Lori Farber wants your trash.
He digs not only for old trash, but also for compost, the kind of waste that can saturate the soil with the rich nutrients needed to nourish the gardens at Milton L. Olive Middle School in Wyandanch.
A Wyandansha resident recently started fundraising for compost, which is organic waste like leaves and food scraps that can be recycled back into the soil.
Farber, who runs the nonprofit environmental group Starflower Experiences, said he helped plant the garden at the high school in 2014, but it was demolished this summer because it was near a renovated baseball field. .
The garden is moving, and its beds need rebuilding. School district officials did not respond to requests for comment on the draft.
Farber, 68, began assessing the need for renovations and concluded that more compost was needed. With the help of high school students working for him through the Suffolk County Labor Department, he built a lidded bin with two large bins inside for dumping manure.
Later, he and the teens go around the neighborhood handing out flyers in both English and Spanish asking for fertilizer.
"We've been trying to get people from all over the area to donate, but we need more," said Apriana Amador, one of the 15-year-old students.
Farber said he wants to expand the community and provide residents with a kitchen bin to collect scraps. She also wants to work with the school kitchen to get more donations and possibly get a local business to donate leftovers.
Collection materials mean you don't have to buy them, reducing the need for food and water for artificial gardens.
"Making our own is not only a good learning process, it's good for us," says Farber. “In addition to removing nutrients from the waste stream, compost is the best material for your plants, as it adds organic matter, adds nutrients, and adds moisture.
Karen Kirschbaum, coordinator of West Suffolk State's Healthy Schools Initiative, assisted with the composting effort.
She donated leaves and kitchen scraps and said she will continue to do so because she believes gardening and composting are valuable tools for teaching students.
"Whether it's collecting compost or understanding the science behind composting, there are many valuable lessons to learn," adds Kirschbaum.
Christopher Turner, 15, who's also with Farber, said he's realized the importance of gardens to sustainability, so that people have "a better, more direct source of food, if you don't have to go to the store. They don't have money or transportation." .
School board member Lacha Walker said Farber has brought fruits and vegetables from the garden to board meetings before, which she calls "huge assets."
He added, "Teaching our young generation agricultural skills is very important because you don't usually see black and brown people living in areas like ours unless you live on a farm." .
Lori Farber wants your trash.
He digs not only for old trash, but also for compost, the kind of waste that can saturate the soil with the rich nutrients needed to nourish the gardens at Milton L. Olive Middle School in Wyandanch.
A Wyandansha resident recently started fundraising for compost, which is organic waste like leaves and food scraps that can be recycled back into the soil.
Farber, who runs the nonprofit environmental group Starflower Experiences, said he helped plant the garden at the high school in 2014, but it was demolished this summer because it was near a renovated baseball field. .
The garden is moving, and its beds need rebuilding. School district officials did not respond to requests for comment on the draft.
Farber, 68, began assessing the need for renovations and concluded that more compost was needed. With the help of high school students working for him through the Suffolk County Labor Department, he built a lidded bin with two large bins inside for dumping manure.
Later, he and the teens go around the neighborhood handing out flyers in both English and Spanish asking for fertilizer.
"We've been trying to get people from all over the area to donate, but we need more," said Apriana Amador, one of the 15-year-old students.
Farber said he wants to expand the community and provide residents with a kitchen bin to collect scraps. She also wants to work with the school kitchen to get more donations and possibly get a local business to donate leftovers.
Collection materials mean you don't have to buy them, reducing the need for food and water for artificial gardens.
"Making our own is not only a good learning process, it's good for us," says Farber. “In addition to removing nutrients from the waste stream, compost is the best material for your plants, as it adds organic matter, adds nutrients, and adds moisture.
Karen Kirschbaum, coordinator of West Suffolk State's Healthy Schools Initiative, assisted with the composting effort.
She donated leaves and kitchen scraps and said she will continue to do so because she believes gardening and composting are valuable tools for teaching students.
"Whether it's collecting compost or understanding the science behind composting, there are many valuable lessons to learn," adds Kirschbaum.
Christopher Turner, 15, who's also with Farber, said he's realized the importance of gardens to sustainability, so that people have "a better, more direct source of food, if you don't have to go to the store. They don't have money or transportation." .
School board member Lacha Walker said Farber has brought fruits and vegetables from the garden to board meetings before, which she calls "huge assets."
He added, "Teaching our young generation agricultural skills is very important because you don't usually see black and brown people living in areas like ours unless you live on a farm." .
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