A group of students is working on an indoor gardening area as a part of a larger European project.

Starting this march, students of the Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica are going to be able to take part in the creation of a community garden on the school’s campus. It is being realized by a group of 5 students at the Department of Romance Studies who are participating in the Virtual Environmental Challenge, a European project on an international scale that aims to bring more environmental consciousness to universities through creative ideas realized by the students themselves.

According to one participant, “We created the community garden to let students, as well as teachers, try gardening on their own without having to worry about the preparation or the upkeep. We are trying to make it a fun and educational activity without it seeming too stressful.”

Students are encouraged to try and grow simple herbs that can be used in foods or beverages, such as basil, dill, mint, sage, or parsley. However, it is not discouraged to bring seeds that are more complex to grow or even flowers that cannot be used practically.  

Another participant said, “We started with very common herbs because they are the easiest to work with. If we want people to try to grow something on their own instead of buying everything in a store, we must make sure they understand the basics of gardening first. That is our plan for the beginners, but we had a few more experienced people bring in flowers like lavender. It smells amazing!”

While the Virtual Environmental Challenge ends in early May, the garden is here to stay for as long as there is interest in it. The involved group plans to add a few more interactive elements to the project, such as a blackboard where students can write the names of the plants in their language.