New this year, courtesy of a USDA Food and Nutrition Services grant, we are installing hydroponic tower gardens! The kids are thrilled and best of all, we hope to serve the student-grown produce in the cafeteria, sharing the joy of their fresh harvest with fellow students.
The students are amazing gardeners. Just look at this progress! There are greens everywhere!
And within weeks, the kids were harvesting and tasting and thoroughly enjoying fresh, healthy salads.
With their first growing season behind them, the students are cleaning their towers and prepping for the next round. Many of the lettuce plants have “gone to seed” and the students are harvesting them for next year.
Some of their tomato plants grew to be enormous, so pulling those from the towers and separating the tower cups from the roots proved challenging. But of course they were up for the challenge and overcame with great success!
Stay-tuned for the next round of fabulous fresh student-grown produce.
2023: Fruitland Park Elementary Garden Club has joined us for another year in our gardening adventure!
The older students helped replenish the kindergarten beds, and they painted their own existing beds white. Really brightens up the area.
The students loved the inky black soil and compost, courtesy of our friends at Black Kow. Just look at the smile on her face!
As these kids know, gardening is super fun and super cool. Can’t wait to see how they grow this spring.
With fall planting season in full swing, you all went right to work, filling your beds with soil, sowing seeds and transplanting seedlings.
You also tackled the job of irrigation installation, connecting your micro sprays and automatic timer. Awesome job!
Can’t wait to watch you grow! And, of course, the harvest party. My favorite part of gardening!