Tuesday, 26 February 2019

Several initiatives are rolling out across the horticultural sector in the first half of 2019; bringing together a range of industries with the goal to promote better business, education, and industry growth.

Strategy Consultation Workshops: ‘Your levy, your say, in your region.’

In the lead up to the release of their new Strategic Plan in mid-2019, Hort Innovation has been delivering cross-country workshops to gain insights on improving the cohesion between the sector and their business’s direction.

Intended for growers and key industry stakeholders, each workshop gives attendees the chance to share their thoughts on the successes and potential improvements Hort Innovation could make in order to better invest horticultural levies.

The series of workshops kicked off in Orange, NSW on January 29, 2019. Since then they have completed nine workshops across New South Wales, Tasmania and Western Australia.

More

Tuesday, 19 February 2019

Four of Australia’s leading nursery industry professionals have been awarded a Hort Masterclass Scholarship for 2019.

Luke Vanderstaay from Westland Nurseries (TAS), Richard Ramsden from Tasmanian Plant Growers (TAS), Kristian Spink from Marlborough Nursery (QLD) and David Russell from Wallum Nurseries (QLD) will each receive a $10,000 scholarship to go towards their Hort Masterclass tuition fees.

Described as a mini-MBA, the course equips the future leaders of Australia’s horticultural sector, with the skills and knowledge to advance and accelerate their careers.

The scholarships are funded as part of the Hort Frontiers Leadership Fund using nursery industry levies and contributions from the Australian Government.

More

Monday, 11 February 2019

A research project led by leading Australian universities is testing which horticultural species in our future urban landscapes will thrive or struggle in the face of a changing climate.

Climate change is an issue that can affect the entire horticultural sector, especially the nursery industry, where the commercial objective is to sell healthy plants that have a long and productive life.

Known as “Which Plant Where” the research project is being conducted by Macquarie University and Western Sydney University, with funding from Hort Innovation’s Green Cities Fund.

The project involves testing a range of plants under various climatic conditions in a controlled environment, as well as conducting “Living Labs” to monitor plant growth and survival rates in a real life setting.

A living lab is now underway at the Underwood Reserve in Summer Hill, Sydney. Provided by the Inner West Council, researchers will monitor the performance and associated benefits of recently planted trees and shrubs in the reserve over time.

More

Monday, 11 February 2019

Looking at the ‘return on investment’ for production nurseries that implement a structured and effective pest management and monitoring program is the key focus of a new levy funded project.

Known as ‘Improving Pest Management’ (NY17009) the project is funded by Hort Innovation using nursery industry levies and funds from the Australian Government.

It is being led by Nursery & Garden Industry Australia (NGIA) with assistance from independent agricultural economists and pest scouts. The project intends to run for three years and cover two key areas, including:

• A literature review on neonicotinoids and alternative chemicals for grower use with a report due in March 2019; and
• A two-year (2019/2020) economic analysis on integrated pest management (IPM), with on farm trials and a cost-benefit analysis of the IPM principles of crop monitoring and site surveillance.

More