Students at York River Public School have learned about growing food, all while giving back to the community.
Teachers Mike Love and Jennifer Humen oversaw the growth of food in a special class. The North Hastings Community Cupboard says they received 35 pounds of fresh produce from the class. Humen says that the Cupboard isn’t always able to provide fresh produce for their clients, and the students enjoyed giving back to the community.
The produce was grown using food growing towers. The towers include cylinders for growing food, a light system to mimic sunlight, and a 20-gallon reservoir at the bottom for water and fertilizer. Love says they had a unit for years and did not have specific parts for it. They connected with Community Cupboard, which had some units of its own. Humen says they are grateful for Community Cupboard’s trust in the students when lending the units to them.
Humen and Love say the experience was a great one for the kids, who were able to see how the growing process works from seed to vegetable. Students would plant seeds, monitor their growth, fill the towers with water, and then pick and bag the produce created as part of their class work. Humen says some kids said the produce was better than restaurant quality.