Young Farmers Hope Their Garden

Could Be Basis for a VTC Degree

By Sara Nelson

A new student-run garden at Vermont Technical College in Randolph Center is already sending surplus produce to the Randolph Area Food Shelf and local restaurants.

And this is only the beginning of what the garden’s caretakers are envisioning.

Dana Storer and Lydia Petty hope that eventually a number of projects, and maybe even a new degree program, will give VTC students experience growing vegetables and other alternative crops, and serve the Randolph community.

Storer, 22, and Petty, 24, are, respectively a graduate and current student at VTC’s dairy management program, who say that many farm products besides milk appear in their visions of future farms.

"I see myself with maybe a few cows, and maybe a market garden and some flowers and berries," Petty said.

Although he believes that "farming is as much a lifestyle as a business choice," Storer said that having several different crops also makes good business sense.

"In any business, it’s smart to diversify," he said. "If you just produce milk, then you’re always going to be worried about milk prices, but if you’ve got some beef or apples or honey to fall back on, you don’t have to be so worried."

Right now the garden is small-scale and informal, and isn’t yet producing apples or honey. With no budget, it is the result of donated material and time.

The ground was tilled using equipment lent by dairy farmer Brent Biedler, and on a single day in May, a group of volunteers planted seeds and seedlings, many of which were donated by Zena Howe, VTC’s greenhouse manager and groundskeeper, and Cynthia Liepman. Chris Dutton, the head of the dairy program, donated the land.

As a result of its no-frills inception, this new garden has a certain aesthetic, described by Petty as "random and chaotic." For instance, there was no money to buy tomato stakes or more than a small amount of straw mulch. However, this hasn’t stopped most of the crops from doing well.

Storer and Petty said that by selling some of the produce, the garden could pay for itself. They said they plan to sell some of next year’s produce at the farmers’ market.

Petty would like to see a patchwork of related programs spring up around the garden. She mentioned summer programs for kids and programs to regularly supply foodshelves and local schools.

The garden already uses a solar electric fence obtained from the college, and Petty said in the future she hopes it can be a demonstration site for other sustainable technologies, such as a solar water pump.

Storer mentioned the possibility of a student-run CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program at VTC, and said he would like to see some of the produce supplying the school’s dining hall.

"We’re not going to be producing a big percentage of the college’s bananas, but we could increase food security and even reduce the cost of tuition," Storer said.

Seek Degree Program

With these potential projects in mind, as well as the need they perceive for education in alternative crops like vegetables, Storer and Petty have taken the first steps to creating a new degree program at the college.

Based on their own experience and goals, and conversations with students and faculty, Storer and Petty drew up a plan for a four-year Diversified Agriculture program.

The plan incorporates classes from the already existing dairy, horticulture, and sustainable technology programs. It also would require two new classes, vegetable crop production and an agricultural products survey course that would "introduce students to things like beekeeping, forestry, and orchards," said Storer.

Petty and Storer have created a survey to assess interest in the program.

While the plan has garnered support from several faculty members, it will need to survive a "long, formal process" of review by faculty and the board of trustees before it can be implemented, said Joan Richmond, a professor of chemistry and sustainable technology at the college.

Additionally, VTC president Ty Handy said the college will need to be "cautious" about approving another new program in addition to five new degree programs the college is adding this fall.

Handy said "it’s been decades" since VTC added this many new programs at once. He said that the Diversified Agriculture degree proposal will likely come up for review sometime during the next year when it’s clearer how the college is handling the surge in new programs.

Among the questions that will have to be answered about the program are whether there is sufficient demand for it, whether the college can offer high-quality classes, and whether the degree will enable graduates to "live a productive life," Handy said.