McDonogh was started as a farm school, and from its founding, students cultivated the fields, planted crops, and harvested the fruit and vegetables for the school’s consumption. Bob Lamborn ‘35 recalls that during his father Doc Lamborn’s tenure, boys also had the responsibility during the harvest season of gathering and preparing vegetables for market. On Saturdays, wagons were loaded with produce, butter, eggs, and chickens and driven to McDonogh Station where everything was placed on freight cars and taken to Lexington Market. McDonogh had a booth at the market until 1929 when it closed because all of the goods produced on the farm were needed for the students and staff.
The farm operation was discontinued during Bob Lamborn’s tenure, and all vestiges were removed, including the orchards, barns, hen house, granary, and piggery. The fields were leased to a farmer to produce hay.
In 2006, the seeds for a communal garden to bring farming back to McDonogh were planted. Referring to the school’s heritage, the idea was, “The things we can do in the future are things we did in the past.” The initial plans to plant a simple acre of potatoes at the end of Barnhill Road on the edge of campus quickly sprouted, and tomatoes and pumpkins were added to the list along with space for a half-acre of individual garden plots. In 2009, Roots’ first year, it is estimated that the farm yielded 4,000 pounds of potatoes, 1,000 pounds of tomatoes, and more than 200 handsome pumpkins.
Over the years, Roots has evolved from a garden to a 10-acre farm with a variety of crops, chickens, turkeys, and beehives. Today, Roots is not only a homage to McDonogh’s first days as a farm school, but it is a vibrant outdoor classroom. The farm provides hands-on educational opportunities for students in every division, fresh produce for McDonogh’s dining service, and food for the Maryland Food Bank. Additionally, Roots helps build a sense of community among McDonogh’s students, teachers, staff, parents, and alumni who eagerly volunteer their time to care for the chickens and plant and pick produce.
