After years of trying various methods of bringing gardens into classrooms, Stephen has found that the Tower Garden system is the easiest and most efficient way to garden with his students. It's especially beneficial if you have limited available space, or if your school is located in a climate that doesn't allow for growing outdoors through the winter and early spring months.

Although it's probably something you haven't experimented with yet (even if you're a seasoned green thumb) growing with aeroponics is not difficult, and the benefits far outweigh any drawbacks. The Tower Garden system that Stephen uses requires as little as 10% of traditional growing nutrients & water, and yields up to 30% more produce on average, compared to traditional gardening methods. With the Tower Garden, you'l be able to grow almost any vegetable, herb, or flower (and many fruits). Plus, it allows you to avoid the mess and cleanup associated with traditional growing environments (and there's no bugs or weeds!)

Aeroponics differs from soil-based or hydroponic growing environments in that, with aeroponics, no growing medium is used. Instead, the roots of plants are suspended or hung in a dark chamber and periodically sprayed with nutrient-rich solution via a pump and sprinkler system.

"Running a similar growing project in your school is safe, lightweight, and no kids are getting dirty. That's important. We are taking the backbreaking effort out of farming by using 90% less space and 90% less water. That's a paradigm the world needs to embrace."

-Stephen Ritz

For teachers interested in following Stephen's methods, we recommend watching this quick video, as it will provide a better understanding of exactly how the Tower Garden System works.

Tower Garden Video:

For the remainder of the sections this Guide, it will be assumed that you have purchased a Tower Garden System for for your classroom garden. If you have not yet purchased the Tower Garden System, you can do so here.

For easy to follow step-by-step directions for setting up your Tower Garden system, click here, or skip ahead to the Set Up section of this Guide.