Success Story: Tower gardens notch quintuple win in first year

FEBRUARY 19, 2025

At Lobdell’s Teaching Restaurant, NMC’s Great Lakes Culinary Institute has shortened the concept of farm to table to hallway to table.

The six hydroponic tower gardens that greet guests in the second floor hall on NMC’s Great Lakes campus have 1) saved money, 2) provided fresher produce, 3) improved sustainability practices, 4) offered an experiential learning opportunity and 5) benefited recruitment since they were installed in January 2024 through a donation.

The six-foot-tall towers, from which lettuce, herbs and edible flowers sprout under a purple glow, were installed as a year-round way to supply herbs and greens for use in Lobdell’s and improve sustainability practices.

“"Our instruction emphasizes the importance of minimizing food waste,” said Chef Les Eckert, GLCI director. As part of the culinary program’s recent reimagination, GLCI integrated additional principles of environmental stewardship. The Tower Gardens represent a significant focus area, reflecting current trends and challenges within the industry.

“How can we reduce our waste in general? What if we could literally start growing our more expensive items that have a short shelf life?” said Eckert.

Items like basil, used both fresh and to make popular sauces like pesto, which students make and freeze to use in the restaurant.

“We started doing the math, and came up with a rough estimate that we saved about $1,000,” on basil alone, Eckert said. At about $1,000 each, one tower — which was purchased with donated dollars – has already paid for itself.

Each tower has a 13-gallon reservoir, an automated water pump and lighting system.

“They simulate a long summer day,” Eckert said.

Students enrolled in GLCI lab courses make use of the produce cultivated in the Tower Gardens, which involves learning the correct techniques for trimming, snipping, and harvesting lettuce greens, herbs, and edible flowers. A committed team of students, the "Tower Garden Care Team" is responsible for the maintenance of the tower gardens, which includes tasks such as replenishing the water reservoirs, adjusting pH levels and lighting, as well as seeding, trimming, and harvesting the plants for use in the lab classes throughout the week.

The ultimate unexpected success of the towers lies in their ability to attract prospective students who visit GLCI.

“When the admissions team conducts their tours, it becomes a significant focal point at the entrance into the Institute,” Eckert said

Eventually, Eckert would like to have more towers to further reduce GLCI’s carbon footprint as well as to supply other campus food operations, like the Hagerty Center and Hawk Owl Cafe. For the short term, however, she just wants to get better

“This second year is taking what we learned,” she said. “What did we do right, and improving on our yields and the efficiencies the towers can bring.

“I see it as a great part of the curriculum.”