The Edible Campus

Abstract

The Edible Campus research project was suggested by the Dalhousie Student Union Sustainability Office (DSUSO) to identify ways of increasing campus sustainability by providing students access to fresh, local food through urban agriculture. Urban agriculture increases food security, nutrition, and urban biodiversity (van Veenhuizen, 2006). This research was completed to determine what is the desirability and what are the opportunities and constraints of implementing and maintaining edible plants, native or adapted to Nova Scotia, into Dalhousie’s Studley campus landscape. This was done through a literature review, GIS mapping, interviews and questionnaires administered to students.

The literature review, GIS mapping and interviews helped us determined what opportunities and constraints the campus landscape provides for the implementation of edible plants. Soil quality was expected to be a limiting factor for the inclusion of edible plants on campus, however, interviews with experts in the field of horticulture and planning determined that soil quality is not a constraint for all edible plants. We discovered that berries, orchard and nut trees can be planted directly into the ground without concern about soil quality affecting the human health of those eating the foods produced by these plants.

Student interest in edible plants was gaged through questionnaires. This revealed that the inclusion of edible plants into the campus landscape would improve students’ perception of the university. Questionnaires also provided insight into which edible plant species students would prefer to see, demonstrating that orchard fruit and berries are favored among Dalhousie students. It was also determined that there is a high interest in participating in the maintenance of edible plants on campus; this conflicts, however, with a low level of awareness of current campus gardening initiatives.

With the confirmed desirability from student responses, as well as using the opportunities and constraints identified in interviews and questionnaires, a three-­‐ phase plan was developed as a suggestion of how to gradually include edible plants into the campus landscape. The first phase is the easiest to implement, the most engaging for students, and consists of low maintenance, highly desired plants. The second phase includes the planting of orchard and nut trees, which are also highly desired based on questionnaires, but take longer to bear fruit and require more resources to plant initially. The third phase would consist of the addition of raised-­‐ bed gardening, providing opportunities to grow a wider variety of edible plants, including herbs and vegetables which do require good soil quality.