College greenhouse brings in the green

From the Welland Tribune: In the heart of Niagara College’s Niagara-on-the-Lake campus, a greenhouse operation does double duty as a horticultural teacher and money maker.

This is all part of the horticulture program, which has been offered by Niagara College since it opened in 1967.

College greenhouses first operated on Niagara St. in St. Catharines across from Laura Secord Secondary School. About 15 years ago, operations moved over to the new campus on Glendale Ave. But the program and its greenhouses have remained a college mainstay, with more than 150 students enrolled in the greenhouse, landscape and horticulture technician programs.

In addition to its academic service, the greenhouse is run as a “learning enterprise” where plants, flowers and vegetables grown there help pay for the program’s operation.

“We grow just about anything a greenhouse would grow, but we grow it in small quantities and we grow a variety,” said Jim Thomson, manager of campus development and the greenhouse.

Plants are sold to the public, with money used to buy new equipment, update the greenhouse and offset costs.

Varieties cultivated there include marigolds, petunias and impatiens, with perennials grown in poly-houses. Tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and herbs are also produced and sold. Some plants are used on the campus property itself, through its native tree nursery. Others are sold to customers including the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Brock University and commercial landscapers.

Graham Boaretti, 20, praised the program’s practicality and usefulness.

“You’re in the field, working with people who’ve worked in the field and have experience hands-on themselves, which is really nice,” said the Niagara-on-the-Lake resident.

“You’re getting out (there) and doing everything you would be doing at a job — that’s fantastic,” he said. “That’s the best way to learn, I find.”

To read the full article, click here. To learn more about Niagara College's Greenhouse, visit www.niagaracollegegreenhouse.com.