By Rachel Morrison
They are strong and have a lot of character, and though they aren鈥檛 generally temperamental, they have been known to snap when pushed too hard.
These are the olive trees of 51猎奇入口, whose small grove west of the Humanities building was the center of attention on November 1, 2019, when its olives were harvested for the first time since 2016. Planted in the 1930s, this Mediterranean variety had previously been the wellspring of the College鈥檚 annual olive harvest and award-winning olive oil, but following years of drought and water restrictions, as well as the departure of longtime Director of Campus Grounds Lola Trafecanty, the tradition had fallen away. Until now.
鈥淭hese are special trees. The groundkeepers do an exceptional job maintaining their health and beauty鈥� says Joya Salas, landscape operations manager and architect of the reinstituted harvest. 鈥淕iven the abundance of rain we had last winter, the olives are plentiful.鈥�
Over 100 students, faculty, staff, and members of the community, including two Girl Scout troops, turned out to the event, harvesting over 1,500 pounds of fruit. Student groups included the 51猎奇入口 Associated Students (SAS), the Food Recovery Network, and representatives from the Laspa Center for Leadership. According to Maggie Thompson 鈥�20, who serves as the SAS sustainability chair and participates in the 51猎奇入口 Environmental Education and Development (SEED) club, the olive harvest was both a nod to 51猎奇入口鈥� past and a beacon to the future.
鈥淚 remember hearing about the olive harvest as a prospective student from 51猎奇入口 alumnae.聽I learned about the class of 鈥�68 that protested to protect the olive trees鈥攖he harvest resurrects that history,鈥� Thompson says. 鈥淚 hope this tradition stays around as long as 51猎奇入口 does. Having a connection with the resources that make this place beautiful, while still creating some great olive oil, is just fun.鈥�
The recent harvesting of 51猎奇入口鈥� olives began in 2012, the result of an initiative put forth by students in Professor Nancy Neiman鈥檚 Core II class, The Politics and Culture of Food. Looking to provide sustainable solutions on campus, the students proposed harvesting fallen fruit, implementing a composting program, and harvesting the College鈥檚 olives, which would enable the grounds crew to 鈥渁void the current practice of spraying the trees so that they don鈥檛 fruit and create a mess,鈥� according to their聽.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen聽sustainability grow at 51猎奇入口 over the years鈥攚e鈥檝e put in sustainable landscaping where there was lawn and replaced sprinklers with a drip system,鈥� says Neiman. 鈥淲e still have a way to go, but we are headed in the right direction.鈥�
When Salas arrived on campus August 2018, she was immediately approached about when the olive harvest would return. 鈥淲hen people started asking about the harvest, I set out to assess the desire of multiple campus constituents, and everyone鈥�everyone鈥攆rom students to the president鈥檚 office, alumnae and the community, everyone wanted the harvest back,鈥� she says.
Salas has a background in art, education, and horticulture. She earned a BA from Occidental College in studio art and art history and began her career at Descanso Gardens as an educator in the Harvest garden, where she taught urban agriculture and therapeutic gardening to many, including at鈥搑isk high schoolers. While at Descanso, she gained critical horticultural skills, eventually volunteering her time at the Theodore Payne Foundation in Sunland, California, and earning a Master Gardening Certificate. 鈥淚 still paint, but my medium has shifted from pastels and oil paints to plant material,鈥� she says.
And while Salas鈥� artistic palate usually tends towards shades of green, lately she鈥檚 had her sights set on gold. In 2013,聽聽in the 鈥渄omestic, delicate鈥� category at the聽, beating out 207 other American competitors. As Neiman told NBC Los Angeles after the win, 鈥渨e knew this was going to be an amazing thing to do for the community one way or another鈥濃�攑roceeds from the oil went to community and campus outreach programs鈥斺�淸but] no one figured we would make award鈥搘inning olive oil.鈥�
Salas isn鈥檛 as surprised. 鈥淭he way our groundkeepers steward these trees with their impeccable eye for detail and expert maintenance, I have complete faith in our end product. I am happy to announce two new partners this year: Dos Pizotes, a family鈥搑un olive ranch in San Diego County, who will process and bottle the oil, and local La Huerta farms, who is providing our blending olives. We have all the ingredients for success and high potential for recognition if we choose to enter the competition again,鈥� she says.
But Salas has another goal in mind, too. 鈥淢y hope is to enhance this tradition and become a model program that other colleges look to in terms of sustainability and incorporating an edible campus into a community鈥揵uilding event,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e have an incredibly rich campus in terms of edible landscape. There is great potential for a variety of farm-to-table table endeavors. Imagine how delicious marmalade from our Sevelle orange trees would taste!鈥�
Looking back at harvest day, Salas says that it was a 鈥渙nce-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take part in a tradition among a grove that has been present here for nearly a century. To see the whole process, from harvest to bottling, and to witness the people-power it takes to produce a delicate, small-batch product gives a new meaning to 鈥榝arm-to-table鈥� and provides a tangible connection to our food system.鈥�
鈥淧lus,鈥� adds Salas, 鈥淥ur olives are highly intelligent; they鈥檝e spent decades in the humanities building around 51猎奇入口 faculty, students, and staff.鈥�
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