Spring is still more than three weeks away, but Unity College students have been recently planting seeds that will eventually grow into vegetables to be harvested for the campus dining service as well as for use in the college grounds department’s landscaping.

The work at Half Moon Gardens/McKay Agricultural Research Station is part of the college sustainability program. Half Moon Gardens and its greenhouses were donated to the college in 2013 by Isabel McKay and Rick Thompson, who operated the business commercially for about six years and also made a $1 million donation to cover operating costs for a five-year period.

Additional Images

Unity College students work in a warm greenhouse planting vegetable seeds at the Half Moon Gardens/McKay Agricultural Research Station in Thorndike on Friday. The produce will eventually be used by the college dining services as part of the sustainability program. From left are Megan Lewis, Ru Allen, Erin Hogan and Bethany Slack. Slack said she liked the work and added, “It’s fun working in here because it’s warm and green.” Temperatures were near 70 degrees inside and 14 degrees outside. Staff photo by David Leaming

Unity College Assistant Professor of Agriculture Mary Saunders Bulan examines vegetable plants beginning to grow inside one of the campus greenhouses at the Half Moon Gardens/McKay Agricultural Research Station in Thorndike on Friday. Students raise vegetables for school dining services and campus landscaping. Staff photo by David Leaming

The farm is used for research as well as to give students practical experience in operating a farm. The complex includes a solar thermal heating system