Implementation of hydroponic teaching and research platforms at primarily undergraduate institutions.

Authors

Annie Wang, Brooke Duncan, Emily Duncan, Eli Johnson, Kevin Wang, Byron Meade

Published in

Frontiers in education. Volume 11. Epub Jun 18, 2026.

Abstract

Many primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs) offer coursework in plant biology, agriculture, and environmental sciences but lack dedicated plant growth facilities and controlled-environment infrastructure. Hydroponic systems provide an indoor platform for year-round plant cultivation, hypothesis-driven experimentation, and integration with course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs). At our institution, commercial and custom-built hydroponic systems were integrated into existing teaching laboratories and maintained by faculty, laboratory staff, and undergraduate work-study students. This structure supported consistent growth conditions, repeated student-led experimentation, and practical training in plant cultivation and biotechnology. Based primarily on this institutional experience, this mini-review synthesizes pedagogical outcomes, implementation onsiderations, and funding pathways, highlighting hydroponic platforms as effective infrastructure for experiential, research-centered STEM education at PUIs.

PMID:
42434769
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 11 Jul 2026.

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