Revista >> Ianuarie - Februarie 2024 [Nr. 261] >> Cercetare & Invatamant superior

International elite of Horticultural Community to gather in Bucharest:The European Congress of Horticulture 2024, an important event brought to Romania by USAMV of Bucharest

Alexandru Batali

15 Februarie 2024

Young students or professionals in the scientific community benefit from talking with ISHS, which focuses on supporting and getting new generations to horticulture. There is a recently established commission, called Young Minds, supporting youth integration and training. It aims at ensuring continuity and future for horticulture research. In fact, two prizes will be awarded to young researchers at each of the 10 symposia within EHC 2024: one for the best oral presentation and one for the best poster. Based on these diplomas, they will be able to introduce themselves in a quarterly ISHS journal, called Chronica Horticulturae. Young people have special (reduced) fees in ISHS and at this Congress, we also included them in the scientific committees, and the USAMV of Bucharest students, especially those enrolled in Faculty of Horticulture, will be directly involved in planning the event.

The 20th edition of the Bucharest Horticulture Days (ZHB) will be held between May 9-12. This is one of USAMV of Bucharest best events preceding the EHC and partially integrated into the congress. The event will take place in the Romanian Senate gardens, beautifully redecorated on the former streets in the Uranus district. The Romanian Senate celebrates its 160th anniversary this year. A number of participants will certainly come to Romania earlier to visit the ZHB, and the Senate will held its open gates for the general public, who can visit the exhibition and plants and flowers firs, as well as products, tools and equipment for horticulture. The Executive Committee of ISHS will work during ZHB, therefore it can be present at this important event of Bucharest and Romanian horticulture. The EHC exhibition inside the Parliament Palace will be inaugurated on May 12^th. Some of the exhibitors at ZHB may have a booth here during the Congress.

11 technical tours will be held on May 14^th, as each Symposium gives an occasion to visit some research or production objectives in the field of horticulture in the vicinity of Bucharest. For vegetables, the participants will have the opportunity to visit the production area in Băleni, Dâmboviţa; fruit growers will go to the Research and Development Institute for Fruit Culture in Pitesti-Mărăcineni; wine farmers will go to Budureasca and the Viticulture Research and Development Station and Pietroasa Winery; another group will discover the urban vertical microplants factory; landscapers will walk through Bucharest parks; those interested in robotics will visit the Politehnica University of Bucharest and the National Institute of Agricultural Machinery (INMA). Those interested in after harvest will visit the HORTINVEST research infrastructure within USAMV of Bucharest, which houses an European-level laboratory, and our fruit storage and processing warehouse in the Agricultural R&D Educational Site at Moara Domnească. The history lovers will go to the Village Museum and the Museum of Fruit and Viticulture in Goleşti, Argeş. This way, everybody can leave Bucharest and discover the realities of Romanian horticulture, at home.

We will also offer participants who have never been to Romania the opportunity to visit and discover the country, at the end of the Congress, between May 17-19. Thus, they can sign up for one of the 5 trips included in the program. A two-day trip to the Prahovei Valley-Peleș-Brașov-Bran area, including the two castles, and four trips of three days each to the historical regions of Romania. During these trips they can discover tourist attractions (monasteries, historical and cultural monuments, important cities, and also the Danube Delta in Dobrogea), as well as horticulture attractions (wineries, plantations, agricultural warehouses, greenhouses, solariums). Thus, we combine pleasure with business and give our distinguished guests the opportunity to meet Romanian history, culture and civilization, traditions and local culinary art (our dishes and wines, Romanian brandy), all kinds of riches and beauties of our country, to get to know us better and to have strong reasons to come back again.

Horticulture 2.0 – 10 symposia on innovation and technology
This year s program includes 10 symposia, where science and innovation will meet representatives of the agricultural industry in an open dialogue about when, how and why. The events will bridge sustainability in European and global horticulture.

The 10 symposia themes focus on the current challenges in horticultural field:
- S01 History of horticulture in Europe
- S02 Sustainable production of vegetables, from seeds to promoting health
- S03 Production systems for sustainability and resilience
- S04 Viticulture and winemaking, in between tradition and innovation
- S05 Fruit trees, in between opportunities and challenges
- S06 Ornamental horticulture to serve human society
- 07 Urban horticulture: from vertical crops to landscape architecture
- S08 Genetic resources in horticulture: screening, spawning, using and conservation
- S09 Robotics, mechanization and intelligent horticulture
- S10 After harvest and quality of horticultural products

A special edition, one of a kind
By what we offer, the event grows in scope, complexity, diversity and attractiveness. This edition surpasses the previous ones, in that is something particular for Romania and for the scientific community in our country. We are happy to be institutional partners with five ministries: the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Research and Digitization, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Waters and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We also have the representation of the Romanian Academy, we are supported by the National Bank of Romania and the Bucharest City Hall. Strong institutional players are joining hands to ensure a valuable framework for a first-rate European event, long kept in minds.

Profits
Which do you think are the profits, the „fruits" that Romania, in general, and USAMV of Bucharest, in particular, get by organizing EHC 2024? What about ISHS and the community gathered around the event?
It is a special advertising opportunity for Romania, to show itself in Europe and in the world. EHC 2024 will provide our country with more visibility. Numerous members of the international horticultural community participating to this edition have never been to Romania before. They will certainly come back, impressed by what they discover here, by the level of R&D and production in horticulture, by our tourism and hospitality. The technical and after the congress tours have been carefully designed to provide an authentic experience to EHC 2024 participants and to contribute to a positive image of Romania. Therefore, we help highlight Romania s natural and cultural resources, facilitating its consolidation as a tourist destination in Europe.

National tourism profits, as well as increase of professional relations. EHC 2024 will facilitate valuable relationships on a personal and institutional level. With this Congress, Romania will be able to join countries whose horticulture matters much more on an European and global level.

On the other hand, Romania profits on a scientific production level. After the event, 10 volumes of Acta Horticulturae will be published, which will include all the scientific works presented. We contribute to enriching the scientific heritage of horticulture, as well as knowledge, ideas, experiences and relationships, from an European and international level. In fact, this is one of the main goals of the congress.