Competition attracts fresh faces: Young Horticulturist of the Year is an effective way to promote the industry to young people, says Mark Hotton

摘要

It took some time for Jim my O'Connor to break into a smile after the final question. Even after his victory had been confirmed by the judges and the 50-strong crowd, the student from the Salesian College of Horticulture maintained his poker face. Considering the way the Institute of Horticulture's (loH's) Young Horticulturist of the Year competition is run - the various rounds give anyone the opportunity to mount a challenge at any stage -it would have been unfair to have labelled him the underdog,but O'Connor's quiet, unassuming nature meant that his victory was a popular one.