It looked more like two guys piecing together large square Tinkertoys, connected by white tubing, than workers of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Aquaculture & Fisheries Center building an urban garden at Pine Bluff High School.
Tenth-grade biology teacher Morgan Wilson and sixth grader Akiriam McDonald watched, even briefly joining in to help with the placement of the tubing recently.
It's different, exciting and inspirational. So much so, Wilson added, "We're thinking about getting the garden club back together."
Reginald Wilson, high school assistant principal and Morgan Wilson's father, is just as enthusiastic as his daughter about the new gardening project.
Five UAPB faculty members and graduate students are volunteering their time in the construction of the urban garden, which combines water-based growing (known as hydroponics) with fish living in the circulating water below. And in that case, it becomes aquaponics.
So for instance, the lettuce head is grown on top of water, while its roots and any variety of warm-water fish live below the surface.
Tilapia is a popular aquaponic choice, but goldfish also work well, too, said Dayan "Dave" Perera, extension specialist at the aquaculture.
While goldfish can survive freezing water, tilapia can't. Fish waste adds some of the nutrients required by the plants, while in turn the plants filter the water so the fish remain healthy.
Also, the microbes that thrive in the water provide additional nutrients, Perera said.
The result of the three living components is a perfect collaboration between aquaculture and gardening. It's also a growing backyard trend.
"As an extension specialist, I have received an ever-growing number of requests from urban gardeners, and small scale farmers requesting information regarding aquaponics and how to set up small scale systems," Perera said. "So currently it is not the norm but has significant potential in the near future."
The funding
The collaboration between the two schools came about when Reginald Wilson approached Perera about assistance with developing the garden grant. Perera said Wilson's "primary goal was to expose his students to farming and food production techniques" that included hands-on experience.
The high school received the $500 grant from the Arkansas Department of Agriculture's State School Garden program, and as well, Reginald Wilson said the school raised another $500 through community donations.
A community partner donated the four giant totes that were used in the construction of the four water bed garden sections and a fifth that is dedicated to rainwater collection.
Out of the classroom and into the garden
"The kids didn't understand what we were talking about at first, but now that they can see and touch it, they are loving it," Reginald Wilson said.
The high school and UAPB staff members expect the water garden to be completed by Easter weekend, but the water has to cure for about a week.
"UAPB has bent over backward helping us with this project," and will continue to help when needed, Reginald Wilson said.
The planting should begin in early April.
Like in most Arkansas backyard in-ground or raised-bed gardens, tomatoes and leaf lettuce do well in water gardens, Perera said. But so do watercress, peppers, cucumber, strawberries and more.
Plans for the high school's spring aquaponic garden include lettuce and possibly sweet potatoes, and Reginald Wilson hopes it will be ready for a possible May "celebrating the garden" banquet.
The aquaponics garden will be one aspect of the high school's gardening endeavors. These include raised-bed gardening, a butterfly garden and renovating an unused greenhouse, he said.
He said he feels this is a progressive path for a high school in southeast Arkansas, and so far about two dozen students -- mostly girls -- are working on the aquaponic gardening project.
More than a botany lesson
"It's really exciting," Reginald Wilson said, more importantly, it's a teaching tool.
In southeast Arkansas, most people, including students, think of row crops when they consider farming but that's shifting and he hopes to change his students' perceptions, too. Agriculture is the No. 1 industry in the state, and includes row crops and aquaculture.
Perera said, "Our objective in this project is to highlight nontraditional farming methods to our students and community to show that farming can be done at a small scale or in an urban environment to support a small business, or grow fruits and vegetables for personal use and sustainability."
Reginald Wilson added, "Most students think of the usual careers such as doctors, nurses" but for those interested in agriculture, biology and botany, this could bloom into future career opportunities.
