The institute was one of few schools for African Americans during this time. He was a good teacher and his students liked him. He taught botany, chemistry and agriculture. When he was not teaching, George was busy with experiments. He tested the different effects various crops had on soil.
Crops are plants that are grown for food or other uses.
Through his experiments, he learned that crops such as peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybeans kept the soil healthy. Most of the farmers in the southern United States grew cotton. The cotton took away the soil's richness, so George talked to the farmers about planting different crops. George knew that farmers needed good reasons to start planting crops other than cotton. He performed many experiments with peanuts and sweet potatoes.