The Evergreen State College Organic Farm

About the Organic Farm

Connected to main campus by two trails through the campus forest, the Organic Farm is a working small-scale organic farm that serves as a learning laboratory focused on small-scale organic agriculture. The Farm currently produces fruit, vegetables, chickens, eggs and sheep. Produce is sold through a weekly farm stand on campus, as well as through a 32-member Community Supported Agriculture. Located in the northwest portion of the Evergreen campus the 5-acre developed area includes the Farmhouse (built by students in the 1970’s), 3 acres of fields and orchards, greenhouses, a closed-tunnel composting facility and miscellaneous outbuildings. 

The Organic Farm is Certified Organic, by the Washington State Department of Agriculture, and has been certified Salmon Safe since 2008. We work diligently to protect riparian areas, maintain appropriate water use, reduce erosion, practice integrated pest management, animal management and biodiversity conservation in accordance with both Salmon Safe and Organic certifications.

The Organic Farm as a Living Laboratory

Supported by staff, student farm aides and faculty, students enrolled in the Practice of Organic Agriculture program (POA) work as interns on the Organic Farm throughout the entire growing season. The growing methods practiced and taught at the Farm provide a working example of organic agriculture with a focus on soil health. Students learn how to plan, plant, maintain and harvest a diverse array of crops while also developing a wide variety of agricultural skills. The internship is supported by academic work in the agricultural sciences. Yearly research projects test new crop and crop varieties, as well as ideas to improve the Farm. 

Students can learn the art and science of making compost at the Compost Facility. Student-designed composting tunnels rapidly turn farm waste into compost for fertilizing the fields and orchards.