Short Hills, Pingry Student Works In Butterfly, Bird Garden At Fairview Farm

Short Hills, NJ – A Short Hills student at Pingry School recently paired up with a classmate to help improve the bird and butterfly garden at Raritan Headwaters Association's Fairview Farm preserve in Bedminster, school officials said.

Pingry seniors Sophia Cortazzo of Warren Township and Libby Lee of Short Hills are spending five weeks improving the 170-acre nature preserve, according to a school news release.

The students’ project is part of a school program in which 12th graders work at an independent project full-time instead of attending classes, school officials stated.

So far, Lee and Cortazzo have removed weeds, enriched the soil with compost, researched plants that attract pollinators, and determined where the new plants should go based on shade tolerance and other factors. They’re also building a garden tower and producing a booklet to share detailed plant information with visitors.

The pair even prepared a lesson plan for elementary school children visiting Fairview Farm, school officials stated.

“We both want to major in environmental studies or environmental science at college,” said Lee, who has plans to attend Hamilton College.

“We got to harvest a lot of food and give it to the school kitchen to feed youngsters attending Pingry’s summer camp,” said Cortazzo.

After Pingry’s classes began last fall, the pair used the rest of their harvest from the garden to prepare a lunch for 100 students and faculty, school officials said.

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Photo courtesy of Sandy Perry