Dexter Farm to School has had a very busy fall season and we are so thankful for all of the wonderful students that have participated in planting, harvesting, processing and cooking with us!
Garden News:
Creekside flex students harvested the last of the veggies from the school gardens this week. So far this year, students have harvested over 370 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables. Students have harvested late fall veggies that included carrots, rutabagas, pumpkins, lettuce and Swiss chard. They have prepared and cooked mini eggplant sandwiches, veggie quesadillas, fresh carrots and dip, salsa, pumpkin cookies, raspberry smoothies, and veggie pizza. Yum!
Fall is also the time of the year to prepare our garden beds for winter and this year we enlisted the help of Dexter NHS students to help with the process and they were amazing! They cleaned out garden beds and incorporated compost into our soil to bring back much needed nutrients and microorganisms for spring planting. Flex students also planted garlic and will mulch the asparagus beds and strawberries in the coming days to help protect these plants from frigid temperatures.
Cafeteria News:
Some of the veggies that are harvested in our gardens go directly to our school cafeterias. Dexter Farm to School has an amazing relationship with Dexter Food and Nutrition and we are always looking for creative ways to incorporate fresh and local fruits and veggies into Dexter cafeterias.
The Farm to School Program has sold over 45 pounds of fresh produce to Dexter Food and Nutrition. Vegetables like tomatillos, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, lettuce, radishes, Swiss chard and bok choi made delicious appearances at Mill Creek, Wylie, Dexter High School and Creekside cafeterias. Dexter cafeterias also featured local apples, nectarines, plums and squash as cafeteria samples or items available for purchase.
As we move into November and colder temperatures, The Dexter Farm to School Program will focus on cooking with garden vegetables that were processed or frozen and other projects like composting, hydroponics and seed saving. We are so grateful for all of the students, teachers, and community members that make this program possible and we are looking forward to this season of Thanks and Giving. Enjoy!