New College MCR builds new vegetable patch at Weston Buildings

New College MCR has built a brand-new vegetable patch at Weston Buildings to elevate the sustainability efforts in College. The long process of implementing the vegetable patch was championed by the MCR environmental rep Lara Boudinot and New College Tutor for Graduates, Ashleigh Griffin.

Identifying the best location at Weston was the first priority, as students needed to take into account sunlight and flood sites. After finding a suitable location, the proposal was then taken to New College Garden Committee to be officially approved. 

Following approval, New College's fantastic maintenance team constructed the bed from brown recycled plastic timber in-house. A team of MCR students then filled in the bed with soil and planted the spring/summer plants.

Strawberries, beetroot, courgettes, cucumbers, tomatoes, basil, watermelon, and potatoes have all been planted so far, and pumpkins, carrots and garlic will be added as summer/autumn arrives.

The MCR's plan is to distribute the food for use at their events and to their students directly. In the future the committee hopes to collaborate with the catering team to use the food they produce in Hall.

Former MCR President, Theo McAuliffe, said:

"The hope is that we will continue to expand with more veg beds to increase the amount of food the MCR can grow itself to be a bit more sustainable!"

We look forward to tasting the fruits of their labour!