Long Lane Farm’s fourth annual Pumpkinfest last Saturday featured pumpkin-painting and veggie burgers galore, as well a diverse lineup of folk, jazz and rock bands that provided an eclectic soundtrack throughout the crisp fall afternoon.
“It’s about gathering the community together and celebrating fall, while also raising awareness about local food issues,” reflected Dayna Locitzer ’09, who helped organize the event.
Although the Long Lane Farm lot originally housed a long-defunct detention school, the University purchased the property and then allocated one acre to be used for organic farming in the spring of 2004. By paying a small fee to the Community Supported Agricultural Project (CSA), participating students and Middletown residents receive a portion of the fresh veggies every week.
The farm produces over 40 varieties of vegetables, many of which were available for purchase during Saturday’s harvest celebration, including tomatoes, okra, hot peppers, potatoes and, of course, pumpkins.
With artists such as Santa Cruz native Bird By Snow (otherwise known as folksy freestylist Fletcher Tucker) and rock-and-roll jam-band Busted Roses (fronted by Wesleyan’s very own Director of Environmental Studies Barry Chernoff) providing a background groove, visitors to the festival were offered a wide range of organic goodies.
Besides tasting the muffins and locally produced honey, visitors could spray-paint their own t-shirts, plant garlic bulbs or receive a free bike tune-up from the on-campus bicycle repair co-op LEGIT.
Attendees could also check out a compost workshop sponsored by the Environmental Organizers’ Network (EON), as well as local artisans selling wares such as fuzzy woolen hats.
Other bands that contributed to the folksy soundtrack included Berkeley, Calif. native Sean Smith and Wesleyan jazz band Barney Bates and the Hot Tamales. Silvie Deutsch’s ’09 band, Belly Boat, played a set that lasted a little over half an hour, as did opening act The Circus Band, best described as, well, a circus.
Students rubbed shoulders with Middletown residents as well as an array of University professors, including Assistant Professor of Earth & Environmental Sciences Dana Royer, Assistant Professor of Biology Michael Singer and Associate Dean of the College Louise Brown. There was also a younger crowd in attendance. Small children squirmed while butterflies and four leaf clovers were painted on their cheeks, before running off to investigate the veggie burgers sizzling on the grill. Several painted gruesome expressions on their pumpkins, while some stuck with smiley-faces.
Renae Widdison ’10, who worked at Long Lane over the summer, credited the Environmental Studies Department as one of the main supporters of the event, particularly Chernoff.
“This year, Saturday’s festival was the culmination of several events highlighting some of the dynamic ways people are thinking about food and agriculture,” Widdison wrote in an e-mail. “It was a lot of fun! The E&ES department really helped [the farm group] out.”
The events included a film screening on Thursday of the 2004 documentary “The Future of Food.” Friday at the Russell House, co-founder of Texas-based non-profit the Rhizome Collective Scott Kellogg spoke on urban sustainability as related to agriculture.
Widdison said it was likely that Pumpkinfest would continue to expand in the future, as to include more events during the week building up to the Saturday festival. Until then, Long Lane will remain a cornerstone of food activism for students and Middletown residents alike.
“The farm’s been a really great place for talking about food activism, which doesn’t always happen on the rest of campus,” said Locitzer. “It’s a place to better understand where your food comes from.”
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