Fresh Faces in CEA Spaces: Ellie Vance
July 11, 2024 In our 2024 Fresh Faces in CEA Spaces series, we’re talking to young professionals in CEA about their work and where they see the industry going in the future. CEAg World recently chatted with Ellie Vance, a CEA student at Virginia Tech.
CEAg World: What first interested you in agriculture and eventually CEA?
Ellie Vance: The main thing that got me into agriculture and CEA later was getting involved in the Future Farmers of America Association (FFA) in Virginia. I’ve worked with them since I was 11 years old. But as I grew into public speaking, I realized I had a knack and a love for helping people with food insecurity.
While I don’t believe CEA can solve all food insecurity problems, I think the agricultural industry, as a whole, can. I believe CEA has a knack for solving more of the specific questions of how we can increase the yield that our crops produce in controlled environments, and also how we can do that moving forward so our industry is more sustainable.
The biggest thing that got me into asking and answering those questions was working for a small greenhouse in my hometown called Milmont Greenhouses, Inc. I worked as a cashier, so all I did every day was quiz myself on the plants we had and what they needed to live.
This caused me to think about what I wanted to do for my future career, which directed me to plant sciences. I eventually decided to major in Environmental Horticulture and minor in Plant Health Sciences. As soon as I started doing research for speeches that I wrote for the FFA, I learned about the food crisis of 2050. As soon as I did that and started really researching, I saw how prominent controlled environment agriculture was.
Ellie Vance Poses With the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Sign | Photo: Ellie Vance
CEAg World: What kind of research have you done at Virginia Tech so far?
Ellie Vance: I spent most of the fall getting the campus greenhouses ready for spring semester. So, upon starting spring semester, I had several meetings with my professors looking at potential things that they’re studying at other schools in Virginia, and maybe how can we recreate or add on to those projects here at Virginia Tech.
This led me to work with microgreens specifically, and I wanted to see what different substrates affected the yield. I ended up working with hemp fiber mats, normal peat moss-based substrates and burlap vermiculite.
So, we started with a broader idea for the project and had to narrow it down a little bit, and at the end, my research setup I had two long tables. I had five different planting densities starting from 2 cubic centimeters all the way to 8 cubic centimeters. Using 10 seeds per cubic centimeter all the way to 14 has already been done, and they did not have great results because of that because all the plants choked each other out.
So, we officially started our project in March when it was still cold outside. It was great to keep our soil moist so our microgreens could germinate. But as we continued, we realized that by doing it in just simple plastic trays with drainage holes, they dried out a lot faster and our germination rates were not great.
Moving forward, what we wanted to do was put them in water channels and hydroponic systems so access to water would allow them to germinate quicker. It was interesting to get that learning experience, but ultimately our results were not great. But now we know why, and I’m hoping in the future when I get back started in the fall, we can go over that again.
Another research project I’m going to start very soon is looking at different Dutch BETA bucket systems and growing new microgreen tomatoes. So, there’s something that Virginia Tech has been looking into growing a lot because not only do they form more tomato clusters on one vine, but they’re also indeterminate. As they continue to grow, we continue to reap harvest for a very long time.
We’re hoping this can solve the question of how we can make the industry more sustainable. Can we keep pre-established plants in the greenhouse longer? And if we can, how do we minimize the risk of pests and diseases by doing so? These are my big questions for my next research project and I’m really excited about it.
I think it’s going to pave the way for us asking larger questions, like what other crops can we continue to grow in these systems and how can we expand our horizons for what we grow in hydroponic systems? I’m super excited to answer these questions.
CEAg World: What kind of research are you doing at your internship?
Ellie Vance: I’m currently working with the Virginia FFA Association on behalf of Virginia Cooperative Extension. I served as a Virginia FFA State officer in 2021 to 2022, and I took a gap year from college to do so.
This allowed me to see various aspects of the agricultural industry and education in our school systems, and that made me want to pursue how I can help address issues within CEA and the agricultural industry. This internship allows me to do just that.
I’m working very heavily right now for our state convention. We have 1,800 students in attendance and during this time they’re going to be pursuing different agricultural contests, which we call career development events, and by doing so, not only do I get to expand my professional experience, but I also get to expand my experience working with others as well.
I think this will prove very beneficial because I want to work with Virginia Cooperative Extension in the future, more specifically with research. I want to continue with CEA hydroponic systems, expanding the research opportunities with that and getting the opportunity to talk to students and learn from them as well.
CEAg World: Would you say there’s an accomplishment that you’re most proud of in CEA?
Ellie Vance: I’m most proud of participating in the #SpeakAG program through the national FFA organization. I’m only 21, and I haven’t had a huge amount of career experience. So #SpeakAG is an advocation site for us FFA members to speak on things that we feel are important.
And one of the things I did was advocate on Capitol Hill during National Ag Day for our labor shortages, especially in Virginia. A lot of that incorporated talking about how helpful our H-2A programs are.
That’s the biggest thing I talked about and it’s near and dear to my heart because CEA is something that has been my entire focus for a long time. I would say that my biggest accomplishment is advocating for those things and continuing to be a voice for labor forces as well.
I love talking to students as well, and that’s something I want to continue to do. I have participated in a lot of youth seminars where I have spoken to a large group of students not only about CEA, but about agriculture in general. And I’m very proud of that because I wish that when I was younger, somebody would have done that for me.
Ellie Vance Poses With Fellow Students at a Convention at Virginia Tech | Photo: Ellie Vance
CEAg World: Do you have any plans for after graduation?
Ellie Vance: My main hope is to continue my education and get my master’s degree in Plant Sciences. I haven’t decided on a specific subject yet… I’m leaning more towards the genetic side of things because, again, if we can control the genetics and plants, we can manipulate them in a healthier way to incorporate them into hydroponic systems. I feel like the natural plants that we are dealing with so far, it’s a lot harder to manipulate a plant that is used to being grown outside in the soil than putting them in water-based substrates.
So, that’s something I’m really interested in researching, and I’m hoping that I can work again in Virginia Cooperative Extension and get my Ph.D. I value education a lot, and I’ve valued the opportunity to build on my experiences and build off the learning opportunities that I’ve had. So, if I’m able to continue up to my Doctorate, I’m hoping that I can continue my research in the areas that we’ve talked about. And not only that, but again I keep saying this, but work with students and help the next generation so CEA can continue to grow and expand.
CEAg World: Have you noticed any other trends in CEA?
Ellie Vance: One trend I’ve noticed is a lot of researchers and professors think that hydroponic systems is a very narrow area that can’t be expanded. So far, I’ve had the wonderful experience with working with Dr. Perez-Torres. He is one of the main professors in CEA here at Virginia Tech, and he has allowed me to learn a lot about not only hydroponic systems, but the various types of them as well.
I’ve also noticed that most research has been done here in the U.S. and Europe and that’s it. There has not been a whole lot of research done in other areas, and my hope is that we can broaden again these horizons so that other countries can participate in this research as well. I think there’s a lot of value in us working together.
Another major trend that I have seen is the rise of women in CEA. I’m a huge proponent of diversity and allowing multiple people to have a say. One of the experiences that I’ve had in my time in the agricultural industry is a lot of voices, older men, voices saying that women don’t belong here, that we belong in other areas, but research is not one of them.
I’m very happy to say that even in my short time here at Virginia Tech, I have seen more women enrolled in CEA classes. I’ve seen more women enrolled in horticultural clubs and it’s really encouraging to see young women taking a stand and working with young men because I feel like we work better together than we do separate.
CEAg World: Where do you see CEA going in the future?
Ellie Vance: I can see the tag-teaming of CEA and typical agronomic agriculture. A lot of people think that the two are going against each other and that is not the case. At the end of the day, we are all stewards of the land trying to cultivate a better world by leading through sustainability. I believe CEA does a great job partnering with farmers across the nation and the world to ensure that we place food on the table for everyone.