Spring Pack Trials Excursion for Greenhouse Growers

A bus trip for greenhouse growers is being planned to next year’s California Spring Pack Trials from April 9 -13, 2010. Dr. Mark Bridgen of Cornell University, along with Dr. Brian Krug of the University of New Hampshire, Dr. Roberto Lopez of Purdue University, and Dr. Neil Mattson of Cornell University, have organized an intense, educational trip to several of the key Spring Trial locations. The trip is designed specifically for greenhouse growers and other horticulture professionals.

The trip itinerary is jam-packed; the days begin early and continue at a fast pace late into the evening. Attendees should plan to arrive on Friday, April 9 and will stay at a designated hotel near the San Jose Airport. The journey begins at 7 a.m. on Saturday, April 10, when the bus departs from the hotel. That first day, the group will visit Golden State Bulb Growers in Watsonville, Syngenta Flowers/Goldsmith Seeds in Gilroy, Speedling (along with exhibitors Thompson & Morgan, GreenNex USA, Hem Genetics, MasterTag, Plant Source International, and Schoneveld Twello) in San Juan Batista, and Sakata Seed in Salinas. Participants will stay in Salinas on Saturday night.

On Sunday, April 11, the day will begin with a 2 hour bus drive to San Luis Obispo, where the first stop will be Dummen USA. After a short drive to Arroyo Grande, the group will visit Greenheart Farms. The last stop of the day will be in Santa Barbara where the participants will visit Jiffy along with their exhibitors Northern Innovators, Skagit Gardens, and Florist de Kwakel.

Monday, April 12, will be a busy day beginning with the bus departing at 7 a.m. and driving for an hour to PlantHaven. Following this stop, the group will arrive at Ball Horticultural Co. in Santa Paula where displays of PanAmerican, Ball FloraPlant, Kieft Seeds, and Selecta varieties will be featured. Lunch will be hosted by Ball. In the afternoon, Green Fuse Botanicals in Oxnard will be visited along with GroLink. If time allows, the last stop of the day will be in Somis, CA to visit Suntory.

Participants will spend Monday night at a hotel in West Hollywood, CA. This hotel is conveniently located midway between the Los Angeles (LAX) airport and the Burbank Airport. There is a shuttle service and taxi service to both of these airports from the hotel.

This package trip includes the cost of first class hotel accommodations for four nights from April 9-12, bus transportation from San Jose on the first day to West Hollywood on the last day, lunches for 3 days, and experienced guides. Participants need to arrange their own transportation into San Jose on April 9 and out of West Hollywood on April 12, and cover their own dinner costs. A travel agency is available to assist with these reservations (go to the website listed below). The cost of the trip will be $450 per person in a double room or $720 per person for a single room. These rates are based on 47 participants and will be adjusted slightly if minimum capacity is not met. The trip is subject to change and may be canceled if minimum capacity is not met.

**Space is limited** Register by January 29, 2010 to reserve a seat on this trip. For on-line reservation, go to www.concepts.us.com and click on Event Registration at the bottom left of the site. Be sure to go to the site labeled: Greenhouse Growers Spring Trials 2010. If you have questions, contact Dr. Mark Bridgen at mpb27@cornell.edu or at 631-727-3595.

This group trip to the 2010 California Spring Pack Trials is a new, one-of-a-kind venture for growers! All greenhouse growers and floriculture professionals are invited to attend. It is an opportunity to meet fellow growers, breeders, and other plant company representatives to share ideas, update your understanding of what's happening in our industry, and travel with trained professionals.

Reminder: Shine in '09 Webinar #2

As a reminder from my earlier post (click here), you still have a few days left to register for the second webcast in our Shine in '09 webinar series.

FYI -- The recording from the first webinar is on the Ellison Chair website (click here). As you will recall, the topic of the first webinar was "Action Points to Survive the Downturn" and was presented by yours truly.

The next webinar in the series is next week!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 - 11:00 a.m. CDT
Webinar 2 Topic: Differentiating By Being Sustainable
Dr. Don Wilkerson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
Being proactive by developing your own sustainability code of ethics can help set you apart from the competition!

FYI -- the final webinar in the series will be held on May 12, 2009 - 11:00 a.m. CDT. Dr. Jennifer Dennis of Purdue University will present webinar 3 which is titled "Marketing Green! The "green" marketing strategies you need to thrive in a maturing marketplace!"

If all of this sounds interesting, click here to register! And, and one more thing, there's no charge for this webinar series, thanks to our great sponsors!

Shine in '09

In this post, I am announcing a new webinar series that is designed to assist green industry firms in making better (more informed) managerial decisions in the midst of an economic downturn that is turning markets upside down. In this hypercompetitive market, the competitive advantages you enjoy today may vanish with breathtaking speed, and in this type of environment, the things you don't know can hurt you!

You may be saying to yourself: "I don't have time and can't afford to attend another meeting." That's the beauty of a webinar - it only takes 45 minutes out of your day; you don't have to spend money traveling anywhere; and you can 'attend' sitting in front of your own computer! Ask yourself these questions…

• Are business profits shrinking and you're not sure why?
• Are you uncertain how sustainability can help your business?
• Has marketing become more of a challenge?
• Has your business been impacted by the economic downturn?
• Are operating costs spiraling out of control?

If you answered yes to any of these questions; if you feel the business climate continues to deteriorate; and if you are worried about the future of your business, then attend this webinar series and learn useful strategies to increase your firm's bottom line!

March 9, 2009 -- 11:00 a.m. CDT

Webinar 1 Topic: Action Points to Survive the Downturn
Dr. Charlie Hall, Texas A&M University
Developing and fine-tuning your downturn strategies to ensure your business will survive!

April 14, 2009 - 11:00 a.m. CDT

Webinar 2 Topic: Differentiating By Being Sustainable
Dr. Don Wilkerson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
Being proactive by developing your own sustainability code of ethics can help set you apart from the competition!

May 12, 2009 - 11:00 a.m. CDT

Webinar Topic 3: Marketing Green!
Dr. Jennifer Dennis, Purdue University
The "green" marketing strategies you need to thrive in a maturing marketplace!

If all of this sounds interesting, click here to register! And, and one more thing, there's no charge for this webinar series, thanks to our great sponsors!

ANLA Management Clinic Blog

In order to stimulate interest in the 2009 ANLA Management Clinic, ANLA developed a one-day blog entitled Managing Through Tough Times. For one jam-packed day, industry leaders, including business owners, consultants, and editors, provided ideas for managing costs, driving sales, targeting new customers and motivating staff in the midst of strong economic concerns. Check out these thought-provoking (and action inducing) blog entries by clicking here.

If you're a service provider, then take note...

FYI -- Dow AgroSciences is sponsoring a successful landscape business owner/entrepreneur, Marty Grunder, who will be hosting a business building seminar on August 27th in Dallas and Aug. 28th in Houston. This is an excellent opportunity for professional lawn care/landscape, golf course managers, pest control, and other green industry professionals to come and learn about some of the practical things Marty has done over the years to start with a $25 lawn mower in high school and grow his landscape company to over $4 Million as of last year!

Marty is a friend of mine; I have heard him speak on many occasions and I can vouch for the fact that he knows his stuff, has a big heart, and sincerely wants to share his success secrets. I promise you -- you will NOT come away from his seminar disappointed, but you will come away with a much bigger to-do list than you have now!

Go to Register at www.BusinessIdeasToWin.com to register today!

Seeley Conference Delivers!

Wow!

It's been 48 hours since we closed to door on this year's Seeley Conference and I am still chewing on some of the stellar presentations that were made.

Jim Marstiller kicked off the conference in good fashion. He is Senior Vice-President of Consulting Services for TNS Retail Forward, a leading management consulting and market research firm specializing in consumer behavior and its impact on retailers, those that supply retailers, and the economy. He is also the author of The Power to Innovate. Jim's talk focused on growth strategies, category reinvention, brand development, and innovative merchandising solutions. For a publication that provides much of his discussion, click here.

I followed Jim on the program (not an easy task I might add) with a discussion I called Industry 2015, which focused on the driving forces and historical trends of the green industry. For an overview of that talk, click here.

That evening, Bill Lipinski, Chief Executive Officer, First Pioneer Farm Credit discussed the difficulties that many businesses had had in expanding while adjusting to the ever-changing business climate. Very few firms have done this successfully for several reasons: (1) the leap from hands-on management to delegating is difficult; (2) there is often a disconnect between strategy creation and strategy execution; (3) there is a hesitancy to change business strategy to the changes going on; (4) a lack of management systems and information; and (5) a lack of an ability to lead.

I opened the Monday morning session with a discussion of the economic drivers underlying differentiation strategies, particularly addressing the nature of perceived value on the part of our customers. Click here for more on this discussion. You can also click on the "differentiation" label on the right hand side of this blog page for more posts regarding this strategy.

The rest of the day highlighted a series of case studies illustrating firms who have been successful in differentiating themselves in the marketplace including Brian Minter of Country Garden and Minter Garden Center, who has one of the premier gardens & garden centers in the Northern hemisphere.

He was followed by Gary Mangum of Bell Nursery, who has been featured in several trade journals articles (click here). Gary discussed the Bell Nursery model and the unique and innovative ways they carry out their own differentiation strategy in servicing Home Depot.

Ball Publishing's Jennifer Duffield White finished off the day by asking whether sustainability in floriculture is a tipping point for producers, retailers and consumers. The last morning of the conference, Peter Moran, Executive Vice President/CEO of the Society of American Florists (SAF), concluded the conference with a discussion of the draft sustainable standards for agriculture currently being proposed by SCS, the firm who is behind the Veriflora certification.

Needless to say, it was a busy 2.5 days but well worth it. If you missed the conference, the only respite you have is that your brain probably hurts less than mine right now.

FYI -- Distinguished Lecture 4/09/08

The fifth lecture in the Distinguished Lecture Series sponsored by the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture will be presented by Dr. Peter Bretting, the USDA/ARS National Program Leader for Plant Germplasm and Genomes. The title of his Lecture is Horticultural Genetic Resources: Current Status and Future Prospects.

A reception will be held at 2:30 p.m. in the Horticulture/Forest Science Building atrium on Wednesday, April 9, followed by his Lecture at 3:00 p.m. in room 102 HFSB on the West Campus of Texas A&M University.

Dr. Bretting has been USDA/ARS National Program Leader, Plant Germplasm and Genomes since 1998, and was promoted to the rank of Senior National Program Leader in 2004. This position involves co-leadership, coordination, and direction of a national program of crop genetic research conducted at more than 50 locations nationally, with an annual budget of approximately $120 million.

He also serves as a USDA representative for the US government delegations negotiating the UN-FAO International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, and the UN-UNEP Convention on Biological Diversity.

His areas of research specialization and professional interest include: 1) Administration and management of scientific research, development, and service organizations; 2) Plant genetic resource management, emphasizing statistical genetic and molecular marker approaches to managing germplasm; 3) Crop genetics, genomics, systematics, and economic botany, with particular emphasis on maize, sunflowers, and new crops, especially ornamentals. He is the co-editor of one book and a collection of papers, and the author or coauthor of numerous scientific publications.

Click here to view the online Distinguished Lecture announcement. Please feel free to distribute this announcement to whom you deem appropriate.

Two recent seminars you might find interesting!

Two recent seminars you may find interesting:

1. Dr. Natalia Dudareva, Wickersham Chair of Excellence in Agricultural Research, University Faculty Scholar, Professor, Dept of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN presented Floral Scent: Gateway to Original Creation. Click here to view.
   
   
2. Dr. Rick Schoellhorn, Director of New Products, Proven Winners L.L.C., Alachua, Florida presented New & Unique plants - Ready, Set, Go: Discovery, Development, Release, Pandemonium! Click here to view.
   

Also, our fifth lecture in the Distinguished Lecture Series on International Floriculture will be presented by Dr. Peter Bretting, the USDA/ARS National Program Leader for Plant Germplasm and Genomes. The title of his Lecture is "Horticultural Genetic Resources: Current Status and Future Prospects". A reception will be held at 2:30 p.m. in the Texas A&M Horticulture/Forest Science Building atrium on Wednesday, April 9, followed by his Lecture at 3:00 p.m. in room 102 HFSB.

Dr. Bretting has been USDA/ARS National Program Leader, Plant Germplasm and Genomes since 1998, and was promoted to the rank of Senior National Program Leader in 2004. This position involves co-leadership, coordination, and direction of a national program of crop genetic research conducted at more than 50 locations nationally, with an annual budget of approximately $120 million. He also serves as a USDA representative for the US government delegations negotiating the UN-FAO International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, and the UN-UNEP Convention on Biological Diversity.

His areas of research specialization and professional interest include: 1) Administration and management of scientific research, development, and service organizations; 2) Plant genetic resource management, emphasizing statistical genetic and molecular marker approaches to managing germplasm; 3) Crop genetics, genomics, systematics, and economic botany, with particular emphasis on maize, sunflowers, and new crops, especially ornamentals.

He is the co-editor of one book and a collection of papers, and the author or coauthor of numerous scientific publications. His research has been supported by grants from government and industry. He has served as Associate Editor of two international journals, and on the editorial boards of two others. With three other Iowa State University or USDA/ARS scientists, he taught "Plant Genetic Resource Management," a graduate level course at Iowa State University during the 1990s.

The Distinguished Lecture announcement can be found online at http://ellisonchair.tamu.edu/lectures.html.