New Lebanon Elementary School celebrated Harvest of the Season: Radish Day this month! Harvest of the Season is a seasonal farm-to-school educational series that features a locally grown vegetable or fruit. In October, students celebrated the beloved carrot. Once again, a highlight of the day was New Lebanon’s school garden.
Principal Dr. Daniel Russo led students in a “radish survival activity,” engaging them in discovery as they dug into the winter soil to determine whether the radishes planted in the fall had survived a cold Connecticut winter. It was a beautiful sight! The excitement among the students was remarkable as they eagerly searched the ground for surviving radishes.
Other highlights of the day included pickling and fermenting with farmer Levi Booker from Riverbank Farm. Levi taught daikon radish preserving techniques, such as “overwintering,” as well as pickling and fermenting. Food Service Director Martha Ramkellawan and her team organized a radish tasting. Fresh and pickled watermelon radishes, procured from the Northwest CT Food Hub, were taste-tested and voted on during lunch.
Radish salads were made, art projects were crafted, and stories were shared. It was an amazing day of community, connection, learning, and fun!
