Allan Appel photo
Anastasia Saez digging in with Denyia Miller and Mary Ann Moran.
Anastasia Saez had indeed planted a potato before, but it was only a virtual one in the kids’ video game Minecraft.
On a sunny Tuesday morning not only did Mary Ann Moran help her plant the real thing, she learned how to deploy a nifty bulber to make a hole for it in the soil; she added bone meal for plant growth; she deftly handled a soil-aerating worm – absolutely without exclaiming “yuck” – and even helped spread straw across the new potato beds to keep the sun from creating a chemical that might damage the growing plants.
All that fun combined with hands-on science learning unfolded at one of New Haven’s unique gardens, the Clinton Avenue Community and School garden, about 20 capacious raised beds, some already planted also with cold-resistant beets, radishes, and carrots, that gracefully spread out behind the 470-student-strong K‑8 school in Fair Haven.
Long-time community activist Mary Ann Moran and others helped to start the garden as a community enterprise back in 2012 under the umbrella of the New Haven Land Trust.
When the various Land Trust gardens along with New Haven Farms became Gather New Haven, the number of beds were expanded, high school kids helped build them, and the Board of Ed became involved especially in the last few years through the intervention of a STEM-minded new principal at Clinton Avenue School, Dr. Jamie Coady, now in her third year.
The result is a close to year-round garden where kids learn, neighbors from nearby Quinnipiac Terrace can and do walk over and pick their own fresh vegetables, chard, rhubarb, and raspberries in season. The garden, with bright new picnic tables, sculptures, and welcoming walkways is increasingly becoming a community space, said Coady.
As the kids and their teachers planted with the Clinton garden manager Folly Delgado, who had brought swiss chard, bok choy, and beets, and with Moran, who is now the coordinator of Gather’s eight Fair Haven gardens, Coady reflected that when she first had arrived at the school and took in the garden, she saw a great opportunity to build a program.
She also appreciated Moran, Sally Esposito, Delgado and the core of dedicated volunteers, who had first created the garden because the particular corner of Fair Haven was a fresh vegetable “desert.”
That is the case no longer. Each year the Clinton beds produce about 1,200 pounds of vegetables for area neighbors, Moran estimated, and much more.
Every Tuesday at least four classes with their teachers from the K‑8 school cycle through organized planting and garden care lessons often in coordination with the classroom science units on, for example, the parts of plants, rooting systems, and photosynthesis.
“During Covid,” said Assistant Principal Patty Gatenbein, “it also became a social/emotional haven” where the kids were able to take their masks off when they began to return to the building.
The school administration under Coady has shown its appreciation buying bright blue “Garden Fairy” T‑shirts for Moran, Esposito, Delgado, and company.
Although the worms the kids were discovering nearly stole the show Tuesday morning, the planting proceeded and another second grade class came out.
They all donned gloves – use of gloves along with masks started with Covid – picked up any litter on the garden walkways, and then had their turn with the red and black potatoes.
Aleksey Juarez said he particularly liked the hole digging, but the worms are the best David Reyes-Ortiz averred, whereas the bone meal smelled like poop.
“Why do we have bugs?” asked Deniya Miller.
Folly Delgado, on the right, readying the kids to weed one of the school garden beds
“They help the potatoes grow,” replied a busy Moran. “It’s all connected.”
“How many potatoes will we get?” asked Delgado.
“Ten thousand,” one of the kid gardeners called out.
“Not that many,” said one of the adult gardeners. “More likely 70 pounds.”
“And when you come back [next week],” said Sally Esposito, “there will be a fence [around the potato beds] against the skunks.”
“Did you ever see so many little girls picking up worms?” Moran marveled. “First they yelled and screamed, and now they all want one.”
Over at the satellite garden by the Fair Haven Library, which Moran also supervises, 380 pounds of vegetables were produced last year, she added.
Principal Coady in the garden
No word if there were any skunks lurking there.
“It’s just taken off,” said Coady, with the kids learning where their food comes from, they can eat the fruit of their labor till June, “and then they come back in the fall and we have a harvest celebration.”
The first year after the pandemic the school also staged its graduation ceremonies, Coady said, fittingly, in the garden, among the healthy growing plants and flowers.
“I want to tie us in more and more and celebrate with our community,” she said.
Last year's Clinton garden-hosted graduation.
Have a favorite garden around town that you’d like this vegetable-flower correspondent to check out and write about? Send an email to [email protected] or leave a comment below with details.
And see below for other recent Independent articles by New Haven’s many gardens and gardeners.
Nature bathing and outdoor activities and gardening are extremely beneficial for mental health and reduce depression and anxiety and build community ties. For students it has the added benefit of helping them learn science like biology and ecology and where their food comes from and may help them to eat healthier foods.
We need more school and community gardens and outdoor time.