SUSTAINABILITY

SUSTAINABILITY BLOG

  • About
    • Meet Our Staff
    • Our History
    • News >
      • Awards & Publications
    • Contact Us >
      • New Vendor Application
  • Initiatives
    • Purchasing
    • Low Carbon Dining
    • Waste Reduction
    • Prioritizing Real Food
    • Green Cleaning
  • Permaculture
    • How to Get Involved
    • History
    • Schedule a Tour
    • Our Gardens >
      • Franklin
      • Berkshire
      • Hillside
      • Hampshire
    • Medicinal Plant Guide >
      • Local Herbal Resources
      • Vocabulary
    • UMass Student Farmers Market
    • Donate Today
    • Annual Reports >
      • 2018
      • 2019
      • 2020
      • 2021
      • 2022
    • Local Permaculture Resources
  • Resources
    • How-To Guide for Food Service
    • How To Eat Sustainably on Campus
    • Low Carbon Dining
    • Virtual Gatherings
  • Events
  • Blog

1/28/2022

Reflections on a Semester spent gardening

0 Comments

Read Now
 

by Erin Silva

Picture
As a student at UMass Amherst, I understand the pain of picking and enrolling in classes for the next semester. When picking, there is such a wide selection to choose from: even if you think a class sounds interesting, it may not be open to you because of capacity limits or restrictions in place that vary by major. As I sat and stared at my screen for hours last spring trying to pick classes for this semester, my sister who graduated from UMass Amherst tried to brainstorm ideas with me for what classes I could be interested in. She named off a couple of history classes, and went on to mention a class called “Permaculture Gardening”. Growing up in my family, I always gardened with my mom and always loved taking care of plants; it had been a fond memory between all of us. My sister took the permaculture class during her time at UMass, and absolutely loved it. That love of gardening rubbed off on me, to the point where I even keep plants of my own in my dorm! As my sister kept talking about her experience in the permaculture gardening class, I knew I had to take this class for this semester. I logged on to Spire as fast I could and quickly enrolled for permaculture gardening. 

As this semester comes to an end, I am extremely grateful for being able to take this class because it has broadened my perspective on how to live more sustainably in society today. Permaculture was every Tuesday and Thursday morning and I looked forward getting out of bed to get ready for class; even if it was a rainy cold fall day. Permaculture has taught me lessons that I will carry with me for years to come but it was also a time where I was able to relax and to not think about the stress for the upcoming weeks. Every class started out with meditation and it was relaxing to spend a hour and a half gardening and listening to music to start off my day. This decompression ties in directly with sustainability, and more efficient methods in my everyday chores. I’ve learned how to compost, to cook with locally-grown fruits and vegetables, to make home remedies, and to be more weary with wasting food.

​I am going to miss having this class every week and I recommend anyone who is considering taking this class to enroll; there’s nothing more rewarding than watching the plants you’ve cared for grow and flourish, and feel some of that growth deep within yourself, too. 


​

Share

0 Comments
Details

    UMass dininG

    Entries are submitted by project staff and UMass students.

    CATEGORIES

    All
    Farmer Of The Week
    Food
    Food Hub Diaries
    On The Ground
    Sustainability
    UMass Amherst
    UMass Dining

    Archives

    May 2022
    January 2022
    November 2020
    September 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014

UMASS DINING . UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST . AMHERST, MA 01003
phone: 413-545-8682 | www.umassdining.com
  • About
    • Meet Our Staff
    • Our History
    • News >
      • Awards & Publications
    • Contact Us >
      • New Vendor Application
  • Initiatives
    • Purchasing
    • Low Carbon Dining
    • Waste Reduction
    • Prioritizing Real Food
    • Green Cleaning
  • Permaculture
    • How to Get Involved
    • History
    • Schedule a Tour
    • Our Gardens >
      • Franklin
      • Berkshire
      • Hillside
      • Hampshire
    • Medicinal Plant Guide >
      • Local Herbal Resources
      • Vocabulary
    • UMass Student Farmers Market
    • Donate Today
    • Annual Reports >
      • 2018
      • 2019
      • 2020
      • 2021
      • 2022
    • Local Permaculture Resources
  • Resources
    • How-To Guide for Food Service
    • How To Eat Sustainably on Campus
    • Low Carbon Dining
    • Virtual Gatherings
  • Events
  • Blog