Warmer weather means it is finally gardening season again, also meaning that ETSU Community Garden applications are now open for students, faculty and staff.
“The purpose of any community garden is to show up and talk to people. You then rent a garden bed, and you have free range to the garden community where there are people to help you learn,” said Bryson Booth, the community garden manager.
The ETSU Community Garden was created in 2010 with funding from the campus sustainability fee by the EcoNuts. The EcoNuts are student workers employed by the Department of Sustainability. They promote sustainable activities on campus and in the local community.
There are currently 26 available garden plots, with each garden plot being four feet by eight feet. The Community Garden provides the bed, soil, water access and all necessary tools. However, the seeds are not provided. Participants can get help to determine what will grow best in the area.
“We’re not only trying to promote students to grow their own food, it’s an educational kind of thing where we teach you how to garden if you don’t know,” said Booth.
The Community Garden is free to anyone associated with ETSU. Applications will be open all season, but if a bed is not open at the time of applying then applicants will be placed on a wait list. The gardens will open on Saturday, March 26.
Booth believes that gardening is therapeutic and explained that they are currently working to get in contact with the counseling center at ETSU, to lend a hand to those who might benefit from it.
“A lot of people I feel like would definitely benefit from the cathartic practice of putting their hands in the dirt and taking care of something,” said Booth.
The application can be found at the following link https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdbh1jw2SnBsaCzPzcxDcqtWtefpRIUSs5Ptpyih6JSdO-XAg/viewform.
To find more information on the EcoNuts and their initiatives on campus, visit https://www.etsu.edu/sustainability/what-we-do/initiatives.php.
