Sparta students grow, serve hydroponic lettuce

High schoolers growing 3 types of lettuce for lunch menu

SPARTA, Wis. (WKBT) — Hydroponic lettuce was on the lunch menu for some Sparta students this week and it was grown by their peers.

Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without using soil instead using mineral nutrient solutions in water.

For the last five weeks, the high schoolers have been growing three types of lettuce. They started by planting the seeds until they had enough roots, then moved them over to the hydroponic system.

And this week the crop was ready for harvest and showed up on the school lunch line.

“It’s sustainable agriculture at its finest, this is something they can do in the future, this is the future of agriculture,” said Sparta High School Agriculture teacher Eric Follendorf.

“Our school likes to promote healthy foods, and I don’t think you can get any healthier than grown right here in our classroom,” said Sparta High School junior Austin Benzing.

The students have started to grow more lettuce.