Manning’s School showing the way in agriculture
THE DONATION of a greenhouse to The Manning’s School by Food For The Poor some three years set the school on a path of sustainable vegetable production, while also providing a platform for introducing students to new and emerging aspects of agricultural development.
Since then, under the guidance of Sharna-Gay Brown-Davis, acting head of the agriculture department at the Westmoreland-based school, the love, appreciation and understanding of good agricultural practices have really grown, with benefits to all members of the school population well documented.
“I’m looking at some of the lettuce I just got from the greenhouse and all the tomatoes, and it’s really selling. The greenhouse has been very successful and we really appreciate what Food For The Poor has done, and there is sustainability with this project,” boasted vice-principal Megan Berry over the phone.
“Currently in the greenhouse, we have a lot of lettuce, plummy tomato, and now we are doing a little experiment with some corn,” Brown-Davis added. “Half of the greenhouse is tomatoes and half is lettuce. From last week we started to reap lettuce, so we have the iceberg and the Romaine lettuce – those are in demand.”
Cultivation used to be done in line with the demand for crops from the canteen. However, since last September when the school divested operation of its canteen to a concessionaire, teachers, parents and other members of the community have continued to support the informal ‘farmers’ market’ held every Friday during crop time. In addition, the school is looking into supplying lettuce to the canteen operator.
The practical experience garnered from the onhand training sessions in the greenhouse, which is used as teaching tool for students doing agriculture science and environmental science, has embolden Brown-Davis to expand crop production to broaden its open field operations, such as with the corn.
In keeping with the school’s agricultural programme, first- and second-formers are introduced to seedling production and planting directly into the soil in the greenhouse. At third form, students get more involved in open field operations and are more directly involved in crop care activities. In keeping with the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) curriculum, fourth-formers do practical poultry production, going on to do crop production in fifth form.
“They (students) should be able to plant a root crop, a leaf crop and fruit crop – essentially, they must be able to plant and care for at least a fruit and a vegetable crop,” the acting head of the agriculture department explained.
Since the school gave up the canteen operations, the poultry flock has been reduced to 100 birds, down from the 500 that used to be reared, also for supplying the lunch menu. However, sale from the poultry as well as vegetables operation is still used to buy seeds and restock the coop, ensuring sustainability of the project. Students are rostered to operate the drip irrigation system, with a full-time farm hand on board to ensure that the birds and crops are cared for during the holidays.
Continued viability of The Manning’s School seems assured, given the strong support it receives from teachers, students, their parents and friends of the institution who continue to buy from it, prompting Brown-Davis to say, “The farm still going strong.”