The Growing Involvement of Horticulture in extension: Updates and Opportunities. An Introduction to the Proceedings

摘要

The national extension Initiative officially launched its public web site on 21 Feb. 2008 at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Outlook Forum in Washington, DC. Work on this initiative has been ongoing for several years. In 2005, eight communities of practice (CoPs) were funded to begin identifying and/or developing content for extension. Among these pioneer CoPs was one devoted to consumer horticulture that participated in the public launch using a more user-friendly identity of Gardens, Lawns and Landscapes. In the last few years, additional horticulture-themed CoPs have been developed, including All About Blueberries, Apple Rootstocks and Cultivars, and Grapes. Other, broader in scope CoPs exist that relate to horticulture includingBee Health, eOrganic, Plant Breeding and Genomics, Wildlife Damage Management, and others. The topic of extension has been the subject of several recent workshops at ASHS conferences. In 2010 the ASHS extension (EEXT) Working Group was formed and led tosponsoring of the 2011 extension workshop and these proceedings.