The Dirt Army (DA) was established as Franklin & Marshall’s Organic Gardening Club by members of the college’s Environmental Action Alliance (EAA) during the 2008-2009 school year. Tyler Plante ’10, Nic Auwaerter ’11 and Kelsey Lerback ’11 were the founders and first Dirt Army Interns — the summer farmers of the garden.
The goal of the DA is to reconnect students with farm, food and health by providing a space for organic gardening. In addition, the DA seeks to build partnerships within the Lancaster community to provide fresh vegetables and promote urban gardening.
Progressively, the DA grows in membership and support. F&M has graciously provided the club with a 25×30 plot of land at the Baker Campus, just a few blocks West of campus. In addition, F&M’s Facilities and Operations built a fence, provided compost (leaves collected from campus), and roto-tilled the plot for the club in 2008.
