HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Plants from the University of Alabama in Huntsville’s greenhouse went on sale Saturday and Sunday to benefit the UAH Biology Department and the student Green Club.
Plants in this sale included tomatoes, cucumbers, flowers and houseplants. There were also area artisans and vendors in attendance at the festival.
The festival was held at the UAH Community Gardens and the UAH greenhouse in the Shelby Center for Science and Technology. However, the event was moved inside the Shelby building due to the severe weather on Sunday morning.
The biology department has been working to revitalize the greenhouse for the past couple of years and make it a place for people to gather and learn.
The process of bringing the greenhouse back to life began with plant propagation that eventually turned into a spread life plant project. Then, the biology department partnered with the Green Club to bring awareness to the greenhouse.
It’s these collaborations and projects that help the plants in the greenhouse succeed.
“We do a lot of research projects up here,” Research Outreach Facilitator Lara Holladay said. “We are able to use the greenhouse for outreach in the community, so that we can collaborate with companies that may be looking to help us with student workers, like internships.”
When the biology department started working on the greenhouse a couple of years ago, it also took control of the community garden.
Halladay said they grow medicinals in their garden for teas that they make once a week to teach people about the health benefits these plants have.
“We use a lot of what we do up here to teach people about healthy living, you know, healthy eating,” Holladay said.
The biology department recently began a space biology program and the greenhouse has become a hub for it.
UAH student Tamaira Polk has played a large role in helping the plants grow healthy. She said they are currently researching how plants could grow in compact spaces, such as a ship in space.
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