Incorporating gardening to supplement your traditional classroom learning is an exciting step, no matter the grade or higher education level. Deciding to purchase a greenhouse for your school is a big step.
Gothic Arch Greenhouses has long been an advocate of horticultural education and making greenhouses for schools accessible for students of all ages.
Choosing a Greenhouse for Your School
One of the first steps to adding a greenhouse to support your curriculum is to define how you will use it. Once you have a plan, you can determine what equipment you will need.
Consider the following:
How many students you have
Which plants or crops you will be growing
The weather in your area
Will your program expand in the future
Number of Students
To assist educators and administrators in that process, we have created greenhouse levels based on the number of students enrolled. Each “level” breaks down the equipment sizes and supplies needed to support each size group.
Correct Equipment for Your Plants
Within each list, we further break the equipment and supplies down in phases. For example, each one begins with horticultural basics, an introduction to plant germination, propagation, transplanting and potting soil mixes. Knowing which plants or crops you will be growing will determine the specific equipment you will need.
Weather
The climate in your area will affect the type of greenhouse that you need. Some greenhouses are engineered to withstand heavy snow loads, while others combat excess humidity. Therefore, choosing a greenhouse that works best in your climate is important.
Expansion
Your program can grow as your students grow and learn new skills. Additional phases can incorporate ornamentals and forestry, field irrigation, and garden center management, greens keeping, landscaping and more.
Even at the most basic level, hands-on horticulture education can open up a new world of opportunities for students of any age. Perhaps a student may be inspired to start his or her own garden at home to pursuing an exciting career in research that may influence the very food we eat!
The impact of gardening—and horticulture education—is all around us. For decades, Gothic Arch Greenhouses has been a supportive partner of greenhouses in schools, and that’s why we’ve done the groundwork to help make getting started easier for teachers.
If you’re thinking about purchasing a greenhouse for your school, call us today at 1-800-531-4769 and one of our friendly representatives will be happy to help you!