Internships
The department facilitates a supportive internship program that is considered by students and industry as excellent. Undergraduate students are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the diverse array of internships available to them. Internships vary in length from three to twelve months and provide students with valuable work experience, income, and college credit. Students enrolled in an internship complete a course, Horticulture 391. In their curriculum, students may take two credits of internship toward their horticulture credits and an additional 2 credits toward their 128.5 credits for graduation. Students are placed in internships in Iowa and around the country each summer and during the academic year as needed. Students have participated in internships at the Chicago Botanic Garden, Longwood Gardens, ISU Reiman Gardens, Augusta National Golf Club, Epcot Center, NASA, and at a wide variety of other important and challenging businesses and organizations. Our students compete effectively for national internships. We have also had students who have completed internships in foreign counties. For example, students studied in turf internships in both Scotland and Ireland in recent years and we have placed greenhouse and nursery students in The Netherlands, England, and Italy.
Featuring: William Meyers
Oakland Hills Country Club
Bloomfield Hils, Michigan
Summer 2008
William Meyers works on a drainage project to lower the water table.
William Meyers checking the calibration on a trailer sprayer before spraying fairways.
William Meyers and another intern with the Wanamaker Trophy.
In the summer of 2008 I was very lucky to get an internship at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. This was a great opportunity because I was able to participate in the preparations and execution of the 90th PGA Championship.
Oakland Hills was a very new experience for me. I had never worked at such a large club, with two courses, and so many employees. Working on such a highly ranked course with such high expectations for playing conditions was also a little new for me. I was also able to get more experience with identifying different diseases.
I had the opportunity to work on both courses at Oakland Hills, which proved to be two completely different environments. In the month of June, I worked on the North. It was much more laid back compared to the South. The North only had about twelve people maintaining it so we were limited on the amount of projects that could be done. The two interns on the North always helped with important jobs, such as course set up and chemical applications, because of the lack of experienced people. When it got very close to the PGA Championship the North was maintained as little as possible so that everyone could work on the South course. Most of the irrigation was shut off on the front since the fairways and rough were being used for parking. In the few weeks leading up to the PGA Championship, the North was being maintained by only a handful of people. They would mow the fairways that still had irrigation, mow the greens everyday and the tees every other day, and then they would head to the South course.
One of the most important experiences that I will take from this internship is the diseases that I saw and got to identify. We had a very large problem with Dollar Spot at Oakland Hills. Dollar Spot seemed to always strike the North course first. It could be found on most fairways and tees, however it was most prevalent in the low wet areas around #16 and #15. We would put down periodical treatments to prevent this.
Overall this was a good internship and a good opportunity for me. I learned a fair amount of new things and many new ways to do old things. I did not get as much responsibility out of this internship as I had wanted to. I made a lot of great contacts through all the management there and all of my fellow interns.
Read the rest of William Meyer's Internship story. (PDF)
Featuring: Damian Richards
Interned at Midwest Groundcovers
Summer, 2008
Damian Richardson working with the transfer team inspecting plants for shipping
Damian Richardson with managers, Larry Billings and Drew Koschmann
I had the fortunate opportunity to spend my past summer working for Midwest Groundcovers. I lived and worked in Glenn Michigan at their perennial production facility. I worked with the growers in all aspects of plant production from taking and sticking cuttings, watering, pruning and spacing. I also worked with our plant health specialist in scouting for pests and diseases. Some of my weekly duties included taking water and soil samples to help us regulate our fertilization program. I also worked with the inventory transfer team to assure our quality of plants were ready to be shipped for sale. I also became very familiar with the computer system to fill our production reports, loss reports, change plant growing status and update inventory.
This was such an amazing experience because I had never lived outside of Iowa before. Michigan was so much different than anything I'd ever imagined. It was a whole new experience to see such a different landscape and to have a beautiful lake nearly in my back yard.
I learned many valuable skills from my internship with Midwest Groundcovers. I believe that there are many things one cannot learn in a classroom and it takes great opportunities like this to help you widen your base of knowledge and improve your skills to give you an upper hand when seeking a professional career once you leave school.
Featuring: Elizabeth Childs
Interned at Lauritzen Gardens
Summer 2008
Elizabeth and the children at Garden Passport camp with their passports
Elizabeth and the children looking at Snappy the Turtle in the pond during a garden day camp.
Between handfuls of unfocused ten-year-olds, hunting for frogs and a week-long all-girls camp, I managed to learn a thing or two about the wonderful world of public garden education. There were days I felt like I worked at the zoo, but in fact I was the education intern at Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha, Nebraska and I loved every minute of it or most of them at least.
I was responsible for a special program at the garden in association with the Kiewit Foundation of Omaha. I taught five different garden-themed programs to children ages five to 18. I also co-taught day camps and led youth tours. These first-hand experiences were more beneficial than money could buy. I went through nearly every experience imaginable from tours that didn't show up to two groups showing up at once and leaders falling asleep in my classroom. I found out how amazing it is to teach children about plants and insects in the garden and watch their faces light up as they discover a caterpillar morphing into a chrysalis or watch their seed germinate.
Not only did I have a priceless experience with the kids, I also learned the ins and outs of the education department: booking tours, creating camp themes, and dealing with volunteers.
As graduation slowly rises over the horizon, I am prepared to use my experiences as I hunt for jobs in public garden education. Much of this experiencewhich is very applicable to other areas of life in general, like how to handle scheduling conflicts, angry visitors and chatty volunteers; most importantly, I have found a place where I enjoy going to work and I get to have fun traveling through the garden with children!I have had internships in the past where I learned what I didn't want to do, but I finally found something I want to do.
Featuring: Chris Robert
Intern at Kinnick Stadium
Iowa City, IA
Summer 2007
Read Chris Robert's Internship Story (PDF)
Featuring: Mike Poll
Jack Trice Stadium
Ames, IA
Watch Mike Poll Internship Story
Featuring: Justus Moody
Interned at Plant Delights
Raleigh, N. Carolina
February through August, 2007
Justus Moody by the Juniper Level Botanic Gardens sign, which is funded by PDN
Justus Moody assisting a customer in the nursery
I recently completed my 6 month internship at Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh, NC. Plant Delights is a mail order nursery growing unusual and hard to find perennials. Plant Delights is also home to Juniper Level Botanical Garden, a must see if you are in the area, a six acre garden featuring 17,000 unique plants.
For most of the first 6 weeks I assisted the Facilities Coordinator maintain and repair the grounds and greenhouses. The following week I worked with the Grower. The next seven weeks were spent with the Stocking Supervisor getting through the busiest shipping season. The remainder of the internship was spent in the Propagation Department.
During my internship I learned how to repair the many components of the greenhouses, especially irrigation, and different pieces of equipment. I cut back and deadheaded many plants saw when to do this and how long it would take each species to recover. One of the more difficult parts of my internship was selecting the best available plants to be shipped to customers or in some cases recognizing that there were no plants of a particular species large and healthy enough to be shipped. My favorite part of the internship was in the Propagation Department. I learned how to propagate many species from cuttings, divisions, and seeds.
Featuring: Megan Staley
Interned at Phillip's Flowers
Westmont, IL
Summer 2007
Putting new design techniques to work
Putting new design techniques to work
This summer I packed up my things and moved to the Chicago area, ready and excited to start my internship at Phillip's Flowers in Westmont, Illinois. I was hoping to gain a new perspective of and additional work experience in the floral industry. I wanted to diversify and expand my knowledge in the retail floral business. Over a fourteen week period, I learned a lot about the company and floral design, but most importantly, I learned a lot about myself. I now have a clearer picture of what I want in my future as a floral designer and hopefully future owner of a floral design business.
I started my internship the Wednesday before Mother's Day. As a major supplier of Chicago land's floral designs, Phillip's Flowers awe-struck me those first couple of days with the amount of merchandise that was flowing in and out of their doors. After the holiday, things went back to normal in the company, and I settled into the many facets of my internship. Although the majority of my time at Phillip's was spent in their Event Department, I did get a chance to spend time in almost all of the departments Phillip's offers in their company including production, dispatch, retail, wholesale, phone room, plants, administration, and branch stores. Each department offered something different and something for me to learn.
I spent a majority of my time in the Events Department, which I enjoyed very much. The ladies I worked with were great mentors and very fun to be around. I learned a lot in this department that I can use down the road, and I was really able to use my creativity on such projects as standing orders. I enjoyed this so much because flowers were at my disposal, and I had access to about any flower which made designing fun and exciting. I believe I enjoyed the Events Department because I learned some new design techniques, but most importantly, I was exposed to new things. I worked on elaborate and colorful Indian weddings, something that is not common in Iowa. I also had the chance to go on set-ups and see some really gorgeous venues. My experience in Events gave me a lot of great ideas for designs. I also enjoyed this department because I was able meet with customers for a bridal consultation. I really enjoyed this because I am a people person, and I really enjoy working and conversing with customers.
The impact my internship had on my career and education is almost too large to express in words. My experience in a successful retail florist company solidified my interest in floral design as I am still passionate about the floral industry and excited to make big strides in my career. It also provided me great opportunities for the future. Finally, the internship better prepared me for a fast-paced job in the floral industry. I learned how to adjust in a new work environment and effectively work with new co-workers. In just a couple of years, I will be out on my own, hopefully working in a floral design business and using what I learned at Phillip's Flowers to help fuel my success.
Featuring: Eric C. Pitzen
Vic and Margaret Ball Internship
Tagawa Greenhouses, Brighton, Colorado
Spring 2007
During spring semester, 2007, I participated in a Vic and Margaret Ball Internship with Tagawa Greenhouses Enterprises in Brighton, Colorado. During my internship I learned different skills that will be applicable in my future career. I also learned and evaluated how a commercial greenhouse operates on a daily and seasonal basis.
I performed many different types of work during my internship, with the majority of my time spent in annual plug production and finished production of annual cell packs and hanging baskets. My internship was constructed so that I would learn all processes of production and perform all the jobs of the greenhouse in chronological order.
One of the most interesting weeks of my internship was spent in sales and marketing. Here I was able to travel with Tagawa's category managers to different Home Depot locations organizing and setting up stores to make them look more eye-appealing to customers. Some of my internship was spent learning the business aspects of a greenhouse and the Tagawa company. I shadowed individuals, inquiring how and what they do affect what happens in the greenhouse. This was very informative because it consolidated all the information and questions that I accumulated while completing my internship.
My six-month internship at Tagawa's, had a huge impact on my career plans and goals. Before arriving at Tagawa's, I thought I wanted to be a vegetative-young plant grower in a commercial greenhouse operation. After leaving my internship, I learned that type of position was not for me. This internship experience enabled me to determine my areas of strengths and weaknesses, interests and dislikes. I believe I need to improve my business and marketing acumen. With this in mind, I made changes in my class schedule at Iowa State to help strengthen those two areas before I graduate. I determined my future plans are to work in new product development, for a leading company in the areas of breeding, development and production of vegetative plants. I would like to be the company's breeder relations individual and travel nationally and internationally looking for new and improved species that can be introduced into the American market.
Featuring: Eric Pitzenn
C. Raker & Sons, Inc.
Litchfield, Michigan
Fall 2006
During the summer and fall of 2006 I participated in an internship was with C. Raker and Sons, in Litchfield, MI, as their Liner Profit Center intern and grower. Going into this internship, I knew I wanted to work in the vegetative annual sector of the industry, and I was confident that my career path was taking me in the direction of being a vegetative young plant specialist. This was the perfect internship for me to test my career direction because the jobs they had me performing were the same as those assigned to a vegetative young plant grower. Raker was going through a hiring change, and as a result, they gave me the interim grower position until they found a permanent, full-time grower. I was put in charge of the propagation area, and I made the necessary changes to ensure high-quality rooted liners were produced. I learned how to make a production schedule and the importance of writing cultural notes to develop production plans for future use. I was in charge of various perennial and annual crops, and that helped me develop and categorize a time management schedule that ensured proper culture for all crops. This interim grower position helped me learn how a commercial greenhouse operates on a daily basis, and it also showed me that if I make a mistake, I am interfering with the quality or whether the crop gets to the consumer on time.
Featuring: Zach Baughman
Merion Golf Club
Ardmore, PA
Summer 2005
Read Zach Baughman's Internship Story (PDF)
Featuring: Joe Bowser
Wimbledon Ground Staff
Summer 2007
Read Joe Bowser's Internship Story (PDF)
