Potato Grower

WWW.POTATOGROWER.COM 37 "It enjoyed tremendous support from the ag community," he says. "All of these commodity groups and ag groups from across the state went to Helena to testify for the need for a modern plant growth facility. "The Plant Growth Center is more than just a university building," he adds. "It really does belong to the ag community. They fought really hard for the funding." Bill Tietz, president of the university at the time, championed the notion that the facility should be located on the main part of campus, and thus accessible to the university community at large. "Many universities set (a facility like the Plant Growth Center) out on the edge of campus," says Baumbauer. "We're not located far from the campus core." The building itself was designed with high- tech systems that regulate temperature and light. Its energy-saving features include a heat recovery system, where waste heat from water-cooled growth chambers and growth rooms is used to heat the greenhouses, Baumbauer says. Although the building has remained largely unchanged, a few updates and remodels have been completed in more recent years. In the 1990s, for instance, more greenhouse space was added, as well as a number of growth chambers. Use of the Plant Growth Center has grown substantially over the years, Baumbauer says. Previously, 25 to 30 researchers would use space each quarter; now, he says, that number has grown to 45 to 50. And many of the researchers are from disciplines outside the College of Agriculture, including ecology, biological engineering and chemistry. Charles Boyer, the university's vice president for agriculture, says it's fitting that MSU—the state's cornerstone land grant university—hosts a facility that advances agricultural research throughout the state. "We are so proud of the research that has come out of this facility, as well as the impact that research has had on our state," says Boyer. "We know that the Plant Growth Center has strengthened Montana's agriculture landscape and horticulture industries." Science education students at MSU participate in making herbal tinctures as part of a plant science and plant pathology course at the MSU Plant Growth. MSU photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez The Plant Growth Center at Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont., has provided an environment for scientifi c discovery for 30 years. MSU photo by Kelly Gorham

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