What used to be a wasteland in Bergen Beach is now a lively urban farm for public school students.
The Carol Pino Learning Farm opened in Bergen Beach last month, and is the first outdoor learning farm in the city. For starters, students at P.S. 312 will learn how to plant and harvest fruits, vegetables and herbs, but the facility will also be open to other K - 8 students so they can learn about farming and how food is grown.
"There's math, economics, engineering," said Jennifer Camilleri, the farm's on-site director. "Students will learn which produces higher yield and if it's worth planting."
The farm is part of the city's GrowNYC School Gardens, an initiative from the nonprofit Grow NYC. The program builds outdoor gardens for schools in each borough, according to Kate Belski, the director of Landscape Architecture at The Grain Collective, a Brooklyn-based landscape architectural firm that was involved in the project.
"Children are the future of the community," she said. "This will shape their worldview."
The road to creating the learning farm started nearly a decade ago and took time to complete.
"In 2016, a school team member had this idea for a garden where kids grow things and learn," said Belski. "People got really excited. It's the first urban farm to be an outdoor classroom."
The Grain Collective teamed up with the School Construction Authority to build out the farm, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start, pushing the opening by a few years.
The farm is named after Carol Pino, who was an active member of the Bergen Beach community and a parent coordinator at P.S. 312, a role she served for over a decade, according to District 22 Superintendent Julia Bove.
"She was an active member in her community and would never miss [any of the] neighborhood meetings," Bove said. "From the first year she started as a parent coordinator, Carol quickly became well-liked and was a loved member to the families of PS 312. She would often answer calls from families at all hours of the night, including weekends!"
The 1.5 acre farm includes a greenhouse and four gardens. There is an herb garden with thyme, cilantro and lavender. The vegetable garden grows cucumbers, kale and tomatoes.
Several types of flowers are part of the farm, so bees can pollinate. Although some of the fruit-bearing trees, like the peach tree, will take several years to produce edible fruit, the farm received apple trees from Vermont so students could learn about harvesting fruit sooner.
Shortly after the learning farm opened, students participating in I.S. 78 Roy H. Mann's Summer Rising program began to visit for lessons, according to Camilleri. The farm will open its doors to any public school in the five boroughs.
"There is a process for arranging trips year-round, and during all seasons," Superintendent Bove said. "Classes will occur rain or shine and will take place throughout the week."
