Willow Lake Farm

Willow Lake Farm is managed and operated by Kansas State University students. We grow a wide variety of vegetable crops, in addition to oyster and shittake mushrooms. Small fruits and fruit trees were planted last year and we expect some of them to start fruiting this season.

The farm is managed by Aaron Yoder, a senior in Fruit and Vegetable Production who has over three years of growing experience.

The farm is advised by Dr. Rhonda Janke, an associate professor in horticulture who also runs a small farm in Wamego, KS.

The farm, although not CERTIFIED organic, does not use any synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. We rely primarily on physical exclusion (using row covers), crop rotation, and crop diversity to lessen the impact of pest damage. We use grassed pathways and hay mulch for erosion and weed control and use minimal tillage to preserve soil structure and biota. One of the primary goals of the farm is to educate the public and maintain transparency regarding how we grow our produce. We will likely have several tours and other events at the farm, so watch your inbox!

This year we plan on installing one (possible two) high tunnels at the farm. High tunnels are plastic covered structures that rely on passive heating to extend the growing season earlier and later in the year. High tunnels are one of the many ways we can insure product quality and quantity, as the unpredictable environmental stresses that accompany field production are greatly buffered in high tunnels.