On a Manhattan School Rooftop, Hydroponic Greens for Little Gardeners

Sidsel Robards, left, and Manuela Zamora, founders of the greenhouse atop the Manhattan School for Children. Photo by Nicole Bengiveno/The New York Times.

The project is about making science both accessible and exciting “in a natural way”

By Kerri MacDonald
New York Times
November 22, 2010

Excerpt:

Shakira Castronovo stood in a classroom at the Manhattan School for Children on West 93rd Street on a recent afternoon and hushed a squirming group of kindergartners perched around a blue carpet.

“Where do you think I picked this?” she asked, pinching a leafy-looking thing between her index finger and thumb. “It was picked fresh just few minutes ago.”

Someone wondered if it had come from the recess yard. Maybe from a farmers market? A minute later, a little girl in pink came up with the answer. “Greenhouse!” she shrieked as her hand shot into the air.

“This is called mizuna,” Ms. Castronovo said, enunciating the new word. “And we are finally ready to harvest some of our lettuces.”

Mizuna? “It’s the kind of thing that adults put with other lettuces when they have a salad,” she explained. “But you can still take a nibble.”

Read the complete article here.