Fun With Food

About 15 to 20 children can participate July 29-31 in the Apple Seeds Plant to Plate Journey, described by Apple Seeds Inc. executive director Mary Thompson as "fun, interactive and inspirational."

The program is a free, three-day camp at the Fayetteville Public Library where youngsters will be empowered by nutrition and healthy food options, and it is open to children who have completed third through fifth grades, Thompson says. The Apple Seeds Plant to Plate Journey is "a partnership with the Fayetteville Public Library to provide the youth of our community a hands-on experience exploring where food comes from, how to grow it and how to prepare it," she adds.

"The purpose is to build excitement and curiosity around growing food and preparing it. It will lay the first seeds of gardening skills, but most importantly, it will build an understanding and appreciation for farm fresh food," Thompson says.

The camp will take the students through the stages of planting seeds, gathering food from a fresh harvest and preparing a colorful snack from locally grown produce, she says. For the first day of camp, the students will walk to the farmers' market to meet the farmers, explore the season's bounty of fresh food and collect the items called for on their recipe, she notes.

"They will learn about the rainbow of colorful food that provides a well-rounded diet and choose these foods for their plates," she says.

On the second day, the kids will "put on their aprons and begin to assemble their freshly harvested ingredients into a colorful plate of food to enjoy together," Thompson says. The students will learn the basic skills of planting seeds and growing food on the final day, and they will take home their living salad bowl to continue to grow and harvest later at home, she says.

Thompson says she hopes the students will leave this camp with new skills to grow plants and prepare their own snacks and be empowered to make healthier food choices.

-- Ashley Batchelor

[email protected]