New hydroponic greenhouse set to open at WCHS this fall

Whitley County High School is staying on the cutting edge when it comes to agricultural education thanks to an all-new, 2,000-square-foot hydroponic greenhouse facility that is slated to be fully operational this fall.

WCHS vo-ag teacher Brian Prewitt is overseeing the installation of the new greenhouse facility, and he is happy about the opportunities that it is going to present students for years to come.

“We’re always trying to be innovative in following along with what is going on in the agriculture industry,” Prewitt said. “Hydroponics and controlled environment agriculture are what’s really huge in our state right now, and across America.”

For those who are not familiar with what hydroponics is, Prewitt explained that it means to grow plants in water instead of soil. Instead of the plants receiving essential nutrients through the ground, they are delivered via an automatic water delivery system.

“There are 16 nutrients that the plants need to grow,” Prewitt said. “Our system has sensors that are measuring the levels of those nutrients in the water all the time. The sensors will send messages to a pump, and the pump will suck the nutrients up from nearby barrels.”

Prewitt and his students mix the nutrients, which arrive in a powdered form, into the barrels. The mixture is then delivered to the plants through tubes that are connected to dispensing units. The dispensers are monitored regularly to ensure accurate distribution of nutrients at the appropriate times.

“Basically, everything that would normally be found in the ground, we are putting it into the water,” Prewitt said.

This growing method is becoming increasingly prevalent in the agriculture industry because land is getting more and more scarce. “Every day we’re losing farm land,” Prewitt explained. “As that happens, we have to find out how we can feed more people with less land. This is a good way to do that. In a facility like this, we can grow 30 times more produce than we can outside.”

Prewitt said that companies are actively investing in what he called “mega-greenhouse” facilities in the state of Kentucky, so providing this type of training for Whitley students should pay big dividends in the future.

“We’re trying to train these students so that they can leave here and go to work for some of these big companies,” said Prewitt. “Those are good, high-paying jobs that are coming to our area, and those large greenhouses are going to work in the same way that ours does, using the same type of technology.”

In addition to providing unique educational opportunities, the new greenhouse facility will also be used to generate funds for the school’s vo-ag program.

“This is going to be a full-fledged business,” said Prewitt. “There will be a store, and a processing area. We will be open to the public, selling produce such as tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and strawberries, and we also have contracts with some local restaurants to supply them with fresh, local produce as well.”

Speaking more on the contracts with local restaurants, Prewitt said, “With the supply chain issues that we’ve seen, those restaurants are excited to have a local supplier that they can rely on for produce year-round. We will be utilizing grow lights during the winter, so even if there’s five inches of snow on the ground, we can still be inside picking produce because we will have heat and light indoors.”

Prewitt said that all funds raised through the greenhouse will go to purchase supplies, cover operating costs, and to pay for other needs that may arise within the school’s vo-ag program. He is hopeful to see the facility ready to open in mid-September, and to be harvesting produce by the middle of October.