Grants and Scholarships
2024 NHS Grants
Seattle Giving Garden Network (SGGN) $4,000
SGGN will use the funding to relocate and renovate a greenhouse donated to them so they might continue to grow vegetable starts for use in “pea-patch” lands devoted to growing food for food banks in the Seattle area.
GROW $3000
GROW will use the funds to aid residents of Seattle in paying for pea-patch space so they might raise vegetables. The city of Seattle has an application program for selecting eligible applicants who would not otherwise afford to participate in the pea-patch gardening program. GROW contributes to this effort.
Leach Botanical Garden $4,000
Leach Botanical Garden will use the funding to assist them in constructing a new Children’s Garden a “whimsical garden for children and their families to enjoy” fostering creative recreation in a suburban renewal zone where facilities for children are few. The new garden will also serve as a classroom for children’s educational programs. Leach has an ongoing program for primary and secondary schools near the garden which focuses on learning about plants, other life forms and sustainability.
Historic Seattle $4000
Historic Seattle will use the funding to create a “beautiful and welcoming garden” on publicly accessible property on First Hill using native plants to tell a story of the region’s First People. The garden in an area of high foot traffic near hospitals and other medical facilities.
2023 NHS Grants
GRuB $6000
The funds will be allocated to the organization’s Community Food Solutions program, primarily for staff wages specifically supporting the following projects:
- The GRuB Garden Project, which builds free gardens for people with low incomes and provides free workshops and other gardening resources to garden recipients.
- The military veteran project, which engages military veterans in talk circles, gardening workshops, and beekeeping.
Foundation of District 304 $4000
Funds will be allocated toward the building of two outdoor classroom roofs for elementary education focused on nutrition, food production and hands-on gardening. The total project budget is $10,000. The organization reports it has raised $6,000 thus far, including pending in- kind donations. Specifically, monies are targeted for building materials, including framing, roofing,
2022 NHS Grant
GRuB $6000
The funds will be allocated to the organization’s Community Food Solutions program, primarily for staff wages specifically supporting the following projects:
- The GRuB Garden Project, which builds free gardens for people with low incomes and provides free workshops and other gardening resources to garden recipients.
- The military veteran project, which engages military veterans in talk circles, gardening workshops, and beekeeping.
2021 NHS Grants
GRuB $3000
We are impressed with the work GRuB has done over the years with the use of NHS funding. Reading their application narrative notes, we felt strongly about continuing the funding toward their work of the ongoing building of the Victory Farm run by military veteran volunteers, as well as their recent teaming up with “…BIPOC-led Haki Farmers collective to reincorporate traditional and inherently sustainable farming knowledge that is present in migrant and indigenous communities.”
Heronswood $5000
The grant application requested funds to help fund a new project, The Raining Wall. “The Raining Wall is the inspiration of Heronswood director emeritus Dan Hinkley. It is the capstone installation for Dan’s last big project at Heronswood — the Renaissance Garden, also known as x ̣ə́w̕əs shəyí or “New Life Spirit” in S’Klallam — before stepping down as director.”
“The proposed Raining Wall is the final, capstone feature for the Renaissance Garden and concluding piece in the completion of Dan’s design vision. Sometimes referred to as a “weeping wall”, it is a permeable wall that allows for water to pass through without damage to the permanent structure and supports a variety of plants. In addition, there is a seasonal/runoff pond at the base of the Renaissance Garden, which will handily support a Raining Wall and improve the overall environmental quality of the garden.” Heronswood estimates the entire raining wall project to complete at $200,000.
Plant Amnesty $6000
Grant funding will allow Plant Amnesty to create a professional series that includes Spanish Speaking training programs for plant identification, pruning, restoration of overgrown landscapes, and planting and plant care. The project is to expand on the Spanish curriculum. From their narrative- “Plant Amnesty has been providing ornamental horticulture classes and literature to the Seattle area and beyond for over 30 years. In this time, we have disproportionately reached English-speaking students. As Seattle is evolving into an ever-richer cultural demographic, we want to provide classes and informational videos that are accessible by community members who do not have English as their first language.” Notably, the committee appreciated the focus on diversifying their training. Plant Amnesty summarized their goals as “Our goal in providing online classes and videos free of charge is to bridge the gap of accessible and accurate pruning classes for native Spanish speakers. The horticultural community has a disproportionate amount of non-POC members, and Plant Amnesty is aiming to break down barriers that make our Spanish-speaking community members feel othered.”
2024 Elisabeth Carey Miller Graduate Research Scholarships in Horticulture
Allie M. Howell $5000
Allie M. Howell was awarded a scholarship for research required for completion of her master’s degree at the University of Washington School of Environment and Forest Service. She is working with Dr. Beth Fallon, a scientist from the National Park Service, to determine effective methods for regenerating subalpine plant communities trodden to extinction in the meadows of Mt Rainier National Park at Paradise. Allie is determining the efficacy of using seed and the soil seed bank to restore plant communities. While conducted in a subalpine region this research has relevance to plant restoration work in meadows in park areas and other public lands in the lowland Puget Sound Basin in urban and suburban areas.
2023 Elisabeth Carey Miller Graduate Research Scholarships in Horticulture
Danielle Horne $4,000
Daneille Horne’s research uses the endangered Wenatchee Mountains checkermallow, Sidalcea oregana var. calva, to study growing requirements, establishment strategies and site effects to expand knowledge of propagation and growing practices for rare plants. Microsite effects involving moisture, soil texture, light availability and other factors are an often-overlooked aspect in successfully growing and reintroducing hard to establish species. Understanding more about how to best grow and cultivate species that require highly specific site and nursery conditions has wide application for horticultural purposes.
Amelia Keyser-Gibson $3,000
Amanda Keyser-Gibson’s project looks at how water availability and climatic differences impact plant photosynthetic ability and productivity. She will be taking precise measurements across the Climate Ready Landscape Plants research plots at the six institutions across the western US to expand physiological analyses, focusing on limitations in stomatal and mesophyll conductance on overall all plant photosynthetic capacity and water use efficiency. These results will be included in models to better represent how plant physiology contributes to water balance in the overall climate system. This will help inform better sustainable horticultural practices for professionals, plant scientists and gardeners.
Miro Stuke $3,000
Miro Stuke’s research focuses on mechanisms and prediction of cold hardiness for trees in our region, focusing , combining them with climate model predictions to identify seed sources and ecotypes that will be most viable in future climate conditions. The work is easily transferable to many other woody plant species, including those of horticultural merit.
2022 Elisabeth Carey Miller Graduate Research Scholarships in Horticulture
Isabela Noriega $3,500
Isabela Noriega’s project is part of her larger study of the alteration and potential restoration of aspects of the historical landscape around the megalopolis of Mexico City. The Miller Scholarship would fund the first study of wetland species endemic to the Valley of Mexico that are tolerant of urban conditions and can help ameliorate flooding and assist in water treatment. The methodology employed can serve as a model for other urban systems worldwide.
Kove Janeski $3,500
Kove Janeski’s project involves the UW Farm at the Center for Urban Horticulture. Kove proposed a study that will research the best way to cultivate culturally important wapato and camas plants in area landscapes. Different methods will be studied to determine preferred environmental requirements of the plant, the amount of water storage capacity needed and soil conditions necessary. This study will allow greater opportunities for increased cultivation of these culturally important and nutritional plant species.
2021 Elisabeth Carey Miller Graduate Research Scholarships in Horticulture
Justin Roberts $3,000
Justin Roberts’ project will study the use and applications of Biochar as a means to improve soil and plant health in urban landscapes. Biochar is a carbon-rich material produced from organic material that is heated to high temperatures in an oxygen-limited environment. It can sequester carbon, purify water, retain nutrients and moisture in soil, and help provide an environment for beneficial microbes. His is a two-part project. The first surveys different types of Biochar production and use in the Swedish city of Malmo, where it has been in wide use in a variety of landscape applications in recent years. The second part will focus on adaptability to Pacific Northwest landscapes and recommendations for best practices for use and production locally, with a focus on designed urban landscapes.
Hsin-Wu (Arthur) Hsu $3,000
Hsin-Wu (Arthur) Hsu’s project has two aspects that deal with impacts of climate change. The first looks at the typical flowering period and levels of seed production in northwest conifer species and how they are changing due to climate factors. This will be used to study likely effects on species adaptability and survival and can be adapted for insights into how other horticultural species might fare. The second deals with the Climate Ready Landscape Plants project at the UW Botanic Gardens and other western sites. This project will measure climate adaptability of various species and cultivars of landscape plants across six western regions from Arizona to Washington. In addition to quantifying aesthetic performance among several species and cultivars across various irrigation regimes, this project can shed light on other physiological and morphological changes in response to climate shifts. Findings will help select species and cultivars that can be further developed for good performance under hotter and drier climates.
2024 Recipients of the NHS Elisabeth Cary Miller Scholarships in Horticulture
Talia Halperin (Edmonds College) $6000
Halpern is pursuing a Landscape Design degree, a Certified Professional Horticulturist certificate, and perhaps the add-on of a Sustainable Landscape degree. She has trained in fine gardening and received her Master Pruner Certification from Plant Amnesty. In addition, she has been working as Horticultural Therapy Educator and Garden Technician at assisted living facilities in the area
Alerian Lockwood (Edmonds College) $6000
Lockwood is pursuing a Landscape Design Specialization Assoc of Technical Arts. References recognized her interest in and capacity for landscape design. She has been volunteering in the field of horticulture and active in local horticultural organizations.
Sarah Rogers (Edmonds College) $6000
Having received a college degree in geology, Sarah Rogers began teaching at the Fiddleheads School at Washington Park Arboretum. Introduced to horticulture there, she decided to pursue a career in the field and to earn a degree at Edmonds. She intends to work in public horticulture, restoration, or invasive species management.
Trevor Kitchin (South Seattle College) $6000
Kitchen is changing careers. He has enrolled at South Seattle College and is pursuing a Landscape Horticulture AAS degree. He aspires to become a certified Horticulturalist and a certified Arborist. After gaining experience, he hopes teach at South Seattle College in the Horticulture Program. He would like to combine his teaching abilities and love of plants and teach horticulture.
Daniel Wright (Lake Washington Institute of Technology) $6000
Wright is pursuing an AAS in Environmental Horticulture at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. Daniel experience while working 3.5 years in a retail nursery in Bellevue convinced him that he wanted to continue to work in horticulture. His long-term career goal is to be a propagator of endangered species. He is motivated by his concern for maintaining plant biodiversity. Initially he plans to work at a nursery in propagation to gain experience and training.