US (OH): New greenhouses boost research, competitive edge

The new Williams Hall greenhouse complex on the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center’s Wooster campus is much more than a replacement for the greenhouse lost to a tornado almost five years ago: It’s a state-of-the-art facility that will help advance plant research and strengthen Ohio agriculture.

The original Williams Hall greenhouse complex was leveled by a September 2010 tornado that destroyed or damaged many other buildings and more than 1,000 trees at OARDC, the research arm of The Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences. The new greenhouses became operational in November 2014.

“It has been a long time coming, but our new facility will enhance the research and educational capabilities of our programs,” said Michelle Jones, professor and chair of the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science’s Greenhouse Committee. “It is a huge improvement from the greenhouses that previously occupied this site.”

The new complex includes 14,400 square feet of space for conducting greenhouse research and growing plants for laboratory-based research projects — with more than 20,000 square feet of total space including the hallways. The facility is divided into 14 bays that are 24 feet by 40 feet each and two smaller bays, 24 feet by 20 feet each.

The greenhouses are controlled by an Argus Titan 2 environmental control system, which allows each researcher to independently control the environmental parameters for his or her experiments and plants.

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