Botany scholarship awarded

University of Washington junior Rizanino Reyes has received Bassett Family Scholarship of $1,000 from the Washington State Nursery and Landscape Association for his interest in the horticulture field.

According to Marianne Pratt, executive director of WSNLA, the main purpose of the scholarship programs is to encourage the newcomers to the industry.

A 2001 graduate of Shorecrest High School, Reyes is currently studying environmental horticulture and urban forestry; he also minors in dance and botany.

He grew up in the Philippines. Watching his father manage a fruit plantation promoted his interests. Reyes spent hours climbing trees in his back yard and exploring flora.

"Everyone teased me as a little kid," he recalled. "I caused my own troubles by spending all my money on plants and making a mess on our carpet when I brought them home."

With the move to the United States in year of 1989, Reyes' interests in plants grew due to more diversity. He started to take horticulture more seriously by practicing to grow the plants himself.

Reyes became involved with various nursery and horticulture associations.

He worked for a specialty nursery, B&D Lilies in Port Townsend, at the age of 11.

There, he had a chance to participate in Seattle's annual Northwest Flower and Garden show. He also helped B&D to sell certain plants. At 15, Reyes worked for Sky Nursery in Shoreline by helping customers answer questions about their selection of plants, while observing how a nursery business operated.

During the senior year in high school, Reyes was an intern/volunteer at the Washington Park Arboretum, where he also learned how to manage natural and urban landscapes. He learned about perennial plants and how to grow them from the Northwest Perennial Alliance organization, to which he was introduced by his mentors.

It was during his freshmen year at UW that he discovered Botany Greenhouse, where he met its director, Doug Ewing, who let Reyes to become a volunteer, and create his own projects with orchids.

Now Reyes has a specialty nursery of his own and he is trying to organize his own small business selling plants. He is very thankful for the support of the Environmental Horticulture and Urban Forestry faculty.

"I cannot acknowledge them enough," he said. "They've been battling to keep this program alive since UW decided to eliminate the horticulture program."

The scholarship that Reyes won was meant to encourage the future of horticulture, but without programs such as EHUF, the "true integrity and objective of this award is lost," he said.

Reyes has hopes for the future. He minors in botany and dance because he feels that horticulture is a combination of arts and science.

"Botany is an important part of horticulture," he asserted. "You have to understand it to succeed in this field."

Reyes is planning to receive a bachelor's degree in science first.

"To have credibility in the horticulture field, a Masters degree is crucial; so I have to consider graduate school," he said.

He also wants to travel and study abroad, eventually to earn a Ph.D. and become a well-regarded professor.

"But whatever I end up doing, I have to find some way of giving back to all those that have pushed and encouraged me to pursue my career and interests," concluded Reyes.