In keeping with the theme of “plants we eat,” a group of teachers came together last Friday for the final edition of our Teaching in the Garden PD series this year. The focus: Kitchen Botany. We welcomed Lauren, our favorite garden educator, back from maternity leave, and had a chance to explore Brooklyn in bloom as leaf and flower buds were bursting out all over the garden. We also learned how to make germination necklaces and garbage gardens, and can’t wait to bring these ideas into the classroom! What a great way to wrap-up the series and officially welcome spring. Check out some photos from our nature walk below.

Spring has sprung at the Bed-Stuy Fresh Garden, which will soon be undergoing a major transformation. On Thursday, students attended an evening visioning session with the Brooklyn Parks Commissioner, parents, staff and community members to go on record with their vision and plans for the future NYC park that will be adjacent to the school. Naturally, the main concern of everyone present was the preservation and rebuilding of the bountiful Bed-Stuy Fresh School Garden. Students and teachers voiced concerns about park rules, noise, bathrooms, and food security as the project enters into the design phase. We are so proud of the 373K students for showing up and speaking out about what the garden means to them and how important it is to the whole school. This will be the last growing season for Bed-Stuy Fresh as we know it, but something tell us that these students will be unstoppable once the new site is ready. Our biggest thanks and praises to all of the teachers and students who turned a vacant lot into a ever-expanding small farm. The work continues! We stand with you!

The students at 176X have been pickling! They recently wrote us… “thought you might appreciate a pic of our first attempt at pickling. It is so simple and they came out great!” Thanks for sharing!

How do you like your eggs? I like mine fresh from the chicken coop at 754X, prepared in a deviled egg salad and wrapped in a fresh lettuce leaf that I cut myself from the NFT hydroponic system in Mr. Masefield’s classroom.

Seem like a school-yard to plate dream? This is what a group of D75 teachers got to do at this week’s Hydroponics PD at the J.M. Rapport School for Career Development in the Bronx. They also learned about different kinds of hydroponic systems like Nutrient Film Technique (NFT); Ebb and Flow; Wick; Water Culture; Drip; and Aeroponic, and learned how to take care of them. Thank you Mr. Masefield and Principal Daniel Hoehn for hosting us!

Happy D75 teachers after an inspirational day of learning about hydroponics and hanging with the chickens

Maddie checks the water level and refills the Tower Garden reservoir

Fresh herbs hanging to dry

Egg washing station. Fresh eggs collected from the school hens get washed before being cooked. Students package the rest and stamp the boxes to be sent home.

Egg salad prep. Safety first.

Side of the chicken coop

Some of the famous 754X chickens, emerging for their meet and greet with the teachers

Close-up of one of the plants in the vine-crop system showing clay pellets and rock wool as the growing mediums

Roots of a pac choy plant, close relative of the bok choy, in the NFT system

This is how we feel when we think about spring….

Greg in the garden with the daffodils

Our own Bed Stuy Fresh garden at 373K got some love on Grow to Learn’s instagram page this week. Check it out!

Here is a photo of a flourishing indoor soil grow lab at 721Q. As you can see, they are growing both food and flowers- and the hyacinths smell amazing! This classroom also has a series of aquaponics stations with individual beta fish. Thank you teacher Julie Tuifel for the mini tour. We didn’t want to leave!

The Grow to Learn Mini Grant deadline is approaching. October 26 is the last day to submit your garden grant for $500-$2000. Don’t miss out!