Produce grows on rooftop of hospital on Long Island

NEW YORK )FOX 5 NEWS) - You've heard of farm to table. Stony Brook University Hospital on Long Island is doing farm to bedside.

Josephine Connolly-Schoonen, the nutrition director, says they grow basil, shallots, thyme, oregano, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, beets, turnips, peppers, pumpkins, melons, strawberries, and sunflowers organically on the roof.

She planted the first seeds three years ago. And so began the nation's first ever hospital rooftop farm. She says they produce about 1,300 pounds of produce a year.

These organic herbs, fruits and veggies picked from the vine and prepped in the kitchen are only a small part of the hospital's menu.

But food service director Michael West says it leaves a big impression with patients who might not feel like they have a choice over what's happening in their lives.