Campus Garden Sustainability

8 Campus Garden

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Campus Garden
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  • Grinnell College Grow sign with garden at grinnell dot edu address and student harvesting

    The Center for Prairie Studies established the Campus Garden in 2000 to produce food to share with people on campus and in the community.

    The garden provides hands-on experience for students to learn about sustainable food production, crop diversity, soil building, rainwater catchment, and the production of food without synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.

    Learn more about the Grinnell College Garden.

A Brief History of the Grinnell Campus Garden

Student adds compost materials to a bin with a red sign that says peace love compost

A small group of students, faculty, and community members interested in promoting the idea of local foods created the Grinnell College Garden in 2000.

students building the garden at its first on campus location

To increase the garden’s ease of access and visibility, the College moved the it to an 80-foot square plot on campus. Grinnell’s Center for Prairie Studies provided the funds to pay two full-time student summer garden interns.

Harvested vegetables with dirt still clinging to them

At its Park Street location, the garden’s focus was on annual vegetables, though herbs, strawberries, and a few pollinator-friendly plants were added over the years.

early stage of the campus garden with hoop house and beginnings of raised beds

In 2017, the College moved the garden to a new, larger site near the 1128 East Street project house. With the new location came a grander vision.

aeriel view of the garden

Student volunteers, along with staff, faculty, and community members, built a number of raised beds.

Image of garden produce from the Grinnell College garden

About 90% of the first year’s harvest — washed and bagged or banded — went to Dining Services and catering to be incorporated into various dishes.

Professor Andelson clearing trees off of the campus garden after the 2020 derecho

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many students leaving campus. Two students who lived off-campus continued work at the garden. A derecho — an extremely destructive storm with straight-line, hurricane-strength winds  — caused major damage to the campus, downing trees and damaging the hoop house, raised beds, and plants. Despite this, the garden produced almost as much as it had in the previous year.

students deliving food to the food pantry

During the pandemic, Dining Services no longer needed the garden harvest; at the same time, food insecurity in the town of Grinnell increased dramatically. The gardeners chose to send the harvest to Mid-Iowa Community Action, which provides food to families in need.

gardener harvest large greens

In 2021, the gardeners donated 90% of their largest-ever annual harvest to Mid-Iowa Community Action to support of those in need.

Our more careful attention to succession planting, companion planting, more permaculture plantings, and more mulching are making the difference as we continue to learn about the wonderful and rewarding world of gardening.

Grinnell College Campus Garden

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