Winter Storm Jonas wreaked havoc along the East Coast and brought several inches of snow to Dartmouth. But the winter weather had absolutely no impact on harvest season at UMass.

“It’s the end of January, and we’re eating fresh lettuce in the Northeast. It’s bizarre,” said UMass Dartmouth’s executive chef Kevin Gibbons.

Two months after the university acquired its own futuristic hydroponic garden, named The Leafy Green Machine, the chef-turned-gardener is ready to serve salad.

The inside of the 40-foot freight looks like a fusion of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and some secret laboratory from a sci-fi blockbuster. The inside has an eerie, purple glow. There’s a cold breeze blowing through the chamber. And, somehow, despite all the tech contained in that small space, the inside smells green and earthy.

The vertical hydroponic garden first arrived at UMass back in November, and since that time, Gibbons has been spending about 25 hours a week growing row after hanging row of three types of lettuce: Alkindus, star fighter and green star.

The trailer, located near the Frederick Douglass Unity House, is a product of the Boston-based company Freight Farms. The Leafy Green Machine contains equipment capable of growing 1,000 heads of lettuce year-round. The user can control temperature, humidity levels and light from a touchpad. There’s even a video camera recording live feed from within the freight.

Gibbons said there was a bit of a learning curve at first.

“I made some mistakes,” said Gibbons. “I had temperatures wrong. I lost some heads. There were some things I wasn’t aware of that I’ve learned since thing. But I’ve got it now.”

He begins by popping a seed into a peet moss cup, which is about the size of a pinky finger. About four days later, the seed will sprout.

“I don’t water it. As soon as I plant the seed, I saturate it. Then for one week, it sits here with no water – just the humidity,” he said.

After about three weeks, the sprouts will have grown into a sturdier leafy green. At that point the plants are transferred to white rectangular trays made out of plastic, which hang from the ceiling. The boxes are watered for ten minutes every two hours. The drainage is cycled back to the ceiling, creating a circuit.

Unlike a greenhouse, the freight is windowless. Photosynthesis occurs inside the box through strips of red and blue LED lights dangling between the rows of hanging plants. A head of lettuce takes about seven weeks to grow from start to finish.

“No dirt. No bugs. No pesticides,” said Gibbons.

At this time, he’s sticking with lettuce, but he soon hopes to add kale, basil and spinach to his garden.

UMass Dartmouth Dining Services recently scored an “A” from peta2, a youth animal rights group. The university, likely the only place in town where you can grab a vegan-friendly sandwich while attending a summit on climate change, has been making strides to offer more meat-free options for students by offering vegan entrées and snacks.

Gibbons is hoping more students will want to spend some time tending to the plants inside The Leafy Green Machine. While it may be a challenge to get college kids excited over lettuce, he said, they should know its the only farm in town that’s Bluetooth enabled.

With a flick of his smartphone, the sound system inside the freight came alive to the music of The Marshall Tucker Band.

“I think it’s a great thing for the university and its sustainability,” he said.