18 February 2016

Bigger will definitely be better for more than 3000 students who plant sunflowers on Tuesday (23 February) in the 2016 University of Queensland Sunflower competition.

Students from more than 90 schools in Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia are expected to compete in this year’s competition.

The aim is to grow the largest and heaviest sunflowers and beat the 2014 record of 4.45kilograms, set by Mueller College, Brisbane.

 

Back to back winners from Downlands College in the 2012-2013 UQ Sunflower Competition

 

UQ’s Sunflower Competition, now in its 17th year, promotes the science behind agronomy and horticulture.

The competition is an interactive learning opportunity to encourage a new generation of plant scientists to uphold Australia’s position at the forefront of agricultural production.

Teachers use the competition to deliver the science curriculum in a plant-based context.

About 300 students and teachers will attend the official weigh-in day on 17 May at The University of Queensland’s Gatton campus.

Students will compete for prizes, hear from industry experts and scientists and participate in hands-on science activities.

Schools in remote and regional areas who cannot attend the weigh-in day are encouraged to enter the Communicating Science category of the competition for a chance to win prizes.

The competition is sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, The Australian Sunflower Association (ASA), Pacific Seeds, AgForce, Nuseed, Queensland Agriculture Teachers' Association (QATA) and the UQ Gatton Past Students Association (UQGPSA).

Media: Karli Kollegger, k.kollegger@uq.edu.au, +61 (7) 5460 1279 or 0488 780 229.