Bloomberg Philanthropies Youth Climate Action Fund Micro-Grant Report

“Greenhouse for Growth” at Zinsser Park

Sasha Fuller and Eden Greenberg

Vision

• The greenhouse will serve as an opportunity to provide local, organic food throughout the year to Hastings gardeners.

• It will also be an opportunity for youth to get involved in growing locally and understanding (to a degree dependent on the age of the student) the importance of small-scale food systems amidst the backdrop of climate change.

Hoped for Outcomes

• The greenhouse will be powered sustainably by solar panels and will source its water locally at Zinsser Creek.

• The greenhouse will be utilized by Zinsser Community Gardens (ZCG) members for growing food throughout the year, as well as for producing seedlings for native plants and trees for use in reforestation and native planting opportunities.

• The greenhouse will be employed as a place for youth in the Hastings School District to become more involved in the community through growing food and plants and interacting with ZCG members. Likewise, it will serve to educate interested youth on issues of climate change, reforestation/native plants, and food systems.

• Hastings community members will become inspired by our project to take on their own community or non-community projects relating to the environment, climate change, and/or our food systems. 

Output by the Numbers

• Coordinated with the previous plot user to take over their 13.5 ft by 16 ft plot and moved their beds to a new, more well-kept-up plot.

• Removed about 20 ft of tangled and aged fencing from the back side and back-right side of the plot, connecting our plot to two others for functional reasons for the greenhouse. There needed to be extra space behind the greenhouse for it to be built and maintained and we planned to install an irrigation system that would pass through the plot to the back-right of the greenhouse.

• Installed a 15' x 6' wood enforced deer fence with a 6.5' x 3' door.

• Constructed a 12' x 8' base by cutting and combining 4' x 6' treated wood beams.

• Developed the plot from overgrown weeds, grass, and debris into a functioning 7' x 11' x 10' (at its peak) cedarwood greenhouse with active and passive ventilation.

• Installed a 7' x 4' pergola extension for aesthetics, shade, hanging plants, and as a potential solar panel location to power the greenhouse’s low-voltage fan and water pump.

• Placed 6.5' x 10.5' of weed matting on the dirt floor interior of the greenhouse to prevent weeds from coming up.

• Researched internal flooring options and bought and layed 40 bags of gray pea gravel 3" in depth above the weed matting for aesthetic and comfort purposes.

• Engaged ZCG volunteer organizer Brooks Ballard and Hastings community member, architect, and father of project member Sasha Fuller for building guidance, physical assistance, and help with coordination with other ZCG members. 

• Got assistance from five high school students: Colin, Jacob, Johnny, Malcom, and Julian; and one former high school student, Griffin Gencarelli (now pursuing construction engineering in college), to help in the greenhouse-building process.

What is Still in the Works

• The five highschool students have dug a 40' x 1.5' trench through a neighboring plot, connecting the greenhouse to a nearby creek water source in lieu of installing piping, and a pump to serve as an irrigation system.

• We also hope to position 1 to 2 solar panels on the pergola to power the greenhouse’s fan to keep gardeners and plants cool during hot weather.

Project Images

Thank you to all of those who made this project possible!

Some people we wish to give a shout out to:

• Hastings-on-Hudson village Mayor Niki Armacost

  • Introduced us to the grant opportunity, encouraged us to take on a project, and provided guidance throughout

• Zinsser Community Gardens Volunteer Organizer Brooks Ballard 

  • Provided extensive guidance, project coordination, and physical help

• Fuller House Design architect Michael Fuller (Sasha’s father) 

  • Provided expertise in building, ample guidance, and physical assistance

• High school students Colin Sexton, Jacob Kessman, Julian Carnavali, Johnny Sbrega, and Malcolm Trese

  • Provided physical help in the building process and took on the irrigation system portion of the project

• Griffin Gencarelli (friend of Sasha) 

  • Helped organize the boxes of greenhouse parts after they arrived