Last January, Student-Led Unity Garden (SLUG) president Emma Niemela returned from Christmas break ready to start building the club’s long-awaited greenhouse — only to discover the materials had been delivered to the wrong location.
“I got an email from this shipping company, and they were like, ‘We have your greenhouse, we have your boxes. You come pick it up.’ And I was like, ‘What?’” Niemela said. “So we drove 30 minutes to this shipping yard with my friend’s pickup truck. I’d never been to a shipping yard. It was funny and kind of scary.”
After months of planning, and with the correct materials on hand, SLUG is finally ready to put down some roots.
On Saturday, Sept. 7 at 9 a.m., students, faculty and staff are invited to help construct the new greenhouse on the SLUG plot behind the apple orchard. The new structure will allow SLUG to germinate seeds and grow plants year-round, supporting campus food sustainability initiatives like StockUP.
“We want to make fresh produce and organic produce more accessible to college students who can’t afford a lot of this stuff,” Niemela said. “We want to make things more equitable and give people the opportunity to come garden, practice mindfulness and hang out.”
SLUG has been preparing for the greenhouse for several months. The club worked closely with Campus Safety and Facilities to determine the best location for the structure, ensuring it was placed on stable ground. Jeromy Koffler, the director of student activities, worked closely with SLUG throughout this process.
“We went through the process of figuring out how big it is, what its footprint would be, where it would sit, and how we would maintain it,” Koffler said. “We met with Campus Safety to make sure we were putting it in a safe space.”
Nathan Hale, head groundskeeper at Physical Plant, also helped level the ground and delivered gravel to ensure the structure would remain stable over the years.
“There’s also a water spout underground that Nathan is going to dig up for us so we have access to it,” Niemela said.
With the plot behind the orchard now prepared, SLUG is looking for help from the UP community to complete the build.
“We have everything — tools, plans, materials,” said Grace Lansberry, SLUG’s media and communications manager. “Just come in work clothes. And we’ll have donuts, too.”
The event will run from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. New and returning members are encouraged to bring friends and family to help out.
Lansberry sees the event as an opportunity to bring together new and familiar faces to create something long lasting for the campus.
“It’s going to be so exciting to see all the new people who show up, the old faces, and build something that will hopefully be here for a long time,” Lansberry said.
Niemela hopes building the greenhouse will foster a spirit of teamwork and a sense of community that keeps people returning for weekend workdays.
“We want everyone to come enjoy the garden whenever they can, however they can,” Niemela said. “We have a lot of different options for people to choose from, like our shade garden.”
To learn more about this event and join SLUG for future workdays, visit their Instagram.
Julianna Pedone is the News and Managing Editor for The Beacon. She can be reached at pedone25@up.edu.
