Students keeping honey bees and brewing cider on campus

‘Oasen’ is a new outdoor space created by the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, which will allow students to grow their own plants, keep animals and brew cider.

“We wanted to link the different skills that students have from Natural Resources, Veterinary, Food Sciences and Agricultural Development” says Rikke Pape Thomsen, founder.

“It had to be a place where students could socialize and apply all the theoretical knowledge they get from their lectures”, she adds of the project, which received funding from the KU Almene Fond, Studenterpuljen and the department.

Chickens, bees and beers

Oasen is divided into different sections, including a chicken house, a beehive, a garden and a brewery.

“This is just the beginning. We are working on implementing new areas such as a water collection system, a compost system and a vertical garden.” says Aslak, Natural Resources student.

A collaboration with Café Væksthuset and university professors is also on the cards. “Hopefully it will emerge in the upcoming academic year” He adds.

Get your hands dirty and slaughter some roosters

Students have embraced the opportunity to move the classroom environment outdoors.

“Oasen is a place where students can get their fingers dirty” says Tine, who is studying Natural Resources.

“Oasen really helped us to connect theory with practical stuff.” says Aslak. “But we also made a lot of mistakes.” “We grew plants too close to each other and our first attempt to make vertical gardens went completely wrong. But, this is part of the learning process.” He adds.

Too many aggressive roosters in the chicken house have also posed a problem. As a solution, they will be slaughtered at Oasen’s Harvest Fest on the 27 of September, which is open to the public and offers fresh food cultivated from Oasen. Check out the Facebook Event .

Want to see what the students are up to? Check out the gallery below! Pictures by Tine Engedal.

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