The student-led People’s Farm of University of Wisconsin-Madison hosted “Spring Fest” in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability on April 21 at Eagle Heights Community Garden to celebrate UW-Madison’s Earth Fest.
People's Farm Outreach Director Julia Fechner told The Daily Cardinal Spring Fest is an annual event hosted to mark the start of the growing season, when the temperature of the soil 50 centimeters below the ground is more than 41°F. The event featured live music performances, art, gardening activities and complimentary vegan treats, according to Earth Fest organizers.
This year, the event was held in association with the Office of Sustainability, ASM Sustainability Committee and UW Organic Collaborative.
Earth Fest, hosted by the Nelson Institute and Office of Sustainability, kicked off on April 19 and continued until April 26 with faculty lectures and hands-on experiments engaging community members.
The People’s Farm, formerly FH King, is a student organization at UW-Madison dedicated to providing free, fresh and accessible fruits and vegetables to the campus community.
Fechner said the organization does not use pesticides or “any harmful chemicals” to cultivate their food.
“We are an organic farm where promoting sustainable agriculture is our main theme,” Fechner said. “We aim to cultivate various crops to get more diversity within the produce that we grow.”
During Spring Fest, Fechner said the student organization made efforts to reach out to the general public, encouraging greater participation from their respective communities while upholding sustainability principles.
People’s Farm members adorned their Earth Fest table with compostable cups and vegan foods. Attendees volunteered to help the organization plant rows of radishes, turnips and other seeds during the event, Fechner said.
“As a mother, it was a great chance to learn about sustainability with my children,” Eagle Heights resident Ulbyke Nighmetjankizi said during the event. “We learned today only 5% of all the plastic we use is recycled.”
In addition to Spring Fest, People’s Farm holds the annual Fall Harvest Festival at the end of the harvest season before the farm goes into rest during the winter months.
