New South Laurel High greenhouse opens

Apr. 19—The placement of an auxiliary gymnasium on South Laurel High School campus is claiming the space that formerly housed the Agriculture department's greenhouse.

But on Monday, April 15, the new and larger greenhouse opened with grandeur before students and community leaders.

Jason McWhorter, Agriculture Department Head at SLHS, said the new facility offers the latest technology and is an excellent learning experience for students.

"We have relocated to this new greenhouse which is on top of technology. This is open to the public and we need your support," he said. "We generate funds from sales to buy pots, seeds and soil for the next year."

The pots and plants of the new facility — located on the hill by South Laurel Middle School near the Somerset Community College's Laurel campus — adorned the entire capacity, boasting colorful hanging flower baskets, potted ferns on the floor and table after table of flowers and garden vegetables.

Among those were different varieties of each flower and vegetable. Tomatoes, for instance, offered red and yellow varieties including Beefsteak, Mr. Stripey, Big Beef, cherry tomatoes and grape tomatoes.

Flowering plants ranged from pansies to begonias to rose moss and displayed a colorful setting of red, purple, white, yellow, blue amidst a sea of greenery.

Being head of the agriculture department is especially meaningful to McWhorter at his alma mater. McWhorter said he was an agriculture student when the greenhouse was first located in what is now South Laurel Middle School's parking lot.

"That building burned in 1978 and the new one was built in 1979," he said. "I was a student then."

McWhorter encouraged the public to attend the grand opening of the new greenhouse on Saturday, with hours of operation being from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The SLHS FFA teams with the North Laurel High School students to host a truck pull in July with proceeds profiting both agricultural programs.