The Beatrice High School science club is hosting its annual spring sale this week, and it’s a great opportunity for the community to purchase some beautiful plants. This event is taking place in the school’s greenhouse, which was initiated several years ago as a grant project by Dr. Joan Christen. For the past five years, BHS teacher Paula Heinz has been in charge of managing the greenhouse and plant sale.
Paula Heinz’s dual-credit botany class plays a crucial role in assisting with the sale, and she aims to involve agricultural classes in the future. She emphasizes that students are taught about plant structures and processes such as cells, transpiration, nutrients, and water requirements for photosynthesis.
The plants sold at the sale are ordered from plugs from commercial greenhouses since BHS holds a distributor’s license and does not develop its own plant varieties. The selection of plants is based on new and interesting varieties that are easy to care for. Paula hopes that students will learn about plant care, greenhouse maintenance, and skills that could lead to careers in landscaping, plant science, genetics, gardening or lawn care.
This year’s spring sale primarily features annual bedding plants with a few perennials included. These plants are suitable for pots and landscaped beds. The sale hours are Wednesday to Friday from 3:45-5 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m.-noon. Interested individuals should park in the high school parking lot and enter through the front doors, proceeding past the main staircase to the back of the school where the greenhouse is located.
Overall, this event provides an excellent opportunity for both students and members of the community to gain valuable knowledge about plants while supporting a worthy cause at Beatrice High School Science Club!