Garden Commons

---

The Office of Sustainability Garden Commons includes the backyard at the Office of Sustainability and a garden area at the WKU Foundation House. The Office of Sustainability garden area is a fruit and vegetable garden, while the space behind the WKU Foundation House is a sensory and herb garden. Both gardens are a learning landscape in which to grow knowledge, cultivate community, and nourish our connection to nature.

 

The fruit and vegetable garden offers an opportunity for students to test innovative practices in backyard gardening while growing food for themselves and the WKU Food Pantry. The sensory and herb garden is designed to connect individuals to plants through their senses, particularly sight, smell, taste, and feel. The aromatic herbs grown in this garden are picked regularly and used by Aramark chefs for food served in Fresh!

Collectively, through both Garden Commons areas, we aim to answer questions such as: Can gardening relieve my stress?, How can we maximize growing space and improve plant productivity through sustainable backyard gardening practices?, and Why is it important for us to grow food for ourselves as a community? Along with having fun and trying new healthy foods, we hope that you will gain some awareness of our stake in our food system. By volunteering for the Garden Commons project, you may find yourself leaving a little happier, healthier, and more knowledgeable.

 

Both gardens are currently under reconstruction. If you are interested in learning sustainable agriculture practices and earning meaningful service hours, sign up to receive email updates from our office.