Seven students from four universities were presented cash awards totaling $2,500 for their presentations at the Bryson L. James Student Competition held during the 61st SNA Research Conference put on by the Southern Nursery Association.
The competition, sponsored by Bennett’s Creek Wholesale Nursery and Lancaster Farms, is named in honor of Dr. Bryson L. James, McMinnville, Tenn., a researcher and consultant who served as SNA Director of Research for over 30 years.
First place winners of $500 each included Shuyang Zhen, University of Georgia (Ph.D.), David Gianino, University of Georgia (M.S.), and Avery Lamb, Auburn University(B.S.). Second place winners of $300 each included Geoffrey Weaver, University of Georgia (Ph.D.), and M. Terri Williams, North Carolina State University (M.S.). Third place winners of $200 each included Nastaran Basiri Jahromi, University of Tennessee (Ph.D.), and Zhitong Li, University of Georgia (M.S.). In addition to the cash awards for excellence in written and oral presentations for their respective research projects, each student was presented with a plaque.
Any student of a university or college having researchers that participate in the Southern Nursery Association Research Conference and not more than a one academic year has passed since their graduation and whose research was completed prior to graduation can participate in the competition. Judging is based on paper preparation and oral presentation. The competition is divided into three categories of Ph.D., M.S., and B.S.
The SNA Research Conference, which began in 1956, is the country’s longest running woody ornamental research conference and provides a forum for horticultural researchers to communicate relevant and recent research findings to the industry. Its origin cannot be traced to any one individual, but the roots were planted by several SNA board members that recognized the need to consolidate duplicate research programs throughout the region. From an informal effort of compiling papers gathered from several horticultural research centers, this two-day conference is held annually and has become world-renowned for quality research. Participants are the top horticultural research and educational leaders from across the country.
Research presented at the SNA Research Conference is published in the annual “SNA Research Conference Proceedings” available on the SNA website. Proceedings from 1991 – 2016 are available with 3,079 titles comprised of 12,074 pages.
The 62nd Annual SNA Research Conference is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, August 1 – 2, 2017, in conjunction with the SEGreen Conference, produced by SNA, in Athens, GA.
