The SEEd project which stands for Sustainable Edible Education at California Lutheran University has a new addition to its garden plots.  The SEEd project provides opportunities for students to get involved in the sustainability efforts at Cal Lutheran. A satellite plot now exists behind the freshman residence hall, Thompson.Students can now grow their own produce using this new garden.

Associate Professor of Religion  Samuel Thomas is the leader of the project that began in Sept. 2010.

“The new garden at Thompson [hall] is the first of what we hope will be lots of residence hall garden plots,”  Thomas said. “We hope people will experience community in new ways as well. This is already happening at the Thompson Hall garden, as RAs and students cultivate the plots and coordinate programs related to the garden.”

The original garden is located between the baseball and softball fields just off the path to the Cal Lutheran rocks. The success of this garden has led to advances in the SEEd project. This brought about plans for expanding and creating a new garden.

The new garden is home to produce including tomatoes, carrots, beets, chard, kale, beans, eggplant, peppers and herbs. The satellite plots are managed by the resident assistants in Thompson Hall and those who have been involved in the SEEd project for multiple years such as  senior Christina Geldert.

“It’s good to see that we are growing on campus. Some people didn’t even know that we had a garden. Now that people are more interested it is starting to spread onto other parts of campus,” Geldert said.

The RAs in Thompson Hall are excited to introduce this new satellite plot to students. It is right outside the window on the rear side of the residence hall in a high traffic area for students. This will maximize the opportunity for students to become involved with the garden. Karly Loberg, the senior RA in Thompson Hall, said she believes the new garden has been very effective in achieving its goal.

“The new garden plots are improving the SEEd project because they are getting more students involved. By being so close to the residence halls, the garden is more accessible to students,” Loberg said. “I am hoping throughout the year to be able to get the residents more involved with either a program or just exposing them to the garden and having them help us harvest or plant more vegetables.”

The SEEd project team is optimistic about the garden’s future. Student leaders are currently working together to establish gardens next to other residence halls. This would be beneficial for all students living on campus at Cal Lutheran. This will also increase exposure for the gardens and the SEEd project as it exists on campus.

“We’re excited about extending the reach of the SEEd Project by working with student leaders to establish gardens at other residence halls,” Thomas said.

Any student can join the SEEd project by acquiring the necessary equipment or making a donation to the program. The SEEd project team is always looking for new members and students to carry out the mission of the program. The team can be seen doing their work from 2-4 p.m. on Thursdays and Mondays from 3-5 p.m. Come out to see the SEEd project in action.

Jeff Rebello
Staff Writer
Published September 30th, 2015