Reindeer Garden 

The Reindeer Garden is located in the old reindeer pens west of the Georgeson Botanical Garden along West Tanana Drive in Fairbanks, Alaska.  It is one of the primary learning sites for the students participating in the Student Gardener Training Program at the UAF Office of Sustainability Nanook Grown program.  This garden space consists of approximately 2000 square feet of raised beds, in which a variety of vegetable and fruit plants are grown.  Students get to learn all aspects of growing in Alaska, from spring bed preparation to planting, watering, and weeding, to harvest and fall clean up.  The produce from this garden is donated to the Fairbanks Community Food Bank and the BreadLine, Inc. and also offered to members of the community on a donation basis to fund future Alaska Harvest Collaborative projects.

Fox Garden

The Fox Garden is located next to the Alaska Variety Trials in the fields of the UAF Experiment Farm.  It is approximately 2500 sq feet of field space and is used as a training garden for future growers and producers in collaboration with the Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District’s AFFECT farmer training program.  Here they learn and practice medium- to small-scale Alaska farming techniques while developing other more advanced commercial workforce skills and experiences.  The food harvested from these plots is then sold to Chartwells, the dining services contractor for the UAF campus.  As a result, students get to experience all aspects of commercial production–from planning to planting, weeding and irrigation, to harvest, preparation, and distribution of a final market product to a buyer.  The hard work poured into this garden  is brought full circle by producing income for the Alaska Harvest Collaborative and its future educational projects, while adding locally grown food to the community in a meaningful way.