Fresh, locally grown produce may soon be available on campus, thanks to a new student vegetable garden that is taking root at the corner of Hope Street and Young Orchard Avenue.
Just a few months ago, the site was a rocky, barren patch of silt - now, lush green rows of basil, eggplant and tomato plants are sprouting from rich black soil, protected by freshly-hewn wooden walls. Soon, carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, kale, beets and radishes will grow there as well.
The Brown Sustainable Food Initiative, a student group devoted to promoting local agriculture, is largely responsible for developing the garden.
During the academic year, David Schwartz '09, Ben Mandelkern '09, Zach Stone '09 and Michael Glassman '09 planned the project on paper. Mandelkern, Stone and Glassman received an Undergraduate Teaching and Research Award to put their plans into action this summer.
The work was not easy - the founders labored for over a month before planting their first seedlings in early July. Schwartz said the entire site was contaminated with lead when they first examined it, requiring them to spread a foot of topsoil over the earth. The students spent weeks removing debris, constructing a retaining wall and re-grading the 2,700 square foot garden with the help of Facilities Management. "We've been helped really invaluably by Facilities," which contributed "a lot of time, tools and resources" to the garden, Stone said.
He said the garden would have an "educational aspect" and also serve as a "community-building tool." He said he hopes Brown students will benefit from working at the site, cooking and enjoying local food and "appreciating the difference between the food that comes from here and the food that you would get out of Stop and Shop."
Stone said other Brown students have considered starting a vegetable garden in the past but have failed due to the difficulty of finding sufficient space close to campus. But Stone and Mandelkern persisted, going all the way to the top for assistance.
Stone recalled speaking with President Ruth Simmons at the sophomore barbeque last fall.
"I asked, 'Do you garden?' She said she did and asked me if I gardened," Stone said. "I said I was trying to start a garden at Brown, and she said 'That's a great idea!' "
Simmons put Stone in touch with Interim Vice President of Student Life Russell Carey '91 MA'06 and Grounds Superintendent Pat Vetere, who helped with site selection and logistics. Mandelkern said the group borrowed tools from the Urban Environmental Laboratory and received funding from the Center for Environmental Studies.
Though they accepted assistance from the administration, the founders intend the Hope Street garden to be a space "run by students for students," Mandelkern said. "Come fall, this will be a place where all students can gather, learn and take on leadership roles."
"SuFI is the organization that is currently coordinating it, but the idea is that this will become a Brown student garden for everyone," Mandelkern said.
Though the founders are still looking for markets for the vegetables, Schwartz said Brown Dining Services has already committed to purchasing some of the student produce to serve somewhere on campus.
The garden "connects with a lot of things (the University) is interested in," Carey said. He said Dining Services has been making greater efforts recently to serve sustainable, local and farm-fresh produce in the dining halls. Vegetables from the student garden would fit the bill.
"I would be thrilled if some of it turned up on the menu in September," Carey said.
Schwartz praised the University staff, whom he described as "great teachers."
"You think of professors as the best teachers at a university, but I feel I have learned so much from these guys from grounds, from someone who works at the greenhouse ... who have so much knowledge and expertise and who have taught us so much," Schwartz said.
He envisions Brown students gaining "teaching experience, growing experience and entrepreneurial experience as well" as they sell the produce to the Brown community and beyond.
Schwartz plans to organize a collaborative program with Brown/Fox Point Day Care, in which children could help in the garden on a regular basis. He hopes that part of the garden's bounty will be donated to hunger relief organizations.
Schwartz said the students expect the garden to grow over the next several years.
"This is the first, inaugural, pilot year. I think you'll see this space and all the programs associated with it really growing over a two-to-three-year time span," Schwartz said. "It's just one part of a large and growing interest among students in issues of sustainable agriculture and local food."
