Grant and Funding Programs Offered by Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation (OHTF)

The Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation (OHTF) is a registered Canadian charity that serves as the research and scholarship arm of Landscape Ontario, the province’s largest association of landscape and horticulture professionals. Created to help secure a healthy future for the horticultural industry, the Foundation channels donated and invested funds into financial support for both education and applied research. Its activities are focused on Ontario, with a strong emphasis on strengthening the landscape, nursery and greenhouse sectors.

Each year, the Foundation makes available a broad portfolio of scholarships, bursaries and awards for Ontario residents pursuing careers in landscape and horticulture. These include post-secondary, apprenticeship and postgraduate scholarships, as well as regional awards delivered through Landscape Ontario chapters. Funding is targeted to registered apprentices, college and university students, and graduate researchers enrolled in approved horticulture- and landscape-related programs. Many scholarships recognize leadership, professionalism, communication skills or community engagement in addition to academic performance.

Through the central Scholarships program, OHTF administers numerous named funds such as OHTF College or University Scholarships, OHTF Post-Secondary and Postgraduate Scholarships, the Casey van Maris Memorial Scholarship, Don Salivan Memorial Fund, Hensbergen/DeGroot Scholarship, John & Ruth Wright Scholarship, Tony DiGiovanni Scholarship and several Unilock-sponsored awards. These typically provide grants in the range of several hundred to a thousand dollars, helping to offset tuition and training costs for first-year, advanced and graduate students.

Additional support is directed to horticultural apprentices via dedicated apprenticeship scholarships and chapter-based funds in regions such as Upper Canada, Waterloo and London. These programs combine financial awards with opportunities for mentorship, professional development, and connections to Landscape Ontario member companies, thereby helping students transition into the workforce.

Beyond scholarships, OHTF plays a significant role in funding research projects that address industry priorities. Working closely with Landscape Ontario and partners like the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre, the Foundation has helped support work on disease and insect management, water access and quality, consumer behaviour and climate-resilient green infrastructure. The Environmental Horticulture Research Chair at Vineland and Greening the Landscape initiatives are highlighted as key outcomes of this collaboration.

The Foundation manages several research-oriented funds, including the Landscape Ontario Growers’ Group Fund, the Dunington Grubb/Sheridan Nurseries Research Fund and the IPM Symposium Fund. These funds are used to support research, strategic initiatives, scholarships and educational projects that advance nursery and grower innovation, integrated pest management and overall sector competitiveness. Researchers are invited to submit project ideas to the OHTF Board and Growers’ Group, with promising proposals then asked to provide full funding requests.

OHTF also administers external charitable initiatives such as Trees for Life, the Highway of Heroes Fund and One Bench One Tree, using industry expertise to deliver tree planting and environmental stewardship projects. Named funds like the Neil Vanderkruk Innovation & Scholarship Fund further blend research grants, scholarships and internships to foster the next generation of horticultural innovators and leaders.

Founded in 1979 by leaders in the landscape and nursery sectors, the Foundation initially focused on raising money for much-needed industry research, later expanding its mandate to include scholarships in response to a persistent need for skilled workers. A volunteer board of directors drawn from industry oversees the Foundation, and annual reports are published to document activities, financial performance and funded initiatives. As a registered charity, OHTF issues official tax receipts for all donations and maintains transparent reporting to its donors, partners and the broader horticultural community.