H&CS 401.02 -Study Tour of Environmental Horticulture Organizations in Ohio
1 Credit
20-21 September 1999 Tour

Description. H&CS 401.02 is a 2-day intensive study tour of selected Environmental or Landscape Horticulture operations in the state. The tours alternate between the Northeast, South West, and Central regions of Ohio, where the 'green' industry is concentrated. We will visit production nurseries for trees, shrubs, vines or turf; landscape design, installation and maintenance businesses; and public horticulture sites such as botanic gardens and arboreta.

Purpose. The purpose of this tour is to introduce students to the variety of Environmental Horticulture organizations that exist in our state and to demonstrate the many possible venues for employment in this field. At each site, students will hear about the organization: its mission, goals, structure, operation, etc; they will also see representative work environments. In addition, the students will meet working landscape professionals that represent the broad dimension of Landscape Horticulture.

Expectations. Participants in the tour are expected to gather relevant information about each of the organizations and to prepare a critical analysis of one of the tour sites. The reports will be compiled and placed on the Web for future reference.

Issues. The proprietors/employees of each site to be visited have been asked to address the following issues:

• The general nature of the organization: what does the organization do and who is being served?
• A brief history of the organization: how it developed to its present condition.
• Who are the people that work in the organization: staffing levels, type of expertise, kinds of jobs they do.
• A personal history of the presenter: How did he/she end up where he/she is now? What educational pathway did he/she follow? What makes him/her successful in the field? As he/she developed as a professional, what wisdom could be shared with individuals who are considering getting into the Landscape Horticulture/ Environmental Horticulture business/service ?
• What are the critical issues being faced by the organization today? What are good opportunities and what are possible limitations?

Requirements: Each student must attend the 2-day study tour and provide a 2-4 page written report of one of the organizations visited. The written report must be turned in either on disk or as an e-mail attachment (to Jourdan.1@osu.edu) AND in hard copy form. The format should be either Microsoft Word or WordPerfect or any text (e.g., .TXT extension) so it can be made ready for display on the Web.

The written reports are due Friday, 15 October 1999 in Dr. Jourdan's mailbox (207 Howlett Hall) or his office (233B Howlett Hall)