The Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Association of Students (NSCSAS), a student-run undergraduate club connected by their interest in neuroscience and cognitive science, have come together to further maintain the Carol A Brocherding NSCSAS Garden for Growth to provide a space for the neuroscience and cognitive science communities to come together.
Through the Campus Sustainability Fund’s support, NSCSAS will continue to rent a garden plot at the University of Arizona’s Community Garden and host their two recurring garden events each semester. One event is held at the beginning of the semester which is primarily to introduce new NSCSAS members to the community garden, its staff, and corresponding organizations. Together, they plant seeds based on the current time of year and share gardening tips with each other. New NSCSAS members are then encouraged to paint rocks as a way of showing their involvement in the garden and NSCSAS. The final event, hosted at the end of the semester, is when the NSCSAS members get to harvest their sprouted flowers and vegetables. All vegetables that the garden grows are then donated to the Campus Pantry.
NSCSAS has created this garden environment to provide a space for their members to make connections with the neuroscience and cognitive science community and be able to take a break from schoolwork load through an engagement with nature. This also provides the students with developing landscaping and gardening skills while calling attention towards the current global climate crisis.
NSCSAS successfully rented their garden plot and created a space for club members to come together. In the fall 2023 semester, they held two garden harvest events that had 29 attendees. They harvested 3 bunches of cilantros, 2 onions, and a whole bushel of calendula. During their January harvest, they harvested 3 more bushels of cilantro which were donated to the Campus Pantry. Together, they planted 10 more seeds that included peas, leeks, Ethiopian kale, carrots, wild arugula, bunching onions, garbanzo beans, Raab broccoli, spinach, and turnips.
In the spring 2024 semester, they held 3 events: A Gardening and Survivalist Expert Event, Keeling Community Garden Volunteering, and a Garden Cooking Event. There were 26 attendees at these events. At The Gardening and Survivalist Expert Event, Station 22 of the Tucson Fire Department shared garden plot tips and had conversations about the importance of providing ample water to a garden plot to have a successful garden plot in the desert. At the Keeling Community Garden Volunteer event, members of the NSCSAS aided in spreading mulch, organizing tools, harvesting vegetation, weeding, and building raised beds. Through this opportunity, they created a connection between the University of Arizona College of Science clubs and the local gardening community. The Garden Cooking Event allowed students to learn how to cook healthy on-campus meals through the harvested crops. In May, they harvested 16 plants: 3 bunches of onions, 5 bushels of kale, 3 heads of lettuce, and 5 Purple Morning Glory flowers.
