The Sustainability House

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Current Status

The gardening project continues- another, larger bed is
close to being finished, and more are on the way!  During winter quarter
plans include rainwater harvesting, building a potato barrel, and more
beds.  Plans are in the works to create more garden space on lower campus
that is accessible to all housing residents.  

History

In the Spring of 2008, students in the 2008-09
Sustainability House initiated the creation of raised beds near their
buildings. The project was seeded in their heads at their first building-wide
potluck at the beginning of the year. Many residents liked the idea of growing
food over the winter to harvest by springtime.

Four raised garden beds now inhabit a plot of land
originally containing only grass. One, intended for perennial species (such as
rhubarb, asparagus, strawberries, and the like) is bordered by a stone
wall.  This raised bed was built by a Sustainability Intern with donated
materials in the summer of 2008. The second, created for more traditional annual
crops in the summer of 2008, has a wooden border created from scrap wood
reclaimed from other parts of campus and filled with compost donated by
campus.  The third raised bed was built by RAD Sustainability Coordinator
during the summer of 2009 with remaining stones donated from campus and is
designated for annual crops and is filled with composted llama manure acquired
by the 07-08 Sustainability House residents.

The kitchen gardens were nurtured by 2008-09 residents, who
benefitted from an annual bed full of a self-seeded Kale crop.

In October 08, a group designed and built a row cover out of
bamboo from the Farm to help protect their kale plants from the frost.

In the spring volunteers planted greens, oriental greens,
peas, squash, onions and some garlic in the first and second raised beds.

During the summer of 09 the RAD Sustainability Coordinator
planted some greens, root crops and kohlrabi to get the garden ready for
incoming residents. 

In the beginning of the 2009-10 school year, many residents
came out for the garlic planting workshop during Orientation Week.  In
late October, students planted some greens, kohlrabi, garlic, and collards for
overwintering.