The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of the Greenhouse

For many Gilman students, the Greenhouse, formally known as the Hydroponics Dome, is simply another prop on the greater Gilman campus. Though recently, as those who walk up from the lower lot each morning may have noticed, the dome appears abandoned, with tomatoes and other plants growing out of the cracks. What is really going on here, and what is the true story of Gilman’s avant-garde agricultural scene?

The construction of the dome was spearheaded in 2016 by three Gilman juniors, Cameron Haire ‘18, Matthew Mu ‘18, and Merritt Wiggin ‘18. Originally, they aimed to build a traditional rectangular greenhouse both to experiment with hydroponics (growing plants using a water-based nutrient solution instead of soil) and create a space where younger students could learn about agriculture and environmentalism. With the approval of the Gilman administration, which helped provide the necessary funds and transportation, a greenhouse would be built during the 2016-2017 school year. The final obstacle was finding the right piece of land, a difficulty in such a crowded campus; however, as Mr. Wes Hummer, Director of School Services & Risk Management, describes, the final location was chosen because ”we were after getting as much sun as you can… We felt it was good because it may get a little blocked by the trees on the east side as the sun rises, but it's going to get full south and west as the sun moves.” With the last hurdle cleared, everything appeared to be on track.

Then tragedy struck. From February 12 to February 13, 2017, heavy snow and windstorms hit the Northeast. As Mr. Hummer explained, the storm “just disintegrated” the flimsy greenhouse. After such an unpredictable fiasco, the juniors began to doubt the feasibility of their decision, weighing whether to let the greenhouse die in vain or to double down. In the end, they chose the latter and researched alternatives. They looked to an organization called Growing Spaces, which sells the dome that currently resides in Gilman. After a second appeal process, alongside a public appeal campaign in which Merritt submitted a winning video to the Gilman Film Festival, the administration ultimately selected the size of the geodesic dome and ordered the necessary parts.

Construction began in haste after the parts arrived in late May 2017. The juniors and staff began putting the new structure together right after graduation, and the process “didn't take long” thanks to the combined manpower. After finishing the Dome, Gilman soon saw the fruits of the club’s labors (pun intended). They began successfully experimenting with hydroponics and producing crops. Moreover, the year after the founders graduation, the club was still flourishing, growing “over 20 plus different varieties of parsley plants… then they put a table out in front of the science building and did a faculty, staff, and student giveaway,” according to Mr. Hummer. Afterward, they donated whatever they did not sell to the kitchen to make meals for the Gilman community. Furthermore, they achieved their goal of educating younger generations by hosting an event around the greenhouse for Earth Day.

Despite COVID derailing the community and hurting many nascent clubs, the Greenhouse Club remained resilient, with another vegetable sale occurring in 2021 or 2022, according to Mr. Hummer. However, the greenhouse's decay began after this point, with groups ceasing to undertake major projects and the space becoming increasingly inactive. Liam Higgins ‘27 and Rowan Tondro ‘27 faced this slow decay after becoming heads of the newly merged Greenhouse and Greenhound clubs. The clubs made the merger because they shared the common values of environmentalism and sustainability. According to Liam, this nascent club has just begun meeting as of late September to “get everyone in contact.” 

As for the current tomatoes growing out of the dome, Liam explained the situation: “That was a tomato project that happened over the summer, which is now done.” Looking to restore the dome to its former glory, he aims to “take that [the tomatoes] out, turn the beds,” and restore the drip irrigation system necessary for plant growth. As for further plans for the Greenhouse, Liam hopes to restore the vertical hydroponics setup, which is far more space-efficient: “Freshman year…they were just doing hydroponics, and they were doing it horizontally, which was not space efficient because it's a straight line. ” 

Work has already started. To improve ventilation and plant growth, self-regulating vents were installed at the end of the 2026 school year. Liam strives to continue this momentum, explaining that this year will “hopefully be our breakout year, where we maybe do things more for the student body, and we weave into greenhounds. So hopefully, there's some sort of product that will be seen by the student body from the greenhouse this year.” They are considering growing leafy greens and hot peppers, potentially using the grown crops for a fun spice challenge later this year. 

Despite the many hurdles both the greenhouse space and the Greenhouse Club have faced over the years, the members of the Greenhouse Club remain resilient and committed to their goals of endorsing environmentalism and agricultural sustainability within the Gilman community.