September 10, 2014
LO projects receive $86,250 in funding

The Agricultural Adaptation Council (AAC) board of directors announced the approval of 52 projects totaling over $5 million under Growing Forward 2.

Landscape Ontario had two projects receive approval, totaling $86,250.

"The sectors interest in, and uptake of, the GF2 program is unprecedented," said Kristin Ego MacPhail, AAC Chair. "The enormous response by the industry to GF2 for the organizations and collaborations program truly reflects the appropriateness and need for this program."

Entitled, Building Training Capacity for Ontario Nursery Growers in Pest and Disease Management Techniques, this project received $30,000 from AAC.

The goal is to support the training and supervision of a field technician, educated in plant pathology and entomology. The technician will provide monitoring and pest identification and biology training to Ontario nursery growers over two growing seasons.

The field technician will be provided with IPM resources and tools to help effectively perform on-farm tasks. As the technician is trained, he or she will in-turn train nursery growers while on-site. It is hoped to provide Ontario nursery growers with educational opportunities in plant pathology and entomology.

The project team overseeing the project includes highly trained entomologists and plant pathologists and crop specialists with extensive experience in nursery crop plant health issues.

This project will also build the IPM service capacity for the nursery industry by providing highly specialized training and field experience for nursery field technicians. The technician would have the unique opportunity to work closely with the OMAF and MRA Nursery Crops Specialist and other crop specialists, as well as plant pathologists and entomologists from the University of Guelph.

It is the intention of the project team to help develop future crop consultants for the Ontario nursery industry.

The other project by Landscape Ontario to receive approval is for $56,250 to develop a strategy to encourage a 40 per cent tree cover in urban areas.

This project will develop a plan to encourage increased tree planting in Ontario, which should provide a direct benefit to the Ontario horticultural sector.

The project will develop the strategy to meet the goal of 40 per cent tree cover in urban areas, develop tools that will be used to measure tree growth cover over time, and develop an interactive website that encourages tree planting and tree maintenance.

The AAC is based in Guelph, and is a not-for-profit organization that is made up of 67 Ontario agricultural, agri-food and rural organizations. The AAC board of directors reviews all applications and makes the final funding decisions.