draw, study science and learn!
Comment by Alison — July 28, 2009 @ 12:43 pm
As co-president of the PS 29 PTA, I have enjoyed seeing how parents, kids, teachers, administrators, and community volunteers have joined together to make a corner of schoolyard blacktop into a thriving garden and outdoor classroom. My 5th grade son — formerly no particular fan of “green stuff” — says he “loves planting and eating the vegetables, especially when we get to eat our own pesto in the cafeteria.” We have had parents volunteer to build the beds and rainwater catchment system and to water and tend the garden. For a school system eagerly seeking ways to involve parents in their children’s education, school gardens offer wonderful and rewarding points of entry.
Comment by Lisa Trollbäck — July 28, 2009 @ 1:24 pm
So true that children who are exposed to planting or tending a vegetable garden are more likely to be more interested in the veggies on their plate. My daughter literally shakes if you wave a piece of broccoli in her face, but I noticed a change when her pre-k class in PS29 got involved in harvesting the radishes for the school sale. We of course bought several bunches to take home and to our surprise our daughter, with out any prodding from us, popped one in her mouth…mind you, she did not like it, but she was so proud to have contributed to our day’s meal that she felt compelled to give it a try. And since then, she has even tried broccoli–which she discovered she actually likes! I have noticed that the garden this year has also not been vandalized as much as it had been the Summer before…I think these gardens have helped our city kids appreciate and respect plants even more. They are not just pretty and ornate, they help nourish us and the environment. I am so glad you wrote about our little garden in PS29 and I hope this inspires other schools to do the same.
Comment by madeley — July 28, 2009 @ 2:38 pm
What an amazing experience for these kids. Programs like this are what define community and grass roots involvement. Parents feel like they can make a difference and the kids learn what it means to be apart of something and learn about the importance of healthy food and have fun at the same time. The best way to get kids excited to learn about something is to empower them with hands on experience.
Comment by tara — July 28, 2009 @ 2:51 pm
Hi all…great piece. Our school, PS 107, was also featured in the Daily News article mentioned in this piece. Our school garden has been such an amazing project, opening the doors to many interesting environmental, science, nutritional, agricultural literacy projects. It has become a school centerpiece with much support…of course, I am driven to grow it (no pun intended) in ways that benefit children’s learning and nutritional habits. What is also fabulous is that the school/community gardening network in Metropolitan New York is vast and blossoming (woops, another pun), and I have met so many wonderful supporters, people, gardeners…I am looking, actually, to partner with other school gardens for shared learning experiences. Go school gardens and the people that make them happen. Michele, http://www.ps107.org/ediblegarden.htm
Comment by Michele — July 28, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
Slow food could be the alternative to our fast food insanity that is killing our nation. Fun, wholesome and oh so good for you. Cheers, to Claiborne and bon appetite, Andy
Comment by Andy Williams — July 28, 2009 @ 8:25 pm