Touring the Facility
Tours of just the greenhouse can be provided by contacting the manager, Nathan Deppe, with this electronic Tour Request Form. On some email systems, you may need to press "submit" on the form and then "send" if an outgoing email pops up. You can email Nathan at ndeppe@purdue.edu if you are having trouble. Some groups prefer to see the greenhouse as part of a larger campus tour by contacting the Visitor Information Center.
Tours for the general public, including schools, are usually given by Master Gardener Docents. We ask 2 week's advanced notice to allow us to arrange for a volunteer docent. We will contact you to confirm that we have received the tour request, but another week may pass before we confirm the tour. We regret that we can't do after-hours tours or weekend tours.
What can you expect to see? Since we are primarily a research facility, we don't have a conservatory of jungle rooms or desert rooms, or very many areas of vivid flowering plants. You will see experiments with plants growing in pots lined up on tables or the floor. Species vary from tomato to mint to snapdragon to rice and many, many more. You will also learn about how computers control the heating, cooling and lighting, and how the manager can control the greenhouse by remote control using a smartphone.
Tours are free and take 30-45 minutes, depending on the interest level. Free parking for vans and busses is available behind the greenhouses, and much of the facility is handicap accessible. The tour requires standing and walking and many of the greenhouses are 78-degrees or warmer.
We are located at the intersection of Hort Drive and Harrison Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907
Schedule A Tour
Schedule A Tour Via Our Online Form