Rockville Centre's Covert school shows its green thumb

A ribbon-cutting ceremony held on June 13 marked the official opening of William S. Covert Elementary School’s greenhouse.

Donated by the Rockville Centre Education Foundation, the greenhouse will give students the opportunity to take a hands-on approach to learning about ecology and healthy eating.

“I like to do things that are out of the box,” said Principal Darren Raymar. “The more things you give students, the more they can decide for themselves what they like. It’s a healthy thing and it’s great.”

The money for the greenhouse was awarded to the school in 2011, but it took nearly a year to put it together, said Patti Mullooly, a teacher assistant at the school and co-head of the greenhouse committee. The school received $4,000, which covered the cost of the greenhouse and some related teaching materials for both this academic year and next.

Though the greenhouse was just completed in April, the students and teachers have made quick use of it.

Most of the plants began as seeds in the classroom, and after they were grown in the greenhouse, they were planted in the beds surrounding it.

“We had a salad bar lunch today,” Mullooly said. “The lettuce we used in the lunch was planted in the greenhouse. The kids loved it.”

Mullooly explained the many academic uses the greenhouse could have in the future.

“We’re hoping ... to possibly have a horticulturalist come in and talk about composting and things like that,” Mullooly said. “Hopefully [the program] will get bigger next year.”

After the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Raymar announced the winner of a competition to name the new greenhouse. Among the finalists were titles like, “Nature’s Nursery,” and “The Great House of Green,” but the winning choice came from Ryan Mallay, a 4th grader, who thought of, “The Plant Palace.”

“I like having it because we can grow healthy food,” Ryan, 10, said of the greenhouse. “The lettuce was great.”

Ryan’s friend, James Berry, agreed that the greenhouse was a good addition to the school.

“We watered the plants and went inside the greenhouse to check the temperature,” James said. “I like that we can grow our own plants and vegetables.”