~$11.6MM
in capital improvements
during FY22 and FY23
Request a space at one of our facilities.
Greenhouse Space Request Form
53
greenhouse compartments for
Research and Instruction
31
Conviron chambers.
16 held for flexible use.
9 supporting BSL-2 research.
100%
Compartments with Cooling Systems
79% Compartments with
Supplemental Lighting
~7,500 sq-ft expansion for facilities by Georgia H.B. 81 Appropriation
58% of our chambers have dimmable LED lighting
CAES to Build A Multi-Disciplinary Greenhouse
Plant Growth Facilities will be adding approximately 8,000 square feet of greenhouse and support spaces tailored to agricultural and horticultural plant research at our Riverbend location. Construction began late-August '22. The facility will feature Wadsworth SEED environmental controllers, Adiabatic Cooling, Supplemental LED lighting, Automated-Irrigation Solenoids, Insect Exclusion, Sample Processing Spaces and more.
2426 Growth Chamber Expansion
Our newest growth chamber facility was finished in November 2021. The area features 12 Conviron chambers, 5 of which are reservable for use by CAES programs. You can view time slots available for research and current reservations at our greenhouse and growth chamber reservation page.
Photos of the 2426 Growth Chamber Room Expansion
PGF Growth Chamber Availabilities
Get to know our plant growth professionals
Graduation decor by PGF's Pam Lewis
Lewis has raised flowers and plants for the Graduate Recognition Ceremony for about 10 years now. All of the leftover plants are donated to nursing home and assisted living facilities in the Athens area.
Poinsettias are Lewis' favorite horticultural crop. In their natural environment, they flower in response to short day lengths. So preventing light drift in the winter months is paramount and achievable with the blackout tents we created.
Lance Fountain
Lance was raised in Axson, GA. He earned his BSES in Entomology at the University of Georgia, where he worked for the University's Black Fly lab, Insect Behavior lab, and Insect Zoo.
Facility updates
Greenhouse M1 thru M3 Polycarbonate Replacement
These greenhouses were built in 2008. Over time the polycarbonate has degraded from UV radiation. This impacts the quantity and spectral composition of the light transmitted through the polycarbonate panels to the plant leaves. CAES - Office of Teaching, CAES-Office of Research and Plant Growth Facilities are funding new paneling! Expected completion is early-June 2022.
Evaporative cooling pad update
Our facilities include 52 greenhouse compartments on three sites in Athens. Thirty-six percent of the compartments required almost 800 new cooling pads. Combining an order of this size allowed us to purchase with economies of scale. The savings were directed back into the cooling media by "double-dipping" many of the pads to extend their expected life from five years to an average of eight.
PGF's first cool-season greenhouse
Our facilities have expanded to include 600 square feet of cool-season greenhouse space to support Robin Buell's genomics research program. The greenhouse will be completed this May. These compartments will be a part of the larger multidisciplinary greenhouse expansion scheduled to begin construction in late-July 2022.
View Cool Season Greenhouse Photos
Whitefly grant
Thanks to a whitefly grant award, our entomology department's old greenhouse will be updated with supplemental lighting, area trench drains, insect-exclusion vestibules, new glazing and many other features. Following completion, the greenhouse will have five compartments all capable of BSL-2 certification.
View Entomology Greenhouse Progress Photos
Riverbend soil shed update
We have removed an unused raw material bunk in our Riverbend soil shed to increase the amount of mixing and sterilizing space and increase the amount of palletized media that we can have on hand.
CAES News
Rural Georgia program drives community-engaged research
The University of Georgia Rural Engagement Workshop for Academic Faculty enters its third year with 12 faculty members working in partnership with units of UGA Cooperative Extension and Public Service and Outreach for grants to help solve rural challenges. The workshop is designed to help drive community-engaged research in rural Georgia communities.
CAES News
Trees for the future: developing climate-adapted pecans
Georgia is the nation's leading pecan-producing state — and University of Georgia researchers intend to keep it that way. Working with an international team of experts, four faculty from the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences have received a U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture award for the second phase of a study to adapt one of Georgia’s top commodities, the pecan.
CAES News
Georgia 4-H pilots innovative ag tech program
High school 4-H’ers are bridging technology gaps in the agriculture community with Georgia’s new 4-H Ag Tech Changemakers program, part of the national 4-H Tech Changemakers initiative. Students trained as Tech Changemakers create educational opportunities for adults to learn essential workforce-related technology, and Georgia 4-H created the 4-H Ag Tech Changemakers program to expand the subject area coverage to include agriculture-specific skills.