Connecting to the Land in the Middle of a City

By Lauren Greenleaf

Just off of the University of Washington's campus lies a little oasis from city life. Hidden between the golf course and Laurelhurst on the easternmost border of campus, you'll find the UW Farm and Center for Urban Horticulture. Here, you can get your hands dirty, tend to crops, watch them grow, learn about sustainability, and develop a connection to and love for the land. The site at the Center for Urban Horticulture is one of three growing sites on the Seattle campus. These three sites provide three models of urban farming: roof top, residential complex, and community garden. The UW Farm was established in 2006 near the UW Botany house by students looking to reconnect with the land in an urban environment. When the building was closed, it moved onto what used to be the Montlake Cut dump, which closed in 1971. There has been a tremendous effort to revitalize and heal the land since then, and the UW farm is taking an active role in this mission. Places where mounds of trash used to tower over the lake beds now support rows of crops, apple trees, and seasonal flowers. Deep within the soil, life is as abundant and diverse as it is above ground.

When I visited the farm, I saw students from different backgrounds and majors at UW learning how to care for seedlings, till the soil, and cover plants to protect them from rodents and bugs. Acworth says “the learning that goes on beyond the campus is what makes this place special.” There is so much effort that goes into producing food and getting it onto the table, but the appreciation for that process is often lost when we have no real connection to the land and the people behind food production.

The UW Farm aims to reconnect people with food, and to the land. As an urban population in the large city of Seattle, Acworth says “we have unlearned how to grow food and where it comes from.” When you understand the process of getting food on the table, you are able to make decisions for yourself and gain control over what you are eating. Food sovereignty is a critical part of making fully informed, healthy decisions. Without it, people in positions of power make these decisions for us. This often leads to issues within the plants themselves such as a loss of species diversity, and it also causes problems on a social level. At UW alone, over 20% of students have run out of food or skipped meals to keep their costs down. The UW Farm works in conjunction with the food pantry to supply students with healthy meals and reduce the stress of identifying where their next meal will come from so they can focus on their studies instead.

Just as the plants grow larger through the months, the UW Farm continues to grow and expand. In order to keep meeting the needs and interests of students, the Farm has been reaching out to other departments and looking for ways to continue serving the community and improving the sustainability of the farm. Projects such as building a high tunnel in order to grow food year round, or adding an outdoor kitchen to expand the knowledge of different cultural recipes draw on the expertise of many different departments at UW. These projects aim to further support the community and allow greater, more equitable access to the space.

If you would like to learn more about the UW Farm or get involved, visit here!