Letter From Your President

Dear Friends of the Lotus,

As the fall and winter seasons are upon us, we have an opportunity as horticulturalist to rejoice. Cool crisp nights and shorter days lead to one of the most beautiful displays of a plant’s beauty as leaves turn into brilliant hues of yellow, orange, red, gold, and brown. Truly an unmasking as green chlorophyll fades only to appear again in the spring as new leaves emerge.  

Pi Alpha Xi has a rich history of developing students into future leaders of horticulture. Incoming students may be a little “green” in their understanding of the industry and of the opportunities that await them. We, as teachers and mentors, have a great calling to work with students so that their brilliant colors shine through. At the national meeting in St. Louis, members in attendance had a lively discussion on partnering with ASHS, AFE, ACB and other horticultural groups to develop an annual “National Collegiate Undergraduate Horticulture Convention”. As PAX represents all segments of horticulture, the concept is to provide an event with broad appeal to undergraduate students, academic institutions, and industry partners while providing an avenue through which undergraduate students can highlight research projects, internship experiences, mentor incoming students, develop networks, and compete in an evaluation competition. The ASHS Board of Directors is currently evaluating this partnership opportunity and a pilot program is planned for spring semester at South Dakota State University.  

The Pi Alpha Xi Photography Contest moved into the digital age during the meeting in St. Louis. Many thanks are offered to the Photography Contest Committee for their efforts to coordinate and implement this change. There were 21 excellent entries this year in four separate categories. Winning entries are included in this newsletter and the September 2009 edition of the ASHS Newsletter. Having a booth dedicated to the contest appeared to increase our visibility. PAX members have made great suggestions on how to increase the competition’s impact next year. Look forward to more entries and a greater distribution of information about PAX.

In addition to the Lotus Leaflet, information on upcoming PAX events can be found on the PAX website at:  ashs.org/pax. A hot link is located under the “Membership” tab on the ASHS homepage. I wish you all a great fall semester.

With positive and forward thoughts,
Daniel

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