What do a pig, a rabbit, and STEAMWork Design Studio Coordinator Mr. Mick Lorusso have in common? They were all part of the Permaculture Open House.

On Friday, May 9, students, staff, and animals gathered behind the Mudd building for the third annual Permaculture and Sustainability Open House, a celebration of student work and sustainability in action thanks to the Sustainable Building and Design class. Hosted in the Permaculture garden, the event featured student-built installations, herbal teas from garden-grown plants, seed packet giveaways, and even an animal visit, including Morty the bunny, and for the first time, a pig named Kevin. No really, after Kevin Bacon. Get it?

“We’re sharing the love of the Permaculture class and the garden. There’s plants, animals, and a raffle, which is really cool,” said Julia G. ’27, a student in the elective.

Service and Community Engagement Coordinator Ms. Erica St. John, who runs an animal sanctuary, has brought animals to the Permaculture garden open house every year since the event’s founding. “I think this event is to showcase the work that the Permaculture and the sustainable building and design students have been doing, and to celebrate the garden,” said Ms. St. John. Previously, she brought chickens and rabbits to the event, but this was the first year she brought a pig.

“I was very excited,” said Isabelle Y. ’27, who visited the Open House to meet Kevin and Morty.

Upper School Art Department Chair Mr. David Prince, who teaches both the Permaculture and Sustainable Building and Design electives and Mr. Mick Lorusso both believe that animals are a big part of growing the ecosystem in the garden. “Animals can help to reduce the amount of waste the garden produces… by eat[ing] all kinds of food scraps and help[ing] with pest control,” said Mr. Prince.

Looking forward, both Ms. St. John expressed hope that the presence of animals might become permanent one day. “Mr. Prince, Mr. Lorusso, and I would love animals to be part of the Permaculture garden at Westridge,” said Ms. St. John. “So I think by bringing animals, we can encourage administration to consider allowing us to have rabbits or chickens here.”

This year’s Open House also launched a new initiative, the Westridge Community Garden, where staff can tend to their own raised garden bed throughout the year. “We wanted to use [the open house] to launch our community garden, which is a new thing we’re doing,” said Mr. Prince. The initiative aims to increase sustainability as well as provide a place for faculty to enjoy the outdoors during the school day. 

Beyond the festive atmosphere, the event also marks the culmination of months of student work. Mr. Lorusso, who supervises the garden and is a regular guest of the Permaculture and Sustainable Building and Design electives, added that the structure of the class is designed for students to work up to the open house. “We even start the class in the Upper School electives, especially the Permaculture elective, saying, ‘Is there something that you would like to offer in the Open House by the end in May?’” said Mr. Lorusso.

This year’s Open House showcased more in-depth projects by students. The students were on-site to talk about their projects, which ranged from informational posters to garden-grown foods. “We had the Sustainable Building and Design class spend a little more time thinking about how to present what they had been doing,” said Mr. Prince.

In addition to displays, students made herbal aromatherapy pillows, marshmallows from mallow weeds, and cupcakes using golden berries grown in the garden.

As the Permaculture garden program continues to grow, the garden has become not only a space for learning but a living classroom for creativity, sustainability, and community.