Mount Kisco Child Care Center will be able to teach gardening to its kids during the cold months with the addition of a new greenhouse.

The greenhouse was dedicated Monday, with a long line of preschool kids on hand for a ribbon breaking and symbolic presenting of beet seedlings that were harvested from this year's most recent garden. The ceremony followed the building's construction, which took place on Saturday and Sunday with the help of volunteers.

Dottie Jordan, the center's executive director, described the greenhouse as "an enhancement" to the center's Feed Me Fresh program. That longstanding initative has involved getting the kids to do gardening and to integrate harvesting and preparing the food into their curriculum.

The kids get to plan their garden and their cooking, according to the program description. During the winter they spend time doing the garden planning and ordering of seeds. However, with the greenhouse, plantings will be able to start around January to February, explained Program Director Dawn Meyerski.

Funding for the greenhouse was made possible by a combination of grants from IBM and Slow Food Metro North, which supports local and sustainable agriculture.

According to Steven Wysmuller, an IBMer who is also president of the center's board, the money came from receipt of a catalyst grant, 100 of which were issued by the company to coincide with its centennial. The grant for the center totals $10,000 and is also being used to other items, including computers and rain water barrels.

Wysmuller, a Goldens Bridge resident, has two children who are enrolled at the center. They are his preschool-age daughter Nina and his son Benjamin, who is now in kindergarten. Both have been attending the center since they were babies.

“We’re just so proud and pleased with how they’ve grown up," he told a crowd of kids and adults at the dedication.

Mimi Edelman, who co-chairs Slow Food Metro North, is thrilled with the greenhouse.

“This is a dream come true," she told reporters after the dedication. "We’ve had an edible garden for nearly 10 years now."

The grant for her organization came out of proceeds from its annual fundraiser.

Edelman has an established role at the center in providing farming education to the kids. She also does horticulture therapy with senior citizens who attend the My Second Home program, which is housed in the same building on Radio Circle.

Now that the greenhouse has been built, the center has new opportunities.

 “We’ll have to develop more curriculum," Edelson said.