Lifestyles

Photo Essay: Sustainable Agriculture cultivates crops, life skills

Hannah Herbst

November 9, 2023

At the root of a community is the people in it. Typically, one student from our community is chosen to be our root. This cycle, we are taking this idea more literally and visiting the school farm with a Sustainable Agriculture (Sustag) class to learn more about the people and plants that compose it.

Ben Jacobs (Image featuring Joe Stewart): “I took Advanced Placement Environmental Science last year. I’m really just looking to further my understanding of the world around me, and doing this with my lovely pupils is awesome. We’re out here in the scorching heat as well. I’d say that Mr. Stewart definitely keeps us in line, which I like.”

Roxanne Grechman: “So far, [Sustag has] been absolutely wonderful. I’ve always loved gardening and been interested in the natural world. I’ve planted bell beans and some garlic. There’s a lot of broccoli, kale, kohlrabi and then garlic and potatoes down at the end [of the garden]. I just want to see everything grow.”

Mikey Razavi: “It’s a fun class. There’s a bit more work than I expected. I really like working on my [crop] bed. We had a farm to fork assignment where we take something from the farm and make food out of it. I used a quince.”

Ava Price: “It’s really nice to come outside and plant and clean up the [crop] beds and everything. It’s a very entertaining class. It’s not just sitting around. Currently, we are working on our class bed, which is kind of rough, and our group bed, which has a ton of weeds, so we have to pull them out.”

Jack Oliver: “I think it’s really fun to be outside here on Wednesdays and Fridays and we’re allowed to be out here in our [crop] beds. So we get some sun and new experiences. Everybody out here is really welcoming.”

Ellie Kemos: “I’ve done Sustag for two years now. And I love the class. I love being outside and being able to work with my hands. It’s much different than being on a computer screen. I feel like everyone’s always really happy out here because it’s just a break in everyone’s day, so everyone’s always upbeat. And it’s a great place to meet and work with all different kinds of people.”

Thomas Brown: “It’s a lot of hard work. I just like working out here with my friends. Right now, I’m cleaning up the garlic and the potato area.”

Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

About the Contributor

Hannah Herbst, Copy Editor

Hannah is a senior at Redwood High School and a copy editor for the Bark. She loves coxing for the rowing team, backpacking and drinking lots of coffee.