MARYSVILLE, Ohio, October 23, 2019 /3BL Media/ –– Because every student deserves the opportunity to experience the wonder of hands-on STEM education and hydroponic gardening, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation, Hawthorne Gardening Company and National Farm to School Network launched a new pilot project to integrate indoor growing systems into underserved schools across the country. The project aims to spark a passion for gardening and increase hands-on science experiences for students who otherwise might not have had the opportunity.

By: Lindsay Warner, EatingWell

When preschool teacher Tonya Langston first asked the children in her Bowling Green, Florida, classroom where milk came from, their response was: "the kitchen." When she asked them where a banana comes from, same answer: "the kitchen."

Langston's students are young—3 or 4 years old—but because they're the children of professional migrant farmworkers, Langston and her fellow teachers wanted to teach them more about what their parents do, and why it's important.

Dr. Phil Dwyer has been a member of the Scotts R&D research team since 2006. Primary work efforts have focused on lawn fertilizer research and new product development at Scotts' own field stations and in collaboration with university Turfgrass research programs. Much of his work has involved finding ways to optimize the consumer experience while protecting our environment. These efforts have focused on reducing a lawn's water needs, recycling yard waste, improving seedling establishment, optimizing slow release fertilizer technologies, seasonal nutritional responses and consumer education/outreach.