Hermitage Schools Plant Science Competition

The department's Hermitage Research Facility (HRF) Schools Plant Science Competition (SPSC) offers engaging ways for students to gain understanding and skills in key areas identified within the Australian science curriculum. Encouraging the next generation of people who will be involved in agricultural/science careers is crucial to how we will face the future and is a key purpose of the competition.

The theme for the 2023 HRF Schools Plant Science Competition is 'The Buzz About Bees'.

Entries in our competition are also eligible for entry in state or territory Science Teachers Association Science Contests (for Queenslanders, the STAQ Science Contest).

In 2023, we will again join forces with QuestaGame to provide students with further opportunities to engage in real-world science. Through QuestaGame’s outdoor mobile gaming app, students' insect, weed, plant disease and animal pest sightings are shared with CSIRO’s Atlas of Living Australia and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility – the world’s premier collection of biodiversity records. Student involvement also helps researchers understand how we can better manage and protect biodiversity in a changing world. This is citizen science at its best!

Gold sponsors

• Queensland Government‒Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
• QuestaGame
• Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC)

Silver sponsors

• The Paul Johnston Memorial Trust
• The Crawford Fund
• Primary Industries Education Foundation
• Grains Research Foundation Limited
• Flow
• University of Southern Queensland

Bronze sponsors

• Warwick Art Gallery
• Ag Institute of Australia
• Selected Seeds
• Queensland University of Technology
• John and Chris Purdie