In front of Wadsworth Hall, a small garden produces over 400 pounds of vegetables each fall. This garden works with the Office of Sustainability and Resilience to make MTU more sustainable and supply food to the Husky Food Access Network (HuskyFAN). Students can get this food for free; HuskyFAN is open to anyone struggling with any level of food insecurity.
According to Alan Turnquist, the Director of Sustainability and Resilience, over the summer, two student coordinators work to maintain the garden. During the fall, around 50 students volunteer their time to harvest the produce. Last fall, Turnquist mentioned that they “harvested and distributed over 400 pounds of produce.” While the garden is owned by the Office of Sustainability and Resilience, it is mostly run by student volunteers.
Turnquist shared that after this harvest, “Students… hold [a] weekly free farmers’ markets outside the pantry through October.” This market allows students to get fresh-picked produce before it has to be stored. The extra food is stored in the HuskyFAN food pantry for students to access during regular opening hours.
Sophia Vue, the HuskyFAN pantry student volunteer coordinator, says that the pantry is a great way to get food that is “extremely local” and help fight food insecurity on campus. The garden allows fresh vegetables to go straight into students’ kitchens at no cost. Vegetables grown in the garden include garlic, potatoes, tomatoes, mixed greens, arugula, kale, jalapeños, green beans, squash, and zucchini. Vue said the purpose of the garden’s partnership with HuskyFAN was to “promote food accessibility to students,” and that they can receive that by going to the pantry.
The Wadsworth Garden does more than provide free food. Turnquist shared that many students find themselves in the garden simply for its peaceful nature: “It’s a great space to learn and get your hands dirty. I’ve heard students describe it as ‘therapy.’” The garden acts as a way for students to connect with nature and relax. One way students can relax is by renting a free hammock from the Wads front desk to use at one of the six dedicated hammock spaces. Turnquist mentioned that, over the summer, these spaces were added to create a shaded space where students can “take a break from the digital information economy.”
Though the garden is currently closed for the season, for most of the year students can volunteer to pick vegetables for the free farmers’ market Wednesdays from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. More information about the garden is available at mtu.edu/sustainability. Questions for HuskyFAN can be directed to huskyfan@mtu.edu.
