Garden, meet table
Morris Campus Farm grows fresh food for campus dining
The Morris Campus Farm, located at 1620 Sunnymeade Road, has been around since 2012, growing vegetables and raising livestock, according to Kyle Herrington, the education and events coordinator of the farm.
Herrington said the farm was started by the former farm manager originally as a campus garden for the university.
According to Herrington, the former manager worked on several farms in New Zealand before moving back to Lynchburg where the idea for a campus garden sparked in her mind.
CHEEP, CHEEP — Morris Campus Farm raises chickens without antibiotics and practices ethical animal husbandry. Photo credit: Miller Gross
Once Herrington and Taylor Young, the livestock coordinator, came to the garden during July of 2015, the garden became a farm because of the livestock that Young had responsibility of, according to Herrington.
The farm teaches students, faculty and staff how to be good stewards of the earth through animal husbandry and different growing practices.
“We don’t use chemicals … fertilizers … pesticides … herbicides or anything like that on our food,” Herrington said. “Our animals are pasture-raised and rotated through our property. … They don’t get hormones (or) … antibiotics. We raise them in the most natural and ethical way that we can.”
Since the farm does not spray its vegetables, all the weeding is done by hand.
According to Herrington, the vegetables are grown seasonally. This past summer, the farm grew tomatoes, herbs, potatoes, mushrooms and squash.
The farm offers Community Service (CSER) opportunities for students to get involved in through LU Serve. The farm has around 30 CSER students per semester, according to Herrington.
The farm also has student worker positions, where the students learn through different hands-on experiences. Volunteer positions are also available for those who want to learn how to grow food.
For anyone who wants to be involved in the farm, the staff places volunteers in an area they have an interest in, Herrington said.
Workshops, such as a mushroom workshop and chicken-processing lessons are also offered to students.
Young said the primary outlet for vegetables is from what the farm calls their Harvest Shared Program.
Through these programs, members get a half-bushel of produce to bring home to their families each week. Anyone can sign up for this program through the MyLU page or in-person at the Liberty Farmers Market.
Some vegetables are sold at Liberty’s Farmers Market as well as some animals, Young said.
Yeast is donated to non-profit organizations, such as Lynchburg Grows and the Daily Bread. The animal products from the farm are sold to local restaurants and food trucks such as Uprooted.
The farm partners with Live Healthy Liberty to promote healthier dining options on campus by hosting educational events throughout the semester.
Additionally, it partners with the university by using composting from the Reber-Thomas Dining Hall and the Equestrian Center, Herrington said.
The farm puts vegetable scraps, manure and used animal bedding through a composting machine. The farm uses a couple different methods of composting that are available for viewing by those interested.
According to Young, their farm is very diversified. They do not participate in monocropping, where they are growing only one crop.
In addition to field trips, the farm staff also attends events such as the Fall Festival at Camp Hydaway Oct. 15.
“We’re excited to partner with them because … we’ve had outdoor recreation folks come out and work at the farm,” Herrington said. “This will be the first kind of formal partnership … that we’ve had with Hydaway.”
Herrington said out of the seven pigs the farm owns, two will be smoked at the festival, and students will be able to see the process that goes into smoking a whole pig and ask questions.
According to Herrington, a van will transport people to and from the farm every 45 minutes for farm tours.
“It’s quiet on the farm,” Herrington said. “It’s nice. You hear the rooster crowing out in the field. You go see the pigs and they’re wallowing around in the mud. They’re snorting. … The breeze is blowing. … It’s relaxing (and) therapeutic.”
RAMEY is a feature reporter.