Schools

Rippowam Cisqua Launches New Teaching Garden

The sustainable garden offers academic opportunities and provides food for students and teachers.

From history, to world culture, to sustainability and Shakespeare, the new organic garden at the offers expansive opportunities for academic lessons—or just a breath of fresh air to its students.

"It's really nice to smell the fresh air, it smells nice and it's great to be out here in the fresh air instead of the hot classrooms," admitted Paul Mercedes, a student who was sketching pink and white flowers for art class in the garden this week.

Teachers, administrators and parents celebrated the official unveiling Monday of what they say is one of the most ambitious organic gardens in tri-state area to be used as a teaching tool for students and families.

Find out what's happening in Bedford-Katonahwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A group of parents, with the support of the parent association and the school's administration, created the flower, vegetable and fruit garden under the guidance of current parent Liz Taggart, owner of in Bedford.

The garden measures approximately the size of a soccer field and features several unique components offering teaching opportunities in math, nutrition and these other areas:

  • “The Hard Rock Café” is an outdoor classroom consisting of a large circle of rocks, with one boulder at the end for the teacher to conduct classes in a Socratic fashion. Students can view the whole garden as they work, and art classes use the space to inspire creativity.
  • “The World Is Our Family” is a series of beds featuring foods indigenous to countries on every continent.
  • Opportunities for scientific inquiry: Students will learn about rotation planting methods and how to leave the soil in better condition with each growing season.
  • “The Shakespeare Garden” is filled with roses, poppies, peonies, wormwood, and many other herbs that are referenced in the Bard’s works. Along with this garden, “The Writers’ Circle” is being planted, which highlights contemporary authors that students encounter in class. Students will be encouraged to find references to herbs, flowers, or plants in books written by their favorite authors that could then become part of the next season’s plantings.

Food from the garden will be used in school lunches to encourage healthy eating habits and scraps will be composted to provide fertilizer for the garden, said Matthew Nespole, head of the school.

The driving force behind the garden was a group of mothers including Taggart, Diana Rice, Anna Lee, Patty Grunebaum, Jill Brooke, Catherine Shelbred, Melissa Fleming, Diana Knoblauch, Jennifer Madrid, Nicole Giroux, and Carolyn Gilbert.

Find out what's happening in Bedford-Katonahwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Click on the video for a peek at the garden, along with interviews with students, parents and administrators.


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