30-04-2025
New Greenhouse ready for the summer season
Rapid City, S.D. (KELO) — An 18-month project on the new greenhouse in Rapid City is done, and crews are getting to work with the plant life for the upcoming month.
These flowers and plants fill the over 1,700 acres of park space in Rapid City.
'Every year we always plan on growing 8,000 to 10,000 from seed. With this new greenhouse, we will be better equipped to do a few more from seed. Which in turn saves money being able to grow from seed and we don't have to buy them outright and then we're able to put out a good product,' City Parks and Recreation Greenhouse Specialist John Berglund said.
This new state-of-the-art facility is more than 50% bigger than the previous greenhouse which stood for several decades. Some of the new technology inside this new greenhouse will allow the keepers there to moderate and change the temperature to better control the plant life as they transition outside.
Berglund can monitor these temperatures right from his phone to combat changes in weather.
'And then the climate controls are just incredible. Then we shade curtains so if it gets too sunny the shade curtains will close. If it gets too hot the cooling wall behind you will turn on and it's like a big swamp cooler and so it will help cool this place down. I can maintain a temperature 10 to 15 degrees cooler than the outside temperature,' Berglund said.
Staff at the greenhouse will prepare over 20,000 flowers and plants to brighten up the city from park to park.
The Parks and Rec Department is expecting to have all of the park's flowers planted and set around Memorial Day.
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