Sixteen years of study and research is only part of the reason Dr. Lekha Sreedhar, associate professor, horticultural sciences, has helped JCCC's horticulture program take root. Another reason is her passion for the subject and her students. Her enthusiasm is contagious.

Sreedhar joined the college as the only full-time horticulture faculty member in 2006. On a typical day in her Introduction to Horticultural Science lab, Sreedhar's students work inside the Horticultural Science Center's greenhouse surrounded by a sea of plants and flowers, planting six different leaf types in two different media in order to compare propagation methods. "Dr. Sreedhar makes sure students receive a good experience - with passion," said Rebecca Walker-Garoutte, greenhouse coordinator.

Sreedhar networks in the community with the horticulture department at K-State and officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Kansas and Missouri Departments of Agriculture in order to provide her students with professional speakers and plum internships at local nurseries and the Johnson County Park and Recreation District. She organizes field trips to places like the Loose Park Rose Garden (she's a member of the Kansas City Rose Society directorial board), Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Gardens and K-State Research and Extension Center in Olathe.

She has also cultivated relationships with nurseries, garden centers, landscaping companies, propagation facilities, garden/hardware suppliers and biotech companies so students are exposed to a variety of the newest tools, techniques and materials from cultivars to tissue culture media.

"I want this to be a solid program," Sreedhar said. "I will do anything to help my students succeed."

Sreedhar has a bachelor's degree in agriculture science and a master's degree in horticulture sciences from Kerala Agricultural University, India, and a master's in plant agriculture and a PhD in plant physiology from the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada. She has completed postdoctoral  research in plant biotechnology at Rutger's Biotechnology Center for Agriculture and the Environment. She held the prestigious Commonwealth Scholarship for graduate studies in horticultural sciences for five years.

Sreedhar is positive that anyone who likes plant sciences can find a specialty to their liking - anywhere from viticulture to horticultural therapy. Her enthusiasm extends from her professional to her personal life. At age four, she was captivated by her parents' rose garden in India. Her love of flowers remains unabated. She keeps lists and photographs of plants and flowers she has encountered and collects orchids - she has about 300 in her home.

"Plants are fascinating," Sreedhar said. "There is so much we know and so much we don't know."