Pizza night at Troy Gardens brings people together and education to farming students

 Courtney Ross and Clay Yapp work on pizzas for Farm Fresh Pizza Nights at Troy Farm. Ross is a current student in the Beginning Farmers Training program at the farm, and Yapp completed it in 2006 (Logan Garcia/Madison Commons).

Farming can be more fun than traveling Central America or studying bald eagles, according to Courtney Ross, who graduated with a degree in biology from UW-Steven’s Point earlier this year.

After graduating, Ross spent some time traveling, and even moved to Arizona to study bald eagles for a few months. But she soon found that out of all she has done since finishing school, joining Beginning Farmer Training classes at Troy Farm was her favorite.

“There’s so much more to farming than just planting your own vegetables,” Ross started to say one hot and sunny Thursday afternoon, before turning to begin work on an order of seven pizzas. 

As a student in the training classes, Ross learns all aspects of farming at Troy by performing many different tasks, including making pizzas for Farm Fresh Pizza Nights to raise money for the program.

That Thursday afternoon Ross worked on pizzas beside Clay Yapp, pizza crew leader for Community GroundWorks. Yapp farms full-time and helped during the trial run of Farm Fresh Pizza Nights last year. He finished his farmer training classes here in 2006 and said the program’s hands-on approach was invaluable to his education.

AfIda Yu applies the finishing touches to a pizza. Yu completed the Beginning Farmers Training program at Troy Farm, became an intern, and still participates as a worker share in exchange for a CSA membership. (Logan Garcia/Madiso

“As a farmer, you’re wearing so many different hats - you’re a botanist one day, a carpenter and an electrician - all in the same week, and when you do all of that even in a small capacity, it prepares you in an unparalleled way,” Yapp said.

The pizza nights began last summer as a way to enhance weekly Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) pickup days at Troy Farm, according to Annali Smucker-Bryan, the farm education manager at Community GroundWorks.

“We just want that experience of picking up their vegetables to be more of a community experience,” Smucker-Bryan said.

Community GroundWorks operates Troy Land and Gardens, a 31-acre property that includes community gardens and restored prairie and woodlands on Madison’s northside. Troy Farm itself occupies about five of those acres, and was Madison’s first urban farm when it opened in 2001.

On Thursday nights, customers can buy made-to-order pizzas made from fresh produce from the farm, with past toppings including summer squash, kale, sweet onions, basil and collard greens, but each week’s menu changes depending on the harvest. Community GroundWorks encourages people to bring bottles of wine and other sides to enhance their nights. The farm stand has outdoor seating with live music as a place for the community to eat together.

Proceeds from Farm Fresh Pizza Nights support Beginning Farmer Training classes offered each summer by Community GroundWorks, which teaches students the basics of farming and managing a business.

The classes are intended for people who are interested in production farming, which is growing more than enough food for oneself and selling surplus as a full-time career or as an additional income source. Topics in the program include greenhouse management, crop rotation, irrigation and beekeeping.

Five students make up this year’s class, but it has had as many as 15 students in past years. As their last project of the course, students present their own business plans for a farm of their own using knowledge gained from classes.

The outdoor seating area at Troy Gardens is open for eating pizza and listening to music on Farm Fresh Pizza Nights. Community GroundWorks encourages people to bring wine and other sides for a night with the community. (Logan Garcia/Madison Commons)

Community GroundWorks Farm Production Manager Garrett Peterson said alumni from the program take their experience into other careers aside from farming, including the REAP Food Group’s Farm to School Program which works to introduce local produce into school lunches and snacks.

“It’s a great opportunity to learn food systems work and to have that experience,” Peterson said.

Ross said she hopes to one day own her own farm after finishing the training program, but might stay in Madison for another year to work before making any major life decisions.

“Troy’s a really special place because you get to understand the whole process of running a farm works and the leaders involve you with every sort of decision, you get to try everything,” Ross said.

For his part, Yapp said he wants to continue helping Community Groundworks with the pizza nights as much as he can.

“It’s a great idea, and this organization has been a big part of my life. I owe them a lot and I’d like to see this project succeed,” Yapp said.

Farm Fresh Pizza Nights will continue until September 21st on Thursdays from 4 to 7 p.m. at 500 Troy Drive. Details for specific nights are posted in events on Community Groundworks’ Facebook page.