Students gain real life experience on university farm

Purdue Univ. students are gaining real life experience working on a new 5-acre farm near the West Lafayette, Ind., campus. Students are learning how to grow vegetables and manage a small business and conducting research. The students operate a produce stand at the farm from 3-6 p.m. on Fridays.
Last fall the students formed the group “Full Circle Agriculture” to organize the farm operation. They are producing a variety of vegetables including tomatoes, corn, beans, peppers, radishes, onions and salad greens in small plots to test production strategies.
The students plan to build hoop houses to extend the growing season. They also are developing a permaculture garden with an emphasis on fruit trees to attract pollinators.
Steve Hallett, a professor of botany and plant pathology and the students' adviser said the operation is a true student farm where they make almost all decisions.
Ivan Petkov, an instructor in Purdue's hospitality and tourism management program and the university's official chef, serves some vegetables from the farm at special events such as receptions. Petkov also uses the produce to stock the HTM Café, a learning lab and campus restaurant.
Buying vegetables from the student farm has enabled the restaurant to lower its costs through local delivery. The farm’s vegetables also have a longer shelf life than those bought from a distributor.
The farm will also be used for classes during the academic year. The “Principles of Sustainable Agriculture” course will enable students to work directly with the farm, and several classes will use the plots for teaching and labs this fall.