Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

U. Oklahoma greenhouse grows rare, strange plants
By Samantha Toth
Oklahoma Daily (U. Oklahoma)
04/14/2008

(U-WIRE) NORMAN, Okla. — The University of Oklahoma Plant Sciences greenhouse, behind George Lynn Cross Hall, can grow "green" in more ways than one.

The greenhouse, which primarily is used to grow plants for botany classes and to house student projects, also contains a wide variety of plants like cactuses, tobacco and exotic trees, said Cal Lemke, greenhouse caretaker.

One of these plants, the Cycas circinalis, is so large it must be trimmed to keep from breaking the glass that covers the building, he said.

The plant, which belongs to a group of seed plants known as cycads, can grow up to 10 feet tall. Cycads were extremely common during the Jurassic period, but their numbers have since reduced.

According to the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney's website, the plants are highly valued in Chinese and Japanese culture as symbols of longevity. Certain cycads in Japanese gardens are said to be more than 1,000 years old, according to the website.

As these older specimens are quite rare, amateur gardeners must settle for younger, newer types, which cost up to $20, Lemke said. Today cycads are commonly used as lawn ornaments, particularly in the southern U.S., he said.

The value of these revered plants is determined by their age — OU's specimen is about 10 years old — and Lemke said, although the plant is not intended for sale, the Cycas circinalis would be worth several thousand dollars in a professional greenhouse.

Lemke is the primary caretaker for what he calls "a hodgepodge of plants from all over the world."

The greenhouse's rarest plant, the Welwitschia, is found only in southwest Africa, specifically in the Namib Desert. Considered a living fossil — an organism with no close living relatives — the plant grows only two leaves, but has a deep root system. To grow it, Lemke sunk a 10-foot tube into the ground and filled it with sand.

"You can tell a lot about how to care for a plant just by knowing where it's from," he said.

Coleus and geraniums, the most common plants found in the greenhouse, are used to teach photosynthesis in introductory botany classes, Lemke said.

He said he must keep a strict schedule of watering, fertilizing, trimming and repotting to have the right plants ready on specific days.

The greenhouse consists of several buildings, one of which houses the teaching collection, and the others housing plants used for research. The research building alone holds over 10,000 Arabidopsis plants, which are used to study plant genetics.

"The botany program needs well-functioning greenhouses to complete successfully its research, teaching and service missions," said Wayne Elisens, botany professor.

Elisens, who oversees the greenhouse, said it services greater OU and Norman communities, as well the botany and microbiology departments.

"Many class and school groups from K to 12 take tours of the greenhouses," he said. "Individuals visiting the campus also stop by the greenhouse to see what is growing in there."

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