Students at Little Falls Community High School are growing their corn and eating it, too.
Also, their tomatoes, watermelons, grapes, squash, onions, carrots and a whole lot more.
A unique class, titled Garden to Table, is being offered at the high school for the second straight year. Under the guidance of Industrial Technology and Agriculture Teacher Matt Petrowitz and Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher Julie Slettom, the students are experiencing a bountiful harvest this fall. All of it was grown by them or their schoolmates at the school garden, located on the Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls campus.
“We plant it in the spring and then we harvest it in the fall,” Petrowitz said.
Petrowitz said his portion of the class actually started about nine or 10 years ago. He made a connection with the Sisters to keep their garden going, which he estimated has been producing for about 130 years.
Prior to last school year, all of the food went to the school kitchens to be implemented into the lunch program. However, after Sister Ruth, retired and the school took full control of the program, they decided to switch things up.
Not only are the students planting and harvesting the garden — which is about the size of two football fields — they are also learning what to do with it after it’s out of the ground, or off the vine, whatever the case may be.
That’s where Slettom comes in.
Petrowitz handles the agricultural, gardening portion of the class. Last year, Slettom partnered with him to teach the students what they can do with the fruits — and vegetables — of their labor.
“We’re going to talk about everything from eating it fresh in different ways and some unique ways of trying it to how to preserve it,” Slettom said. “We’ll talk about freezing, the proper way to can it, we bought some dehydrators so we’re going to dry it, maybe make some soup mix out of some of the vegetables.”
She said her goal is to show the students how easy it is to grow and eat more fresh, homegrown foods versus canned products, which are often packed with preservatives, artificial coloring, and more. It is something she said is not only easy, but also economical and has more nutritional value.
The class is offered to students in grades 9 – 12. A grant from the Little Falls Education Association helped them buy some of the equipment for the preservation and canning portion of the lessons.
Slettom said even she and Petrowitz were caught off guard by the interest the class garnered heading into its second year.
“We did not expect the enrollment — enthusiasm that we had,” she said. “We planned for 20 – 30 kids for this year. When she came and said, ‘Well, I kind of bumped your schedules around. You’re going to have 90.’ He and I about fell over.”
On the first day of class, Slettom said they brought the students out to the garden in what felt like more of a field trip type of setting. They got a chance to walk the rows and identify different fruits and vegetables that were growing. After that, it was time too get to work.
They spent their class time harvesting all of it by hand. Slettom said they planned to have everything picked by the end of September. Petrowitz and fellow Agriculture Instructor Gabi Molitor will be back in April or May to plant next year’s crop.
“Once we’re done getting everything harvested and we’ve got the ground cleared and they can till it up, ready for next spring, then we’re going to put the kids to work in the high tunnel,” Slettom said. “We’re going to plant some cool weather crops. Some more lettuce, some more radishes, maybe some kale, things that can tolerate a little bit cooler.”
Slettom said the kids are learning important skills they can use for the rest of their lives. Some are putting it to good use already.
They are encouraged to try the foods as they’re working on the harvest. Some have even taken some fresh veggies or fruit home to share with their families.
“We’re just trying to reinstill some of our agricultural roots back in some of these kids,” Slettom said. “Some of the kids have kind of decided, ‘Hmmm… this isn’t for me.’ But there are other ones that are really liking it. They’re very much hands-on learners.”
She said, in the early days of class, they were an inquisitive bunch. When they came across a tomato that didn’t look right, they asked why it didn’t look right and if it was still OK to eat.
On Sept. 14, the students were pulling cornstalks. They were told to pull back the silk and husk to check if there was a viable cob of corn. If there was, it was placed in a burlap sack and brought back to school.
“I’m going to have them, actually, roast it and we’re going to do like a Mexican corn, and do like a bean and corn salsa, something that they maybe haven’t had,” Slettom said.
Using cucumbers from the school garden, Slettom said one of her goals is to have every student in the class take home their own jar of dill pickles that they canned themselves.
Along the way, they’re also learning about different ways to grow the fruits and vegetables.
Slettom said the Sisters are organic farmers. They don’t use pesticides and only apply natural fertilizers. During the harvest, Petrowitz is explaining different kinds of irrigation, and driving the point home that everything out there is a living being that needs water to survive.
Ultimately, Slettom feels it’s a great way to get the kids outdoors and out from behind a screen.
“You can get a lot of helpful hints on YouTube, we all know that,” she said. “But there’s such a thing as doing it yourself. You’ve got to actually get out, get your hands dirty and learn how to do some of this stuff.”
Sheila Watercott, who works at the district in a grant funded position focused on youth substance abuse prevention, is also involved with the Garden to Table class. She said total wellness is a big part of substance abuse prevention, which is why the class appeals to her.
“We’ll be doing a lot of things throughout October to really highlight what goes on in the school garden and how much our school family gets involved and how much this is actually used in our school lunches,” Watercott said.
A lot of the food will also be brought to the elementary schools for lunches and breakfasts. She plans to bring in photos and videos of the high school students working in the garden to give the younger kids and even parents and staff members a better understanding of where their food comes from while stressing the importance of healthy eating.
“All of this is so exciting,” Watercott said.
Slettom said that enthusiasm was shared by many of the students in the class. Even during the first week of school, she said she heard about kids telling their parents about how much they love the class.
Part of what makes the class great, for them, is just the opportunity to be outside.
“I know so much about the health benefits of being in nature and being outdoors, so it’s just a win-win,” Watercott said. “It’s just so good for mental health; it’s so good for physical health. You’re getting exercise without even realizing you’re getting exercise.”
“They love being outside,” Slettom said. “This beats being in a classroom any day. Fresh air, you’re with your friends, you’re working in the garden; what a way to learn.”
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