Somerville Farm to School Project

It's been a weather roller coaster this year! We've had hot days then cold days, rainy then dry--all proving a challenge for our plantings. Even so, over the past couple of weeks many of the schools were able to harvest and eat fresh veggies right from their gardens!  Groundwork Somerville hosted "Salad Days" at Argenziano and East, while parent volunteers at Brown hosted an end of the year Harvest Party with a variety of leafy greens! Meanwhile, the Farm to School Project worked with elementary schoolers at Brown, Winter Hill, and Kennedy School to start their gardens. 5th Graders at Kennedy learned how to use basic permaculture principals to plan a garden, and explored ways we can improve and replenish soil. 2nd graders became experts in cherry tomato varieties thanks to Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds  who generously donated over 75 different seeds!! 1st graders continued their study of "Sylvia's Spinach" by learning how to plant spinach seeds, ...

We’ve had a busy Fall season in the gardens! This week will wrap up the final, yet very important, chore of “putting the garden to bed” ! Parent volunteers, students, and educators have been hard at work since the beginning of school, harvesting and tasting a variety of vegetables, saving tomato seeds, and planting garlic! Now it’s time to say goodnight to the gardens, as we learn about the importance of cover crops, mulching, and how some plants survive during the winter. Lower elementary school students have been engaged and directly involved in making sure our gardens stay healthy over the winter until we wake them up in the Spring! We also celebrated our annual Corn Shucking and Local Harvest Day ! With the help of community partner volunteers (Groundwork, Shape Up, UMass), parents, and students we shucked over 3,000 ears of corn before school even started! The children enjoyed the fruits of their labor with a local beef burger for lunch! Corn Shucking is always a favorite day ...

Our fall gardening season is off and running! The Brown School had a fantastic harvest party during the first week back.  Eighty students participated in the event (two 3rd grade classes, one 4th grade class, and one 5th grade class).     The students picked carrots, cucumbers, arugula, basil, and tomatoes and got to taste them straight from the garden (after some washing of course).  They loved it and had lots of greats answers when we talked about seeds, the plant lifecycle, and what vegetables need to grow.   Content provided by Shawn Szturma, Brown School Garden Steward and Parent.

Spring is here and garden parties are happening in all the Somerville School Gardens! A few weeks ago, the Brown School held a Garden Party to kick off their school garden season. Under blue skies, students and their families turned soil and prepped the beds for planting. They also plant beans, snap peas, arugula, spinach, carrots, kale, Swiss chard, and lettuce.  Everything looks great and they should see their first seeds sprouting in less than a week! Content and photos provided by Shawn Szturma, Brown School Garden Parent Volunteer.

Garden Facts Size: 128 square feet (3 beds in the upper tot lot, 2 beds in the lower tot lot) Best thing about the garden: It's visible from the street and tot lots Plants: vegetables (tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, chard, lettuce, zucchini, squash, cucumbers), herbs (basil, cilantro, dill, thyme, parsley), flowers (zinnias, nasturtiums) Maintenance: Karyn Novakowski, Farm to School Project Director and Lauren Mancini, SPS FNS Director How is the garden used: outdoor classroom for students from the Winter Hill School, "E" inc afterschool program, lunch time open garden hours The Winter Hill School Garden has had a very busy spring and summer. The school's principal, Chad Mazza, is enthusiastic about the newly planted school garden and believes it "engages all the senses" while "increasing student knowledge of agriculture, seasonality and eating whole foods through hands-on experiences." A planting party early in the spring, kicked off ...