College students often need an escape. For Corey Schaeffer, biology senior, this comes from an unlikely place: the campus greenhouse.

“It’s really relaxing to work, and I feel like it’s really rewarding to watch things grow,” Schaeffer said. “A lot of these plants in here I’ve taken care of for about three years now.”

These plants must be watered and upheld regularly to ensure that growing processes are prosperous. Schaeffer helps maintain the plants inside of the campus greenhouses.

In August 2011, he said, he began as a biology lab assistant who was interested in plant life and was given access to the greenhouses.

Schaeffer said the greenhouses are environments for rare and exotic plants to grow. After they have been developed fully, Schaeffer said that most plants are used for science students to study and observe.

“A lot of these plants get used for our biology courses, botany and plant development. They use these life specimens to experiment on,” Schaeffer said.

David Taylor, professor of biology, said he oversees the campus greenhouses.

There are two greenhouses, which Taylor said have separate roles. The larger of the two is used to grow plants and the other for research.

Taylor said the IU Southeast campus has had a greenhouse since it moved to Grant Line Road during the 1970s. The smaller one, he said, has been a part of the campus for about six or seven years.

When the Life Sciences Building was remodeled 14 years ago, Taylor said the campus greenhouse was rebuilt with greater insulation to create a better environment for the plants.

Winter is not considered the ideal time for growing and preserving plants due to cold weather and little sunlight. However, Taylor said the greenhouses are an exception to that rule. With the help of supplemental lighting, he said the plants are able to cultivate as well as they would during spring and summer.

Despite the weather that IU Southeast has been exposed to recently, Taylor said he believes students would be surprised to know that the IUS greenhouses have an entirely different atmosphere.

“If you go in the greenhouse, it’s a nice and warm 70 degrees. We have plants that grow very successfully such as tropical plants and a variety of temperate plants,” Taylor said.

Though Schaeffer said he has been busy this past fall semester, he said he feels that he does not spend enough time in the greenhouse. He said he gets a sense of peace when he is in the company of life that he helped create.

Schaeffer said he often encourages people to stop by the greenhouse and see the plants inside. However, he believes few students are interested in knowing what these plants have to offer to the IUS campus and everyday life.

“A lot of people walk in here and think ‘alright, whatever’ and leave,” Schaeffer said. “There’s a lot that gets ignored with the plants; a lot of people really take them for granted, I think.”