Pi Alpha Xi
National Honor Society for Horticulture

National Intercollegiate Floral Crop Quality Evaluation and Design Competition

Pi Alpha Xi is well-known for its co-sponsorship with the American Floral Endowment, of the Annual National Intercollegiate Floral Crop Quality Evaluation and Design Competition. The contest location is rotated among different four-year institutions within the United States. Approximately 11 schools bring teams to the competition annually. (View a QuickTime movie for a glimpse of activities that occurred at the 1997 contest hosted by Oklahoma State University.) As discussed in the HortScience article "Flower Judging to Develop Professionalism among Floriculture Students" [24(6), p897-898] by Dr. Dennis Wolnick, the activity develops a sense of responsibility within the students for high quality plant material and trains them to identify quality characteristics. In keeping with the goals of Pi Alpha Xi, fellowship and scholarship are shared by students, educators, and professionals.

The success of the National Intercollegiate Floral Crop Quality Evaluation and Design Competition is greatly influenced by the financial and in-kind support of its many sponsors.

Upcoming Contests:

67th Annual Competition: April 2-4, 2008, hosted by University of Wisconsin—Platteville

Mike Compton

University of Wisconsin
School of Agriculture
1 University Plaza
Platteville, WI 53818

Phone: 608-342-1323
FAX: 608-342-1395

68th Annual Competition: 2009, hosted by South Dakota State University

Resources:

Terry Ferriss
University of Wisconsin - River Falls
Dept. of Plant and Earth Sciences
410 S. 3rd Street
River Falls, WI 54022

Phone: 715-425-3345
FAX: 715-425-3785

Cost is $7 per copy.