Natiional Garden Club awards SNRAS student scholarship

SNRAS student Nathan Heeringa (pictured above) has earned a National Garden Clubs scholarship of $3,500.

The scholarship is for students majoring in fields related to horticulture and the environment.

Heeringa, who grew up in Bellingham, Wash., on a small family dairy farm, moved to Fairbanks in 2006 to enroll in the natural resources management program, emphasizing high latitude agriculture.

Heeringa is researching the effects of terracing on the soil quality of a Fairbanks area loess soil for his senior thesis project. He plans to graduate next spring and continue to live in Alaska, working in the natural resources management field.

The National Garden Clubs awarded 35 scholarships across the nation.

Following is Heeringa's essay which helped earn him the scholarship award.

      Agriculture and horticulture have been lifelong interests of mine, which I hope to continue in my career.  This lifelong interest began as a boy growing up on my family’s dairy farm in Washington state. Growing up on my family’s farm taught me the satisfaction that is gained through working with the land. My interest in horticulture started in high school when I took my first horticulture class. This class gave me foundational knowledge about working with plants and greenhouse management as well as hands on experience.  Subsequently I was inspired to build my own greenhouse and was given the opportunity through the Future Farmers of America (FFA) program, to grow and sell bedding plants through my school’s FFA spring bedding plant sale. During high school I also worked for a commercial nursery where I gained additional experience in plant care.

       As a young adult I completed a permaculture (permanent and sustainable agriculture) design course in Hawaii. This course taught me how to incorporate plants, animals, and the natural landscape into a garden design that is mutually beneficial to each component, increasing both sustainability and productivity. With the skills from this course I traveled with classmates to the Philippines where we designed and built a Permaculture garden for Hebron Orphanage North of Manila. Participating in this project broadened my perspective on the possibilities in small-scale agricultural design and practice

After several years of trying out various fields of work I came to realize that agriculture and horticulture was something that I wanted to pursue as a career. This prompted me to enroll at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in the Natural Resource Management program with an emphasis in high latitude agriculture.  Course work such as Introduction to Plant Science, Comparative Farming and Sustainable Food Systems, Soils and the Environment, and Greenhouse Production gave me valuable knowledge about plant science and agriculture at high latitudes. In addition to my coursework, my summer work with Colorado State University as a Vegetation Monitoring Technician in Alaska has given me experience in identifying native vegetation including Alaska’s unique wildflower species.

 Through networking opportunities and coursework I came to learn about the unique niche market that high latitude locations such as Fairbanks have in the peony cut flower market.  Due to the late spring, peonies bloom in Alaska from mid to late summer, which is after the season in much of North America, thus providing a niche market.  I recently started my own floriculture businesses, Far North Flowers, through which I hope to capitalize on the peony niche market in Alaska.  Although I am still in the planning and development stages I hope to build the business into my livelihood, which will allow me to fulfill my lifelong dream of working with the land in a productive and sustainable fashion. 

         

I currently have one year of school remaining and have started my undergraduate senior thesis project focusing on the effects of terracing on the soil quality of a Fairbanks area loess soil. My research experience and continued coursework will provide tools to aide me in accomplishing my goals. The National Garden Club scholarship will help relieve the financial burden of tuition and being a full time student. Thank you for taking time in considering this application.