Erie Farm to School

🌿🌞 Seed-Starting Season Is Here! 🌱 Don’t skip the most important step—read your seed packets! Pro tip: Count backwards on a calendar from our last frost date (in Erie, PA, it's around mid-May) and schedule your seed starting days now. Future you (and your garden) will thank you 🌼

📦 Check the seed packet and look for wording like:

“Start indoors 6–8 weeks before last frost”

“Sow indoors 4 weeks before transplanting”

“Direct sow after danger of frost”

🌿 Different veggies = different timelines. Starting too early can lead to leggy, stressed plants. Starting too late means missing valuable growing time.

🫑 Onions, Peppers & Eggplant: Often 8–10 weeks before last frost

🍅 Tomatoes: Usually 6–8 weeks before last frost

🥬 Lettuce & Brassicas (Broccoli, Kale, Collards): About 4–6 weeks before last frost

🌤️ Pro Tip:
✨ Hardening off seedlings a week before transplanting helps them toughen up for the garden.

Happy planting, Erie gardeners! 🌻🌿 🌱

Our garden club chefs have been busy in the kitchen! 🥕 Students practiced their knife skills while learning why carrots are such a powerful (and delicious) vegetable to add to our plates.

Carrots are packed with **beta-carotene**, which our bodies convert to vitamin A to support healthy vision and immune function. They’re also a great source of **fiber** for digestive health and contain antioxidants that help protect our cells. Naturally sweet and full of crunch, carrots are a student favorite—especially when turned into carrot fries!

**Easy Air Fryer Carrot Fries (Student-Approved!)**
1️⃣ Wash and peel carrots, then slice into thin fry-shaped sticks.
2️⃣ Toss with 2 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp olive oil, and pinches of salt to your liking. Add or modify any other seasonings that you like.
3️⃣ Spread in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
4️⃣ Cook at **400°F for 10–12 minutes**, shaking halfway through, until tender with lightly crispy edges. Check periodically, as all air fryers are different.
5️⃣ Season with everything bagel seasoning, or dip in honey for a sweet twist! 🍯

Healthy, simple, and delicious - Learning made easy with nutritious treats 🧡

Yesterday at Perry Elementary, the EPS Wellness team held our first Anchor program with nutrition interns from Gannon U. For those who braved the cold, we got to make and eat comforting and delicious sweet potato pancakes, participate in “Fruit & Veggie Fitness”, and play a name game. Two lucky students even got to take home all the ingredients to recreate sweet potato pancakes at home. If we told you that you can hardly tell these pancakes have vegetables in them, would you try this recipe at home? Keep eating your Vitamin A and balanced carbohydrates for a healthy life!

We’re still soaking in the good vibes from Seed to Market summer camp last week! ☀️ Here, we’re pictured with Molly Tarvin at Mercyhurst University learning about their garden practices!