Abstract:
FOREWORD
Horticulture is unique compared to many other aspects of agriculture in that it involves so many crops and ornamental plants, grown in extremely diverse environments, and because knowledge of horticultural plant growth and production becomes of interest to such a broad audience, producers, scientists, educators, consumers and hobbyists.
The clientele for horticultural information is as diverse as the crops which are grown horticulturally, and the needs of that clientele are as varied as the environments in which our horticultural plants are grown.
Horticultural education encompasses more than technical training of academies and higher education of science universities.
Horticultural education reaches to very young children through youth gardening programs, and horticultural plant studies in kindergarten through high school classes.
Horticulture education is provided to consumers at the point of purchase of plants in garden centers and grocery stores.
Horticulture and gardening, and thus education and training, are popular avocations and past-time.
And, producers of horticultural plants and products require continuing education in order to remain economically competitive in a world market basket of horticultural goods.
Thus, the business of educating people about horticulture is demanding.
At the IHC-2002, Toronto, a symposium was sponsored The Knowledge Business.
Some of the papers presented at that symposium are presented herein.
Topics presented there and here demonstrate issues, questions, and opportunities for the expanding horticultural realm in an ever-shrinking world.
Topics include elementary school horticulture education, use of experiential learning such as service learning and internships in a college curriculum, the internationalization of horticulture, curricula for horticulture degree programs, and garden education programs.
To improve the learning experience and make horticultural knowledge more readily available to students, teaching with technology is very important to horticulture education.
Papers here explore ideas with computer-assisted learning, distance education, and using new digital image formats to preserve visual information for students to use at a time of best convenience.
Because of the diverse audience-consumers of horticulture knowledge, papers are presented regarding how to train trainers and reach audiences at remote locations where local expertise may be limited.
The presenters in this symposium are clearly not only good horticulturists, but also thoughtful and insightful educators; teachers who seek to understand both plants, and the people who want to learn about them.
The conveners of the Knowledge Business Symposium are very grateful to the Directors of the ISHS Board and IHC Organizing Committee for allowing the development and presentation of the Symposium.
This is among the first IHC to feature horticulture education as a centerpiece of the horticultural enterprise.
The conveners also gratefully acknowledge all invited speakers and submitted contributions to the symposium and this volume.
Without their willingness to share information and experience on horticultural education, the event and this publication would not have occurred.
The editor is also grateful to all the colleagues in horticulture who ‘ve got a passion for teaching others the beauty of horticulture.
It is our hope that this volume will be of assistance to those in the horticulture knowledge enterprise, and allow better and more education development in our respective fields.
C.R. Rom and G.R. Dixon
Co-conveners
PREFACE
The papers contained in this volume of Acta Horticulturae report the proceedings of a symposium on The Knowledge Business: Horticulture Education and Knowledge Transfer.
Keynote speakers and authors of selected contributed oral and poster presentations were given the opportunity to submit a manuscript for publication.
These manuscripts were reviewed by the symposium Editor and other referees.
Only those papers judged suitable for publication following the authors consideration of reviewer suggestions appear in this volume of Acta Horticulturae.
The ISHS acknowledges and appreciates the contribution of all editors and reviewers.
They have made a significant contribution to assuring the quality of this publication.
The ISHS Board of Directors
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