Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 12, 1993 TAG: 9302120522
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KIRK QUELLIN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
HITTING ON HORTICULTURE
SOON, Virginia state legislators will decide whether to reinstate $3.4 million in funds to Virginia Tech's Cooperative Extension program.Like all state agencies, the Cooperative Extension program experienced a 5-percent cut in funding from its 1992-1993 and 1993-1994 budget. Unlike most agencies, however, the initial budget proposal reflects a reduction of an additional $3.4 million from the program's funding.
While this additional cut will harm extension's agricultural food-production, forestry, home-economics, 4-H and family-issues outreach programs, extension urban-horticulture programs will be hardest hit. Without reinstatement of these necessary funds, many of the horticulture programs could be eliminated.
Here's a sampling of what could result:
More than 250,000 consumers throughout the state, seeking information on topics such as pesticide safety, insect identification, disease and pest control, lawn care, pruning and wildlife problems, would not receive the valuable information they need.
Hundreds of free workshops organized by volunteer master gardeners for landscapers and the public - on pruning, water control, pesticide disposal and composting - would never be held.
Radio stations throughout the commonwealth would no longer air horticulture and "ask the expert" programs for listeners.
Newspapers throughout the commonwealth would not receive informational articles on horticulture issues for publication.
Beautification programs planned throughout the commonwealth for historic sites, municipal grounds, community parks, nursing homes and low-income housing, which are sponsored by extension volunteers, would be eliminated.
Patients at convalescent centers and schoolchildren alike would miss out on the many workshops on plant care and gardening sponsored by extension and its volunteers.
Children's budding interests in nature and horticulture would not be cultivated through extension's master-gardener education programs and activities.
At a time when the need to understand, preserve and protect our natural resources has never been more critical, additional funding cuts to extension agricultural and horticultural programs could be extremely harmful to our beautiful commonwealth.
As an industry, we are willing to accept as our fair share the across-the-board cut, but we do not believe the additional $3.4 million cut is fair to the millions of Virginia residents who will be adversely affected by this action. State legislators should vote to reinstate the funds.
Kirk Quillen is president of the Virginia Nurserymen's Association and vice president of Waynesboro Nurseries Inc. in Waynesboro.