Fifth grade students will soon enjoy homegrown vegetables through a new venture which integrates the study of science with a commitment to healthy living. The science classes will erect a Tower Garden on the Barnett Gathering Room patio and grow vegetables and herbs such as tomatoes, basil and lettuce. The Tower will stand at the bottom of the steps to the patio.
Donated by two Whitefield families, the Tower Garden uses aeroponic vertical gardening, a form of gardening which uses 90% less water and land than traditional gardening yet yields a 30% higher crop. The garden has 28 growing stations for a variety of plants.
“These gardens are being used on rooftops in places like New York City and Los Angeles to allow people in urban areas,” said Sharon McClellan, a Whitefield mom and nutritionist who is donating the Tower, along with Michelle Evans and her family. “Tower Gardens are also being used in countless homes and apartments for people to enjoy simple, fun gardening and have their own ‘farmers market’ and fresh produce."
“The system is really the growing system of the future,” said Carter Fawcett, fifth-grade teacher. “We thought it would be a great continuation of the wonderful garden we have at the Lower School. It also falls neatly into the scope and sequence of both the fifth and sixth-grade science curriculum.”
Students will learn how to test and balance pH in water, witness the life cycle of a plant from seed to seedling to fruit, dissect the fruits to see parts of a plant, and gain a better understanding of geotropism, or how the growth of the parts of plants relates to the force of gravity.
“This garden has so much potential. We will start with those few plants and then see what else the kids would like to plantm” said Fawcett. The garden project will begin with Mrs. Fawcett’s three fifth-grade science classes but the hope is that other grades in the Middle School will ultimately become involved.
“We are also very excited about the nutritional aspect of this program. The garden will provide the chance to reinforce the importance of healthy eating and of taking care of your body with fruits and vegetables,” said McClellan. “"We know that kids eat more fruits and vegetables when they help grow them!"
Fifth graders planted a variety of vegetable and herb seeds this week and will transplant them to the Tower Garden in about two weeks.