A new greenhouse project at North Carolina State University is helping ensure you’ll have plenty of sweet potatoes for many Thanksgivings to come.
The sweet potato industry is big business for the state of North Carolina and the nation. North Carolina State University (NCSU) provides extensive education and research to assist in this crop. Of the more than 80,000 acres of sweet potatoes that are planted in North Carolina alone, 90% come from NCSU’s cultivation farms. This equates to more than $210 million in revenue.
With the growing demand for more research into the many varieties of sweet potatoes, NCSU explored the need for additional greenhouse space to be added on campus. Sponsored by the NCSU Horticulture Department, a plan was put into place to locate space and funding for the project. As a neighbor to the NCSU campus, McKim & Creed was brought on board to assist. McKim & Creed worked with stakeholders to design four new greenhouses to be located near the JC Raulston Arboretum.
McKim & Creed provided full surveying and engineering services and coordinated efforts with Carolina Greenhouse and NCSU to maximize the detailed functionality of the new structures for this important program.