St. Cloud State University Policies & Procedures

 Emergency Procedures

For any emergency requiring police, dial 911. If you call 911 for a medical emergency, remember that the doors to the greenhouse are typically locked and may need to be propped open for some emergency personnel. Public Safety should have a key, but be prepared to help on their arrival. Aside from a medical emergency, the most likely reason to use this number would be if you witness vandalism taking place. Consider your own personal safety first.

For any emergency requiring service personnel, such as a broken water main, no water, no electricity, no heat, no coolers functioning, broken glass overhead, etc., call the greenhouse director and the facilities emergency line at (320) 308-3166. Wait and/or check back to be sure that someone is attending to the situation.

Space Allocation

New users of any Biology greenhouses should consult first with the greenhouse director, Angela McDonnell. Unless prior arrangements are made, a space request should be approved before any plants are placed in any greenhouses. Plants found in the greenhouse without approval may be discarded.

Care of Plants and Facility

The plants in the teaching collection are watered, fertilized, potted, and transplanted by the greenhouse staff. Researchers must water, fertilize, prune, and otherwise care for their own research plants.

Viruses are a constant threat to any collection of plants. Thorough hand-washing with soap BEFORE working in the greenhouses is a recommended practice for all. If you are a tobacco user or if you have hand-to-hand contact with a tobacco user, this recommendation should be construed as a requirement. This procedure will minimize the threat of transmitting Tobacco Mosaic Virus (TMV). In addition, some of our plants are known to have viruses (other than TMV), but they are too valuable to discard. The greenhouse policy is that NO plants will be cut or harvested unless the pruning shears, knife, or cutting implement is sterilized first with a propane torch. Please help us keep our collection free of viruses by following this necessary protocol.

Borrowing Plants

Many plants are available for use, but please obtain specific permission from the greenhouse manager so that we can maintain control over some of our special plants. These special plants are to be used only within specific guidelines due to their small biomass, rarity in the wild, requirements for particular environmental regimes, etc. If you borrow plants for use in a course, please be sure that they are cared for while away from the greenhouse and that you return them in a timely manner.

Fertilizer Use

One day, we will have fertilizer injection systems with complete fertilizer mixed at approximately 100 to 200 ppm of nitrogen to allow for daily watering of most plants without incurring fertilizer burn. Until then, we fertilize manually with Miracle-Gro according to label directions using well water. It is advisable to leach accumulated salts by watering periodically with well water alone.

Insecticide Use

1. Any plants are likely to be sprayed with a pesticide on the scheduled day and time: The day and times vary twice per year. When the greenhouse is being treated or for the duration of the Re-entry Interval, it is a violation of state and federal laws to enter the greenhouse.
2. Plants are often sprayed with an insecticidal soap or an insect growth regulator, but occasionally a more toxic compound is used. Each greenhouse has a schedule of pesticides sprayed, along with the date of spraying posted in or near the headhouse.
3. Please report any pest outbreaks promptly.

Pruning and/or Harvesting of Plants

Please be sure to read about viruses in the second paragraph under Care of Plants and Facility section. A flame or torch is used to sterilize cutting tools, and it is dangerous if not used properly. Take care that there are no plants, glass, people, etc. in the path of the flame before turning it on. Please do not prune any plants in the teaching collection unless specifically requested.

Root Washing and Pot Washing

Washing of roots and other soil activities (washing pots) should be done outside if possible. If it is done inside, remove any excess soil first and do your best to ensure that soil does not clog any sink or floor drains. Dirty pots can be used “as is” or they can be cleaned and used.

General Information

Facilities: SCSU COSE and Biology maintain greenhouse facilities for teaching, research, and outreach events. We have two facilities, the Cargill greenhouse and the main greenhouse. The main greenhouse is divided into five separate modules.

Parking and Bike Stands: The nearest bike racks are on the northwest side of the Wick Science Building. Parking outside of the greenhouse is available via a pay-lot using the Flowbird app.

Restrooms: We have an all-gender restroom inside of the greenhouse outfitted with a toilet, sink, and shower.

Securing Facilities: The greenhouse is to be kept locked and secured at all times. Sometimes a door does not fully close on its own in winter. Please pull it closed.

Teaching Collection: The Plant Teaching Collection is an assemblage of plants from around the world. It contains over 100 species in modules 1 and 5 primarily, in about 40 families. Most plant science courses use these specimens.

Specific Information for Designated Users

Teaching Assistants

• A collection of living organisms that does not receive adequate care is a collection that either does not thrive or does not exist for long. TAs using plants need to take responsibility for every plant used.
• Please read carefully and be familiar with the Greenhouse Policy and Guidelines. Smooth operation of the greenhouses depends on users’ knowledge of protocols and policies.

Information for Plant Caretakers and Staff

Watering

1. Before you begin watering, unwind the hose and “snake” it out on the floor in the direction you are going to water.
2. After watering, wind the hose with wide loops (fewest number) and with most of the loops resting on the floor (for long hoses) or on a rack (short hoses). The hose should be untwisted.
3. Do not step on the hose. This weakens the hose and causes it to kink more easily.
4. Keep the nozzle off the floor at all times. This is a normal sanitation procedure to prevent contaminating the nozzle and therefore the plants with soil-borne pathogens such as Pythium, Rhizoctonia, and Phytophthora.
5. The last loops may have to be shorter or extended over the hose bib in order to keep the nozzle off the floor.

General Watering Strategies

1. Watering is the most important job in the greenhouse. It must be done free of distractions so that the person watering can concentrate 100% on the task. Watering always takes precedence over everything else, except an emergency. Watering of the collection is not a job assigned to volunteers.
2. Learn what you can “get away with.” There are many judgment calls when watering (e.g. “this plant doesn’t need water now, but it may need it before tomorrow morning”). What you choose to do should depend, to a large extent, on your understanding of the plant’s normal growing conditions (in the wild) and its condition in cultivation (large plant in a small pot?, porous soil mix? clay or plastic pot? recently cut back? current weather outside? expected weather for the day? etc.). Don’t assume that because a plant is wilting, that it needs to be watered more frequently. Plants can wilt due to overwatering or due to a physiological lag when suddenly exposed to full sun. Learn which plants have narrow tolerances.
3. Watering carefully takes time. If you start too late, you will be rushed and your decisions will reflect your poor planning. Even for those with experience, and depending on the prevailing weather conditions, watering (and checking plants) can be a 1-2 hour task.
4. Periodically, feel the temperature of the water to be sure it is not too hot or too cold. A number of factors can influence water temperature, including solar gain on copper pipes.
5. Some plants have special requirements. Ask questions if you need information on specific plants.

Environment

Learn to “feel” the greenhouse environment of each room so that you recognize a problem when one exists (e.g. coolers not operating, vent stuck open or closed, heat not functioning or heat on at wrong time, etc.). Please check around the greenhouses; don’t merely water and go home.

Cleaning

After watering, the backbone of greenhouse work is cleaning. Please take care of at least one cleaning task each time you come in to water: pick up dead plant matter, look for pests, sweep the floor, clean the benches.

Expectations

Find out what you can do to make this operation run smoothly. If you see something that needs to be fixed, ask about it. Be careful not to make assumptions, especially as they pertain to plants. (e.g. Crowded plants may or may not be transplanted. Others may be dumped, or divided and repotted into the same pot.)

Learn what plants in our collection are valuable so you know where to concentrate your efforts when watering or giving care to the collection. Learn the kinds of work that are emergency related and learn how to deal with them so that you can act efficiently and appropriately in an emergency situation.

Special Notes for Interns/Practicum Students

We greatly appreciate students who are accepted into the greenhouse as work schedules permit. Generally, one or two times are selected in order to fulfill the credit taken. We encourage those who want to learn and want to help us accomplish our goals. Not all of the work done in greenhouses is plant work, nor is it all “fun” work. If you are working as staff or as an intern or practicum student, the following list of tasks are ones that often need checking or doing.

• Sweep floors
• Empty garbage cans from rooms into larger headhouse garbage
• Put clean pots away or clean dirty pots and/or organize them
• Organize and consolidate clean flats, pots and other containers
• Organize and consolidate dirty pots
• Organize glassware, plastic beakers, etc.
• Fill media bins as needed (be sure to use the correct bag and do not bury the scoop)
• Check and tighten all quick couplers for hoses and nozzles
• Reread greenhouse guidelines
• Look for and help with pest problems
• Take initiative!

Visitors

In general, it is not advisable to bring visitors to the greenhouse. However, if you do want to show a friend or parent around, please be sure that any guests know to wash hands with soap before you enter the greenhouse and to leave pot labels in place. Refer all requests for access to the greenhouses to Angela McDonnell, email angela.mcdonnell@stcloudstate.edu, or call (320) 308-3047.

Power Tools

The greenhouse has a limited amount of power tools and users should be aware that power tools are dangerous and are used at their own risk. The greenhouse staff is neither qualified nor authorized to instruct anyone in the use of power tools. If needed, get help from a qualified instructor.

Who can be contacted with questions and concerns?

Important Phone Numbers:

• Emergencies: 911
• Public Safety: (320) 308-3333
• Facilities Emergency Number: (320) 308-3166
• Biology Main Office: (320) 308-2039

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