BYU-Idaho Applied Plant Science
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Learn the Dirt Behind APS

AgDays 2015

6/22/2015

 
he annual Ag Days event was held June 18th this year. Ag Days is unique in that the whole event is planned, set up, and ran by students. The purpose of Ag Days is to inform and educate more people, specifically college students, about the how they are impacted by agriculture— from the clothes we wear to the food we eat. The event also serves as a great recruiting tool to encourage more students to major in the field of plant science. 

There was a great turnout this year— 2200+ people came to ride the tractor up the hill, see the animals and farm machinery, milk a cow, munch on ice cream, pancakes, french fries, and grapes, sow a few seeds, and learn a thing or two about the big world of agriculture. The planning committee did a great job this year as the day went smoothly and everything was set up on time. 

The Horticulture Department had a booth set up where attendees could come enjoy flowers and sow some seeds in a mini pot to take home. We were busy the entire day talking about what we do in the horticulture program while helping students and families pick seeds to plant.

Advanced Floral Class Trip

6/22/2015

 

Get Ready for Master Gardener 2015

6/17/2015

 
The 2015 Master Gardener Regional Convention, sponsored by University of Idaho Extension, will be June 25th and 26th located in the Benson Building at BYU-Idaho and the BYU-Idaho Thomas E. Ricks Gardens. “Master Gardeners and those interested in learning about the Master Gardener Program in Idaho, Wyoming, Utah and Montana. Students and faculty from the University of Idaho and BYU-Idaho are also invited to attend. 

Convention schedule:
Thursday, June 25th— 6:00pm
  • Located in the Benson Building in Room #219 on the BYU-Idaho Campus Rexburg, ID
  • Keynote Speaker— Dr. Stephen Love; Where Wildflowers and Roads Meet
  • Love wildflowers? Want to view them at their best? Frustrated that all your favorite natural gardens are a long hike up a steep hill? Then this evening is for you. Dr. Love will talk about the best places in Idaho to find wildflowers accessible by automobile. He will provide directions for finding each magical spot and show lots of beautiful photographs of Idaho’s wildflowers. 
  • Dr. Stephen Love is a University of Idaho Extension consumer horticulture specialist stationed at the Aberdeen Research and Extension Center. He earned his bachelor’s degree in horticulture at Brigham Young University and his Ph.D. in horticulture and plant physiology at Clemson University. Dr. Love provides extension education on topics related to local food production, vegetable gardening, landscape maintenance, and water-conserving landscaping. He has a soft spot for native plants and directs a research program to collect and evaluate wildflowers for landscape applications. 
Friday, June 26th— 8:00am-4:00pm
  • Located at the Thomas E. Ricks Gardens on the BYU-Idaho Campus, Rexburg, ID
  • 8:00-8:40am— Registration and check-in. Location of registration is the East side of the Benson building, signs will be posted.
  • 8:40am— Welcome and presenter introductions
  • 9:00-12:00— Classes and tours begin and rotate on the hour.
  • 12:00pm— Lunch is provided on site in the orchard. 
  • 1:00-4:00— Afternoon classes and tours continue, which rotate on the hour, and finis at 4:00

Classes offered:
  • Plant Problem Diagnostics Tour: A walking tour identifying plant problems and their causes.
  • Breeding and Developing Vegetable Varieties: Learn about controlled pollination and developing your own variety creation.
  • Are Bees on Your Horizon: Basics of owning bees, managing a hive, and how honey is produced.
  • Herbal Lore and Legend: Exploring the amazing easy-to-grow herbs, their history, and uses.
  • Using Worms to do Your Dirty Work: We will do a vermicomposting demonstration using the right worms, what to feed them, and how you can do this at home. 
  • Silk Purse Syndrome: Repurposing is the trend these days. We’ll share with you creative ways to reuse discarded items for new worth around the garden.
  • Resurrecting Garden Tools via Electrolysis: Learn how home gardeners can renew tarnished or rusted tools simply at home.
  • Landscape Design Walkabout:  A walking discussion given by BYU-Idaho’s premier landscape design professor of basic landscape principles and what inspired him to create the breathtaking theme gardens.
  • Grafting 101: This hands on class will show you how to graft plants via three different methods. 
  • Basics of Small Fruit Production: Producing your own fresh raspberries, strawberries, and other small fruit is rewarding, and this class will give you a hands on demonstration of how to do this.
  • Tree and Shrub Identification 101: Learn how to identify common trees and shrubs in the landscape for better success in diagnosing plant problems. 
  • Saving Your Own Seed: Dr. Love will demonstrate methods of collecting, saving, and storing vegetable seed from your own garden successfully.
  • Basic Vegetable Gardening: We will discuss the basics of soil, tillage, amendments, planting, watering, growing, and harvest.
  • Tour of the Demonstration Gardens: Jungle Greenhouse, Production Greenhouses, and Orchard. 

Disney Possibilities

6/16/2015

 
Did you know that all your dreams can come true and that you can work for Disney? We know you’re in the field of plant science, but just because you spend more time these days playing in the dirt than daydreaming about being a prince or princess in well-spun fairytale, doesn’t mean that you should count Disney out. Disney/Epcot puts a lot of money into their landscaped gardens. It’s part of it’s magical charm and one of many reasons the masses enjoy their Disney adventures. Disney also is heavily involved sustainable high-tech horticulture and agriculture. They do truly amazing things with plant material. 

But we’re getting off-topic. Did you know that every year they are looking for students to fill internships in the field of plant science? Hey, that’s us! In fact, a few of our students have interned with Disney in the past, and we have a few completing their internship experience with them right now. It’s quite the process to be accepted for one of their programs, so we wanted to put this information out right now for anybody who thinks this is something they would like to be involved in. Start looking into and planning now for this opportunity.

Desired majors include but are not limited to:  Ag. Communication, Ag. Education, Agribusiness, Agriculture, Agronomy, Aquaculture, Aquatic Biology, Biology, Biotechnology, Botany, Crop Science, Biological and Biosystems/Agricultural Engineering, Entomology, Environmental Horticulture, Fisheries, Food Science, Horticulture, Landscape Design, Marine Biology, Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Ornamental Horticulture, and Plant Science.

Possibilites include:
Aquaculture:
Operate a recirculating freshwater aquaculture facility. Monitor filtration systems and water quality, assist in diagnosis and control of disease, and raise fish to marketable size for Walt Disney World® restaurants.

Biotechnology:
Maintain a tissue culture production facility. Prepare media and culture a wide variety of plants. Then, collect, package and deliver the tissue-cultured plants to Epcot® merchandise locations.

Entomology:
Become an integral part of The Land’s Integrated Pest Management program. Rear and maintain insect colonies, release beneficial insects into greenhouse crops, and maintain entomology-related shows. 

Plant Science:
Maintain a high-quality show of hydroponically-grown food crops from around the globe. Seed, transplant, irrigate and prune plants; harvest produce for Epcot® restaurants; rake, sweep, and provide general cleanup of greenhouses.

The majority of positions accept applications from January-March (for summer/fall), and August-November (for spring), positions may be posted at any time during the year, so we encourage you to check their site for updates regularly. http://disneycareers.com/en/default/  We post information when we hear from their science programs manager so look for that as well— all right here on our weebly. 

Also, check out these links from Disney to get a better idea of what’s expected and how to apply.

http://disneycasting.net/downloads/profintern/animal_prog_descr/Plant_Science.pdf

http://disneycasting.net/downloads/profintern/animal_prog_descr/Horticulture.pdf

    Mission Statement

    Our aim for the Department of Horticulture at Brigham Young University-Idaho is to nurture understanding of both the art and science of Horticulture. Students learn experimentally in the classroom, laboratory, greenhouse, and ten acre Thomas E. Ricks demonstration garden as they pursue an Associates or Bachelors Degree. Using the medium of plants, students develop habits of hard work, enlightened minds, and healthy living that assist in gainful employment opportunitues.

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  • Home
  • Program Information
    • Degrees
    • Classes
    • Professors/Faculty
  • Careers
    • Job/Internship Postings
    • Scholarships
    • Find an Internship
  • Societies
  • Trips
    • Freshman Trip
    • Sophomore Trip
    • Advanced Floral
    • California Spring Trials
    • NALP
    • INLA Conference
    • Parades
  • The Gardens
    • Construction Projects >
      • Mountain Meadow Design
    • Timeline
    • History of the Gardens
  • Trials Website
  • Blog
    • Videos
  • Alumni