Anne Brzezicki

abrzezic@mtsu.edu

Warren Gill

Agribusiness & Agriscience

Discipline specific equipment

HORT/114

N/A

N/A

The MTSU Horticulture Center and its associated greenhouses are an integral part of the Plant and Soil Science program in the School of Agribusiness and Agriscience. The greenhouses in particular, are used extensively in courses, and provide experiential learning opportunities for many students. The greenhouses use Argus software which allows us to modify or alter environmental conditions by opening shutters or roof vents, turning on and off exhaust fans and heaters in response to individual house environmental readings (ie. temperature and relative humidity). Currently, the software is running on an outdated laptop which is prone to repeated failures. The current laptop is also not suitable for running pest management and scheduling software. A well functioning greenhouse computer is essential in not only maintaining greenhouse conditions, but is important in providing students with practical experience using technologies that they will likely encounter in their careers. Students in ABAS 4620 (Greenhouse Management), ABAS 4300 (Plant Protection), ABAS 4660 (Nursery Management), and ABAS 4630 (Floriculture) would benefit greatly in being able to learn and use this technology. A new laptop computer and projector housed in the landscaping classroom in the Horticulture Center would allow students to learn and use this important software keeping pace with the technological trends in the industry.