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COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES

THE VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY GREENHOUSE

Students conduct research in the greenhouse

The Greenhouse features 2950 square feet of climate-controlled growing space for various projects, including faculty and student research and instructional laboratory use, and houses some of our permanent teaching and research plant collection.

The growing space is divided into three bays, each controlled individually though our Wadsworth environmental control system. This system uses data collected from an on-site weather station to efficiently operate the various heating, venting, and cooling equipment to provide an ideal growing environment specific to each project’s needs.

Our Greenhouse features an automatic dual-purpose thermal blanket to increase our energy efficiency. This material is drawn across the roof area at nightfall and helps slow the escape of heat through the roof. It then reopens at daybreak to allow the sunlight in. This material is also used to shade the plants and reduce heat buildup during hot summer weather.

 

Specifications

The Villanova Greenhouse was designed by Winandy Greenhouse Company Inc. and constructed in 2002. It received a full renovation in 2022 with new LED grow lights installed in 2023.

Greenhouse rooms

  • Mudroom: General Supply Storage
  • Zone one: General University Use
  • Zone two: Chapman/Langley Research Laboratory
  • Zone three: Plant Collection/Tropical Room

Each Zone is controlled by the Wadsworth EnviroSTEP Automated Control System. We maintain a Percival Plant Growth Chamber in Mendel Science Center, room G01A.

Exterior of the Greenhouse
Exterior of the Greenhouse
An interior view of the Villanova greenhouse (Zone one)
Zone one: General University use
An interior view of the Villanova greenhouse (zone two)
Zone two: Chapman/Langley Research laboratory
An interior view of the Villanova greenhouse (Zone three)
Zone three: Plant Collection/Tropical room
  1. Check with Suzanne Muscella (Mendel 016A), Tess Adgie (Mendel G08), or Lindsay Bair (Mendel G09) for greenhouse space, materials, and settings
  2. Do NOT manipulate greenhouse settings yourself—ask first!
  3. Turn off water and vent hoses when you leave
  4. Use only materials marked “common use”
  5. Clean up after yourself!

BIOLOGY DEPARTMENT

CLAS RESEARCH FACILITIES

Anyone wishing to use the greenhouse facilities must first contact a member of the greenhouse staff. One of them will set up a time to meet with you to discuss your needs and whether they can be accommodated.

Tess Adgie, Coastal Wetland Technician
therese.adgie@villanova.edu
610-519-7498

Lindsay Bair, Biology Stockroom and Laboratory Manager
lindsay.bair@villanova.edu
610-519-4858

Suzanne Muscella, Animal Care and Greenhouse Technician
suzanne.muscella@villanova.edu
610-519-6131

 

WHAT WE DO

BURGEONING GREEN THUMBS

General biology courses use the greenhouse to give first-year students an opportunity to design and execute a greenhouse-based research project every spring. Our upper-level ecology course explores plant competition dynamics during the fall semester, and Global Change Ecology uses the greenhouse to explore how various climate change factors impact plants.

RESEARCH SPACE

Zone two, in the greenhouse, serves as a workshop, mudroom and research space for the Chapman and Langley labs. The space is used for growing plants for future experiments, housing field equipment and processing samples from field sites.

LEARNING GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY

Zone three in the greenhouse is home to our plant collection, which showcases a variety of tropical plant families, including succulents, cacti, pineapples, and a number of South African plant species. These plants are used in instructional laboratories to illustrate global biodiversity.