Student Farm Club experiments with hydroponics, growing crops without soil, in our greenhouse next to the Creamery on Curtin Road. Club members produce lettuce, basil and spring mix to be sold to Campus Dining, as well as assorted crops such as cantaloupe, toothache plant and snapdragons. The greenhouse provides students with a space to try new hydroponic methods, practice budgeting and greenhouse management, learn about food safety and use tools like EC/pH meters.

To get involved in our hydroponic greenhouse, email studentfarm@psu.edu with your phone number so we can add you to the GroupMe.

Student Farm Club manages a rooftop garden on Eisenhower Road that grows food to be donated to the Lions Pantry, Penn State’s student food bank. Students are invited to participate in workdays to plant crops, harvest and wash vegetables, test soil and otherwise tend to the garden.

Volunteering at the rooftop garden is a great way spend time outdoors while making a difference in the Penn State community. To get involved, email studentfarm@psu.edu with your phone number so we can add you to the GroupMe.

The Schreyer Pocket Garden is a partnership project with the Schreyer Honors College and Lion’s Pantry. Established in 2021, the mission of the Schreyer Pocket Garden is to engage students in hands-on learning about gardening and food systems sustainability by growing fresh produce together for students at the Lion’s Pantry. The garden is located on the Simmon’s Hall courtyard by McKean Road.

Learn more about the project here, and sign up for the volunteer email list here.

The Cooking Collab team brings students together for monthly events where they collaborate to prepare and enjoy a shared meal using fresh produce from the farm. Led by student farm club members, the team fosters a sense of community, providing a fun and welcoming space to build connections, gain kitchen experience, and enjoy home-cooked meals with friends.

Our Youth Education Project Team allows students to engage with local children and discuss topics that are at the root of the Student Farm’s mission at Penn State. We strive to provide classes with educational, hands-on activities that will help them to be more aware of where their food comes from and the choices that they’re making, because they are the future of the planet and its prosperity. Using the Farm and our experiences with it as teaching tools, we can demonstrate these topics, and many others, to the youth of our community. Our youth ed team also works to support local school gardens and growing spaces by donating seedlings each spring and summer.

Our Food Justice team has a mission to challenge and transform the food systems of our community to create a more just system through engagement, educational resources, and action-based initiatives. This team allows students to learn more about food injustices seen in the Penn State community and educate others to take actionable steps. Engaging with this team is an opportunity to be involved in impactful work that facilitates change in our very own community. 

The succulents team contributes to propagating, growing, and caring for these amazing little plants. They consistently host succulent sale’s so everyone can get their own! Students should join the succulent project team if they are interested in marketing and running sales, getting their hands in the soil, and/or learning more about succulents. We are open to everyone, no experience needed!