Vertical farming takes root at Lethbridge Senior Citizens Organization

A new vertical farming tower is helping teach seniors how to grow vegetables while cutting food costs and increasing nutrition.

The Lethbridge Senior Citizens Organization (LSCO) has unveiled “Tower to Table.”

The vertical farming tower will give seniors a first-hand look at how vegetables are grown.

Once they’re ready for harvest, the vegetables will then be used for the LSCO’s Meals on Wheels program.

The farming tower is a partnership with Credit Unions of Alberta and Winston Churchill High School.

“We’re actually going to do a lot of herbs because herbs are some of the most expensive things for the dinner,” said Kaitlynn Weaver, LSCO executive director.

“And we’re going to do lettuce and spinach.

“You can’t do things like root vegetables, so we’re going to start with our herbs and our lettuce and our spinach and then go from there.”

“This is fantastic,” said Geoff Waugh, Winston Churchill High School science teacher.

“We wanted to expand it to the community and then to have students who are as passionate about this as we are and are willing to help.

“That’s everything to a good cause like Meals on Wheels.”

Waugh says the vegetables will take about the same time to grow using hydroponics as they do in a garden.