Oct 28, 2005

PPA Awards and GrantsSource: PPA

Each year, the Perennial Plant Association (PPA) awards scholarships to horticultural students who have a strong interest in herbaceous perennials and research grants to recognized non-profit entities in the United States and Canada. Below are the winners of the 2005 awards and grants.

2005 Research Grants . Non-profit groups, typically universities and public gardens, submit grants that are competitively judged by the PPA Research Committee, which is composed of academic members of the PPA. Approximately $20,000 is awarded every year. The recipients are:

• Robert Berghage-Department of Horticulture, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa. A $2,500 grant was awarded for “Evaluating Herbaceous Perennials for Use on Greenhouses in the Northeastern United States.”
• Art Cameron and Erik Runkle-Department of Horticulture, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich. A $4,000 grant was awarded for “Characterizing the Vernalization Responses of Select Herbaceous Perennials.”
• Alan Smith and Neil Anderson-Department of Horticulture, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minn. A $4,000 grant was awarded for “Production of Non-Invasive Cultivars of Buddleja davidii .”
• Bradley Rowe and Clayton Rugh-Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich. A $4,000 grant was awarded for “Assessment of Plant Species for Green Roof Applications.”
• Mark Gleason-Department of Plant Pathology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. A $2,000 grant was awarded for “Development of an Accurate, Rapid Method to Assess Resistance Among Hosta Cultivars to Petiole Rot Caused by Sclerotium rolfsii and S. rolfsii var. delphinii .”
• Richard Hawke-Plant Evaluation Manager, Chicago Botanic Garden, Glencoe, Ill. A $3,240 grant was awarded for “Comparative Evaluation of Commercially Available Tradescantia Cultivars.”

2005 Scholarship Awards . Each year the PPA awards scholarships to horticulture students who have a strong interest in herbaceous perennials. This year, $1,000 scholarships were awarded to four students. The winners are:

• Linda Justin attends the University of Rhode Island, Kingston, R.I., majoring in environmental horticulture. She has more than 10 years of experience working in the green industry. She currently works for Then Farmer’s Daughter in West Kingston, R.I.
• Mary Jane Clark attends the University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, majoring in plant biology. She has worked as a research assistant at the university and has held various positions in the perennial plant industry.
• Kathryn L. Sanford attends Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa., majoring in horticulture. She is currently employed at Pennsylvania State University’s Horticulture Department where she does research, including her personal project on seed germination and tissue culture.
• Laurie Malone attends Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, Cincinnati, Ohio, majoring in landscape horticulture. She has more than 10 years of experience in the green industry and is currently working at More Specialty Plants in Williamsburg, Ohio.