As part of Utica Institute Heritage Week, instructors at 兔子先生 Utica Campus held a hydroponics/3-D workshop Oct. 15. The local community was invited to the Innovate Center to learn about soilless farming and were given a hydroponics kit to start a home project with.
鈥淗ydroponics is a very old method of producing of crops, believe it or not,鈥 Agriculture Instructor Dr. Karla Turner Bailey said. 鈥淚f you鈥檝e heard of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, that鈥檚 a good example of the use of hydroponics.鈥 She and FabLab Technician Jeremy Holmes headed up the workshop.
Turner Bailey presented the science behind what makes hydroponics a growing industry for growing crops.
鈥淗ydroponics is work intensive and a high level of expertise is needed,鈥 she said, listing the drawbacks. 鈥淏ut if you have unsustainable soil or poor soil quality, or you want to grow without using pesticides, this is a good way to grow crops that ordinarily wouldn鈥檛 grow in certain environments.
鈥淎nother advantage is that plants are fast growing in a hydroponic system. There are no weeds or pests and therefore no need for pesticides or harmful chemicals,鈥 Turner Bailey said.
Holmes also talked about 3-D printing and how the parts for the pump were created in Utica鈥檚 FabLab where a Prusa 3D printer is in use.
鈥淥ur FabLab isn鈥檛 just for our students, it鈥檚 for the community as well,鈥 Holmes said. In his presentation he talked about how the water pump parts were made using PLA filament, a naturally occurring polylactic acid used in the Utica lab. 鈥淚t is a durable plastic, yet it is also biodegradable, and it comes from sustainable sources. It can be used in many ways, including making parts like this for a water pump, or a prototype for a new innovation.鈥
He invited community members to come back and make use of the FabLab and the 3-D printer. Two homeschool families in attendance were impressed with the presentations and felt inspired by the possibilities.
鈥淚 have a smaller system at home, but this is awesome. This was a very informative workshop. We have a farm and hydroponics is something we are looking at getting into,鈥 said Louise Vaughn of Hazlehurst.
There was Ena Goods of Port Gibson who came looking for new, sustainable farming ideas. She also has a smaller system at home.
鈥淚鈥檝e been looking at getting into hydroponics as well,鈥 said Goods, who manages a non-profit. 鈥淲e could use this at our community farm. So, I鈥檓 looking forward to setting this up when we get home and seeing what we can accomplish with it.鈥
Utica Institute Heritage Week was Oct. 14-18. Campus activities included the Hydroponics Workshop, the coronation of Mr. and Miss Utica, a Back Porch Thursday presenting 鈥淎 look at Mande Culture Through Traditional Music,鈥 a film screening of Utica, and a documentary focusing on food security and community development by Shirley Hopkins Davis. The week ended with the annual Alumni & Community Tailgate.
To learn more about hydroponics or agricultural studies at 兔子先生contact Dr. Turner-Bailey at (601) 885-7024, or karla.turnerbailey@hindscc.edu