OLD_SERA27: Nursery Crop and Landscape Systems (IEG-63)
(Multistate Research Coordinating Committee and Information Exchange Group)
Status: Inactive/Terminating
OLD_SERA27: Nursery Crop and Landscape Systems (IEG-63)
Duration: 10/01/1997 to 09/30/2007
Administrative Advisor(s):
NIFA Reps:
Non-Technical Summary
Statement of Issues and Justification
Project's Primary Website is at(http://www.ag.auburn.edu/landscape/SERAhomepage.html) (direct link can be found under LINKS)
Accomplishment:
To date, 30 taxa were distributed for evaluation. Of these, one taxon's evaluation is complete, another taxon has been withdrawn due to poor survival and nine others have evaluation periods that end in 2002. A webpage (http://www.ag.auburn.edu/landscape/SERAhomepage.html) was established to extend information about our efforts. A web-based data entry form was developed to facilitate data entry and tabulation of results by evaluators. A journal article about the efforts of SERA-IEG-27 was published (HortTechnology 11(3): 373-375). Members applied for a grant to support SERA-IEG-27 efforts, but were unsuccessful.
Statement of Issue(s) and Justification:
New germplasm continues to be discovered or created in the ornamental plant realm. While past growth in the nursery/landscape industry has been fueled by technological advances, future growth continues to be driven to a considerable degree by the introduction of new plant materials. Some nurseries have invested in the discovery and development of new plant releases and are using this technique to gain market share. Unfortunately, some releases are not widely tested and most have not been independently tested in unbiased trials. In addition, most Southern Region universities are engaged in landscape plant evaluations and seek ways to determine the adaptability range of these plants. A coordinated plant evaluation system throughout the Southeast could rapidly provide unbiased information on performance and adaptation of selected new introductions, thus benefitting producers, landscapers and consumers alike.
This project relates to the following Southern Region Priority Areas for Multistate Research Activities: Goal 1, An agricultural system that is highly competitive in the global economy; Goal 4, Greater harmony between agriculture and the environment; and Goal 5, Enhanced economic opportunity and quality of life for Americans. In addition, participation in this project contributes to the professional development of faculty involved.
Objectives
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1. Identify, evaluate, select, and disseminate information on superior environmentally sustainable landscape plants in nursery crop production and landscape systems in the Southeast.
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1. Collectively and individually disseminate information gained from the plant evaluation system such as cold hardiness, heat tolerance, growth rate, environmental adaption limits, etc. to a wide variety of audiences.
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Procedures and Activities
Expected Outcomes and Impacts
- Plants selected and distributed for evaluation; data collected, analyzed and summarized for completed plant evaluations; information packaged for dissemination to producer, landscaper and consumer audiences.
- * To date, 30 taxa have been distributed for evaluation. Of these, one taxon's evaluation is complete, another taxon has been withdrawn due to poor survival and several others have evaluation periods that end in 2002. A webpage was established to extend information about our efforts. A web-based data entry form was developed to facilitate data entry and tabulation of results by evaluators. A journal article about the efforts of SERA-IEG-27 was published (HortTechnology 11(3): 373-375).
Projected Participation
View Appendix E: ParticipationEducational Plan
Information gained from the plant evaluation system such as cold hardiness, heat tolerance, growth rate, environmental adaptation limits, etc. will be disseminated collectively and individually to producer, landscaper and consumer audiences via scientific articles, industry trade magazines, webpages and presentations in extension and popular information channels.
Procedural Plan:
Objectives will be accomplished by implementing the protocol for plant evaluation that was developed by IEG - 63 in 1994 and subsequently modified. State representatives and invited guests will meet annually to exchange plant information results, distribute plant material for future evaluation, and select candidates for future evaluation. Plants will be evaluated for not less than three years at participating sites in the Southeast Region using the established protocol. Responsibility for timely reports (at the annual meeting) rests with the evaluator. The introducer will then provide a finished summary to the chair. For each plant that the group judges worthy of regional approval, the chair will appoint a committee to develop and disseminate propagation information and production protocols to the nursery industry. The same committee will compile and distribute landscape use information on the plant to the nursery and landscape industry and to the gardening public.
Organization/Governance
Officers elected for 2001 - 2002 were Gary Knox (University of Florida) - Chair, William Klingeman (University of Tennessee) - Secretary, and Jon Lindstrom (University of Arkansas) - Executive Committee Member. Administrative Advisors: Dewayne Ingram (University of Kentucky), and Jerzy Nowak (Virginia Tech)
Literature Cited