The Emmaus High School greenhouse sits dormant at the end of the science hallway. Its lights are off, and no plants seem to be growing, despite the label to the left side of the door that states that it is the “Greenhouse”.
The EHS “greenhouse” is not actually a proper greenhouse due to the tinted windows and an unsuitable HVAC system. In order for a greenhouse to grow plants, it has to have an almost perfect condition containing a proper ventilation system that allows it to control the humidity and enough sunlight for the plants, according to South West Greenhouses and ClimaPod Greenhouses.
Information that can be gathered about the greenhouse is limited due to how long ago it was actually in use. The advisor of the Hydroponics Club, Zachary LaBar, discusses what he knows about the greenhouse’s current condition.
“The windows are tinted in order to help the room be more efficient as far as cooling goes in the summer, and that does reduce the amount of light that makes it in,” LaBar said. “So if we try to grow plants in there, we usually need to supplement additional light for them.”
The greenhouse is a T-shaped storage area and it has two floors, the second of which being in the form of a balcony. In the back of the greenhouse, there is a large window that reaches all the way to the top of the second floor. When the heat runs, the top floor gets hot. The Learning Lab has a balcony on the top floor of the greenhouse as well. Due to the library being on the second floor of the greenhouse, temperature regulation would be difficult, as there is no easy way to seal that area off.
LaBar says that originally, the greenhouse was used as a place for students to work on projects.
“But then there was really no way to support students working there and having teacher supervision, because all of the teachers are scheduled with a maximum number of classes,” LaBar said.
Currently, the greenhouse is used as a storage room for science teachers due to the limited space for supplies.
“Anatomy, for instance, those teachers have a lot of specialized bone models and other equipment they need, and they share often, and so it kind of gets stored in that room,” LaBar said.
Kristina Svencer is an AP Biology teacher at Emmaus High School. Svencer says that the greenhouse is a good place for storage.
“…it is used as a functional space for storage, because those are the needs of our science department, and we need storage in that area,” Svencer said.
Kelly Musselman, who teaches anatomy, Biology 1, and physiology, says that the greenhouse was never actually used as a greenhouse, despite its name.
“The closest it gets to being a plant growing area is kind of that table you see right there through that glass window,” Musselman said. “That’s one of our only department grow lights.”
The origin of the greenhouse room’s name is unknown. Musselman says that the “greenhouse” does look like a greenhouse from the outside.
“It’s one of the only places we have in the school that lets in a lot of natural light,” Musselman said.
Svencer says that the science wing of the building was redone many years ago and that the change may have occurred then.
“So it may have a lot of windows and it may be called the greenhouse, but otherwise, that’s it,” Svencer said.
EHS obtaining a greenhouse would not only help the students, but potentially the school and the students’ education.
“Having students run a greenhouse would be a really educational experience that would be hands-on, and project based, and real life. And I think there would be a lot of pluses to that,” Musselman said.
