P.S. 20 Keeps It Green This Weekend

The plant sale taking place at P.S. 20 this weekend may look like a simple fundraiser, but the work the students put in beforehand may lead to a more environmentally conscious generation of young residents.

The fundraiser, which takes place today at Madiba (195 Dekalb Ave.) from 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m, is the first major activity that P.S. 20 Farms is doing. The program uses plants from the school’s indoor greenhouse on the second floor, and incorporates farming and gardening into the curriculum for first and third grade classrooms.

The event was largely created through Zachary Pickens, a server at Madiba who also created the restaurant’s rooftop garden, as well as several parents at the school.

“This was originally supposed to be just a Mother’s Day plant sale, but we had so many left over that we needed to add a separate event,” said Jennifer Mittelstadt, an Associate Professor at Rutgers University and co-organizer of the event.

The plant sale takes a well-rounded approach to teaching. Students did their own compost and learned how to build good soil through Pickens, and through the science partners at Brooklyn College, took farming and gardens as a primary theme throughout the school curriculum.

“It’s been incorporated in all the classes from science to music,” said Mittelstadt. “Farming and garden has been an integral part of the curriculum for these classes over the last six months.” 

An initial fundraiser for P.S. 20 Farms took place in December. After the PTA contributed additional funding, Pickens joined the program last February.

With an indoor greenhouse on the second floor, the student alsos took part in a “Seed to Salad” program, where they made their own vegetables from seeds and local chefs cooked the final ingredients.

“It was really exciting for the kids because the chefs came to the school in their white gear,” said Pickens. “They made what they were eating, so it just brought the experience full circle.” 

Since the program has started, P.S. 20 Farms has also received a grant from Grow NYC, allowing them to add a rooftop garden and expand their greenhouse to an adjacent park through the donation of green space.

In addition to the added plants and green space, Mittelstadt said that the program could also have lasting effects that go far beyond the students time in the program

“Apart from the bioscience and knowledge of the environment, we think this might play an integral role in their professional futures,” said Mittelstadt. “They might start asking themselves whether they want to be chefs or farmers or scientists, so they’re being exposed to a lot of different fields that can create a positive change in the way we look at food.”