Rick Dewitt and Patrick Frye were out at Richmond Senior High School on Thursday planting seeds.

The two growers supplied the fully-grown greenery for a two-day horticulture class spring plant sale which is designed to raise money for the horticulture program at the school.

Both say they hope the program grows and one day can supply plants of its own for such a sale. The sale continues today from 9 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. at the school.

Doug Carter has the same idea and he teaches the classes. He estimates he has about 140 to 180 students go through his three programs over the course of the year. The high school has a greenhouse, located behind the school, but Carter would like to see it replaced with a modern version. He’s looking for grant money, and both Dewitt and Frye say he’ll need it.

Dewitt operates Dewitt Farms in Ellerbe and Frye runs Bountiful Gardens, a nursery in Cordova.

“The cost to build a 28x100 foot poly house, with a fiberglass door, shutter and two fans and no heater is $20,000,” Dewitt said. “That’s bare bones.”

“We don’t want to do bare bones,” said Cory Satterfield, principal of the school. “He (Carter) has taken this program to another level. We’re actually right now in the process of writing a grant application. He wants to take it to the next level and I don’t have any doubt in my mind we won’t get there.”

Students in the horticulture program learn about 85 plants per year. The ones in the landscaping class learn about 120.

One plant sale last year raised just under $300. A Poinsettia sale raised just over $300. The money goes to the operating expenses for buying plants, seeds, soil and fertilizer.

On Thursday and Friday the group was selling a selection of annuals, perennials, hanging baskets, petunias, ferns, marigolds, lantana and garden plants. The sale is taking place next to the greenhouse at the rear of the school on the same side as the football field.

Unlike some big box stores, the plants sold at Richmond Senior were all grown in Richmond County. The prices range from $1.50 to $15 for the hanging baskets.

“What really makes a difference is the quality,” Frye said. “You won’t find plants like these in most stores.”

Dewitt said he never went through a horticulture program in high school.

“I didn’t, but I wish I did,” he said.

He was raised on a farm and had chores to do at home, so the last thing he wanted to do was also take a class in school about it.

“We’re helping them now, just to get started,” Frye said. “We’d like to see them get a sound footing and expand. Even if the students don’t go into horticulture, this program will give them a good start.”

Both Frye and Dewitt say they’ve seen an explosion in the demand for vegetable plants. Frye believes the slow economy is driving it.

“I’ve gone from selling 50 flats a year to 200 to 300,” he said.

For Carter it goes beyond just putting a few vegetables on the table and flowers in the yard.

“This industry is about emerging trends, and we want (RSHS) to be there,” he said. “People are always talking about biotech. Well those biotech companies are going to be using greenhouses. If I can train students on maintaining a greenhouse that’s a job they can get with just a high school education.”

Satterfield agrees there is more that can be done.

“We’re looking at teaching more in depth instead of just going over the surface of the subject. There are biotechnology classes that I’d like to get into, and more an animal sciences. The students really enjoy him. He pushes them and tries to get as much possible out of them and they give it.

“Here at RSHS we’re doing a program review of our Career Technical Education classes and this is a great opportunity to get where we want to go.”

For more information, call Doug Carter at (910) 997-9812 ext. 1017 or e-mail dougcarter@richmond.k12.nc.us

Peter Williams can be reached at pwilliams@yourdailyjournal.com or by calling 910-997-3111 ext. 18.