UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm at Penn State partnered with local nonprofits State College Meals on Wheels and the Centre County Meals on Wheels this summer to implement the Bucket Gardens Project. This project aims to encourage small-scale gardening at home by providing fresh vegetable and flower seedlings to clients. The project supports Meals on Wheels’ mission of serving Centre County community members by helping them maintain independence and quality of life.
The Bucket Gardens Project started in 2019, and this is the third year that the Student Farm and Meals on Wheels have collaborated on the project. This year, more than 90 clients signed up to grow their own bucket garden at home.
“We are thrilled to serve so many community members this year through the Bucket Gardens Project. It’s encouraging to see so many clients nurturing their own plants and enjoying the fruit of their labor,” said Elka Hoelsken, a 2021-22 Student Farm intern who planned this year’s collaboration and has since graduated from Penn State this past May.
The clients are given a choice of receiving a vegetable or flower plant. This year, zinnias, geraniums, and dahlia flowers were the popular choices, along with tomatoes and peppers. The vegetables and flowers were grown during the spring semester in the greenhouses by Penn State students who are members of the Student Farm Club. The seedlings were then planted into upcycled 5-gallon buckets filled with potting mix. Both Home Depot and College Gardens donated potting mix for this year’s project. The bucket gardens were delivered to Meals on Wheels clients at the end of May so clients could enjoy their plants all season long.
“It is a community effort to bring the Bucket Garden Project to life,” said Deanna Homan, AmeriCorps service member with Penn State’s Sustainable Food Systems Program. “I love how our State College community, from schools to companies to volunteers, all pitch in to serve their neighbors.”
The Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm, a unit of Penn State Student Affairs, is part of the Sustainable Food Systems Program, which houses Penn State’s Student Farm, Student Farm Club, affiliated Food Systems Minor, and Course-Client Collaborations. The goal of the program is to develop students’ knowledge about sustainable food systems while providing hands-on learning and leadership opportunities and positively contributing to the community. To learn more about State College Meals on Wheels and Centre County Meals on Wheels, visit scmow.2stayconnected.com