At the end of last year, two students created the Botany Club for any of their peers interested in plants and different ways to grow them. Seniors Caroline Westholder and Caroline Sundal started the club out of their love for plants and gardens. Westholder noticed a garden at Edina High School and was inspired to revive it.

Although they haven’t been a club for long, they are already working with science teacher Mr. McLean to explore and study his hydroponic garden, which is a method of gardening that grows plants in water and a nutritional solution instead of soil. The club is experimenting with different costs of gardening and what it can produce. The Botany Club also has more plans for the future. “We want to try to open a garden that’s outside like…some of the elementary schools,” Westholder said. Their main objective right now is to educate and recruit more students.

The Botany Club allows members to explore their interests in botany or simply learn more about it. The club is exploring sustainable ways to grow food through personal gardens and hydroponic gardens. “I also think it’s interesting how there is a major food crisis in how it’s hard to for lower-income families to buy healthy foods because the price of produce can be so high,” senior Jordan Runice said. Runice wants to see how these growing methods can save money for consumers.

The Botany Club has had to overcome some obstacles in its development. Because it was created near the end of the school year, it has not reached a wide audience yet, and there are around fifteen members. “We’re hoping to be at the activities fair and gain more members because it is an interesting topic, and I think a lot of people would be into helping out,” Westholder said.

The club is also not listed on the EHS website under Activities, but Westholder hopes it will be this year. The plan to start an outdoor garden has also been delayed due to construction at EHS, but Westholder plans to begin planting the garden this spring.