From the High School Lesson Book - A Poinsettia PhotoJournal (Greenhouse Field Trip)

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When the kids were little, we went on field trips All.The.Time. As they got older, I found myself getting pickier about the field trips we did, because even a short tour somehow translated to an entire day away from home, so it really had to be worthwhile and related to their studies. (Okay, I started having the theme from Gilligan's Island play in my head when I was writing that. Something about a three-hour tour turning into a whole new life on a deserted island . . . )

But of course, high schoolers enjoy field trips too, and both of mine went along on Monday when I had a tour set up for our homeschool group at the greenhouse my hubby manages. We had a group of about 25 moms and students, and that included seven high schoolers.

The greenhouse is currently growing and shipping poinsettias, so that's what we learned about. We viewed the soil room and learned how the growing media is mixed, and that it actually doesn't contain any soil! It's a blend of peat moss and perlite, with lime added to adjust the pH level. (So we applied some chemistry knowledge there!) We were shown the machinery used to mix the soil and the specialized machines used for seeding and transplanting.

Most of our time was spent walking through the greenhouses, learning about poinsettias - their growing and flowering habits, how they are propagated and cared for in the greenhouse, and the many different varieties that have been developed. 

The greenhouse has several types of watering systems. One of the most interesting to the students was flooding. Most of the floors in the greenhouse are flood floors, and water can be allowed to come up through holes in the cement so the the plants can take in water through the bottom of the pots, and then the water is drained back into the pond. This is one of the ways plants can be watered without getting the leaves and blooms wet.

It's amazing how many different varieties of poinsettia there are! Lots of shades of red, and variations in the size and shape of the leaves and bracts. Pinks and whites are also grown.

This was the first time I'd seen this particular shade, which is actually quite orange, or perhaps I should call it scarlet.

Sometimes the poinsettias are sprayed with a special floral paint or glitter.

These have a marble pattern on the bracts.

And these are the whitest white poinsettias I've seen! Personally, I find the 'white' poinsettias usually look very faded, and I'm not that crazy about them, but these were so clean-looking.

And how about these? These are new as well - and yes, they are hot pink and a very bright green!

I'm not usually a fan of pink, but these are so eye-catching!

I hope you enjoyed the photo tour. We certainly enjoyed our tour, and are hoping to arrange another visit for our homeschool group sometime during the spring season.

Do your high schoolers enjoy field trips? Leave a comment and let me know!

This post is linked up at Chestnut Grove Academy's Friday Field Trip Blog Hop.

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This post was added to the Throwback Thursday Blog-Style link-up hosted by Tots and Me... Growing Up Together! on Friday, November 25, 2016.

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