With the recent opening of the Clark Farm, Oberlin students, faculty and community are now giving greater attention to agricultural innovation and design.
Located approximately a mile and a half south of Tappan Square, the farm consists of 70 acres of college-owned land that has been rented out to the Ecological Design Innovation Center (EDIC), which currently manages the property in conjunction with the Oberlin Sustainable Agriculture Project (OSAP) and the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association (OSCA).

When contractors sought to buy the land from the College last year, student protests and petitions prevented what could have become one more example of urban sprawl. Renting the land to EDIC illustrates an increased effort by the College to promote more sustainable methods of building and farming on its own property.
The organic farm has the potential to be a changing force in regional agricultural practices. Through demonstrations of environmentally sound, economically viable alternatives, farmers in the area may be motivated to change their current farming methods. Although organic farming methods require more time and manual labor than do conventional methods, the crops produced generally have greater value and have a larger per capita yield.
The farm is currently being used for a variety of programs. Educational initiatives geared toward both College and community, as well as local farmers and elementary and high school students have become the top priorities.
The farm is also attempting to grow an array of crops through innovative farming techniques. The history of the land will be a crucial factor in determining crop selection and treatment.
No pesticides or chemicals are used on the land. A regularly donated compost heap from the College will introduce different nutrients into the soil and build a less erosive base.
To decide which crops should be grown, Project Manager and Oberlin graduate Brad Masi, who has been with the project since its conception last May, performed multiple soil tests on the land with the help of four Oberlin professors and seven students. By overlaying the different information, they have collected information on soil acidities and nutrients, ground water and surface water distribution, as well as topographical maps and charts, the best areas for planting can be determined.
The farm is currently growing asparagus, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries. There is also a small apple orchard. Along with increasing the number and variety of crops on the property, there are also plans to create a wetlands area and a new OSAP farm.
The farm also intends to build several ecologically sustainable structures. Currently, a greenhouse with strawbail insulation is being constructed and is intended for use by November.
“We want to take what we want to do and match it with what the ecological conditions on the site are,” Masi said. “We wont impose or engineer the landscape to meet our preconceived notions.”

EDIC hopes to have a caretaker living on the site in the future, monitoring the property and making the property more accessible to others. Students and community members can volunteer to work on the farm by contacting brad.masi@oberlin.edu.
“I think first and foremost [the farm] is a place where people can connect with nature and the natural cycles unique to this place,” Masi said. “One major source of connection is the organic farm where people can see where the food is grown... I think more specifically too, we’re looking at an experiment to see how we can provide the basic human needs – food, energy and shelter – while enhancing habitat and improving environmental quality.”