The Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation (OHTF) is looking to partner with interested growers to promote new plants and fund horticultural scholarships for youth.

The OHTF plans to help promote ‘worthy’ new plant varieties to the trade and consumer, and receive a portion of the plant royalties in exchange to help fund horticultural scholarships. A program is being developed to endorse and promote superior varieties in several plant categories: annuals, perennials, groundcovers, roses, trees and shrubs.

Both growers and the OHTF will benefit from plant sale royalties through this new promotional program.

The mandate of the OHTF is to ensure a healthy future for the horticulture industry through financial support of research and scholarships. Last year it distributed $25,000 in scholarships to students enrolled in horticultural programs across the province. Funds for research and scholarship come from interest generated by capital investments. Growers and breeders who are interested in working with the Foundation on this worthy project are asked to contact John Wright at (519)742-8433, or
e-mail wlc@wright.on.ca.