Andrea Barnhart, CFN Co-Director, had the privilege of visiting Smile Farms at League Education & Treatment Center (LETC) this November. Located in Brooklyn, NY, SMILE Farms at LETC serves adults and children with psychiatric and intellectual disabilities. Smile Farmers tend eight raised beds, a hoop house that allows for year-round operations, and a sensory garden. Farmers work throughout the week to grow a variety of vegetables & herbs.
Smile Farmers led a tour of their garden, offering tastings of nasturtium flowers, roselle, oregano, basil, and some of the season’s final cherry tomatoes. The garden’s herbs are dried and featured in a signature tea blend, while hot peppers are transformed into Smile Farms’ famous “Burn Ability” hot sauce.
Brianna guided the tour with her impressive expertise in edible flowers and herbs, even pointing out which weeds were safe to eat.
Andrew showed off the greenhouse and demonstrated how they creatively plant carrots and lettuce along the outer edges of the tomato beds, maximizing both the greenhouse and bed space.
Andrew summed up the visit by sharing some Burnability Hot Sauce and his slogan, that Smile farms garden is “where goodness burns bright.” We couldn’t agree more.