Ellison Chair in International Floriculture
Ellison Chair in International FloricultureTeaching, Research, Extension and Service

Only a few seats left in EAGL Program for 2015!

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EAGL Logo-VerticalNow accepting applications for the 2015 EAGL program!

There are only a few seats left for this year’s cohort for the Executive Academy for Growth and Leadership. EAGL is patterned after executive MBA curricula, but is tailored to the green industry and it has been designed particularly with the challenges of contemporary wholesale growing businesses in mind. The 4-module curriculum culminates in a certification from Texas A&M University in applied horticultural business management. What makes something like this more meaningful is the interaction with peers in the industry, so we are only inviting selected folks from across North America in order to foster the community among cohorts in the program. Contact me today (charliehall@tamu.edu) to find out more information or check out our website online at EAGLpro.com.

Upcoming immigration webinar!

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Please register for Everything You NEED to Know about Immigration 2015! on Mar 24, 2015 10:00 AM CDT at:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3062479997421126914

In this webinar, Craig Regelbrugge will provide an update of the immigration issue facing the green industry, what efforts are underway to attempt to influence policy, the effects of President Obama’s executive order, and the impacts on the green industry.

Craig Regelbrugge serves as AmericanHort’s senior vice president, where he is responsible for industry advocacy and research programs. Formally known as the American Horticulture Industry Association, AmericanHort launched in January, 2014, as the consolidation of the American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) and OFA – The Association of Horticulture Professionals. The mission of AmericanHort is to unite, promote, and advance our industry through advocacy, collaboration, connectivity, education, market development, and research.

Regelbrugge received his undergraduate degree in horticulture from Virginia Tech, and he worked in the retail nursery industry and served as a county horticultural extension agent in Virginia before joining ANLA in December, 1989.

Regelbrugge serves in several national leadership positions representing the horticulture industry on matters relating to the labor force, plant health, and trade. He co-chairs the Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform, a broad-based coalition seeking legislation to ensure a stable and legal agricultural workforce, and is chairman of the board of the National Immigration Forum Action Fund.

He chairs the North American Plant Protection Organization – US Industry Advisory Group, and serves on the steering committee of the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance. From 2005 through 2010, he served on the federal Specialty Crop Committee, which advises the Secretary of Agriculture on federal policy relating to specialty crop agriculture.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

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The Economic Outlook for 2015

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registerJoin us for a webinar on Feb 10, 2015 at 10:00 AM CST.
Register now!

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6131799691013753346

In this webinar, Dr. Charlie Hall will present his annual economic outlook for the green industry. Special emphasis will be placed on the sectors in the economy that have a direct impact on grower, landscape service provider, and retail sales. Dr. Hall will also hone in on some key dates that will be important to look out for this year and he will also suggest a dashboard of indicators that all green industry firms should be tracking to better monitor the economic environment.

Dr. Hall is a Professor on the faculty in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University and is the current holder of the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture. Dr. Hall’s expertise is in the production and marketing of Green Industry crops and is nationally recognized in academia and among the horticultural clientele he serves. His major research, teaching, & extension areas of specialization include strategic management, market situation/outlook, cost accounting, and financial analysis for Green Industry firms.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

America in Bloom Raffle

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AIBLogo090710Wouldn’t it feel good to put $5,000; $1,000, or even $500 in your pocket? Be sure to purchase an AIB raffle ticket in 2014, you just might be one of the lucky cash prize winners! You do not need to be present to win. Plus, proceeds from the raffle help fund the AIB program!

It’s super simple — just go to http://www.americainbloom.org/Support-AIB/Annual-Raffle.aspx and enter today!

Want to do more? Consider being an America in Bloom sponsor. It is a program that is working directly on your behalf to bolster the demand for horticultural products and services. Take a few minutes and see what’s new on the website. While you’re there, check out the new AIB Photo Contest!

 

 

The economic outlook for 2014

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registerJoin us for a Webinar on January 17
In this webinar, Dr. Charlie Hall will present his annual economic outlook for the green industry. Special emphasis will be placed on the sectors in the economy that have a direct impact on grower, landscape service provider, and retail sales. Dr. Hall will also hone in on some key dates that will be important to look out for this year and he will also suggest a dashboard of indicators that all green industry firms should be tracking to better monitor the economic environment.

Dr. Hall is a Professor on the faculty in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Texas A&M University and is the current holder of the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture. Dr. Hall’s expertise is in the production and marketing of Green Industry crops and is nationally recognized in academia and among the horticultural clientele he serves.  His major research, teaching, & extension areas of specialization include strategic management, market situation/outlook, cost accounting, and financial analysis for Green Industry firms.

Title:    The Economic Outlook for 2014
Date:    Friday, January 17, 2014
Time:    10:00 AM – 11:00 AM CST

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.
System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 8, 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server
Mac®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.6 or newer
Mobile attendees
Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/540978145

Best Management Practices: Guide for Producing Nursery Crops

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2013 BMP Cover.smallThe Southern Nursery Association (SNA) Best Management Practices (BMP) Guide is designed to help growers identify and promote exceptional management practices, methods and procedures. Any of these management practices can be implemented regardless of nursery size or location, and empowers container and field-grown plant producers to operate at a higher level of efficiency and effectiveness while implementing proactive management practices necessary to produce plants with minimal environmental impact.

This ever-popular guide has become recognized as the undisputed benchmark for horticultural BMPs in the U.S. with more than 6,000 copies in use today. The Best Management Practices Guide, v 1.0 was published in 1996 with an updated v 2.0 printed in 2007. Version 3.0 has just been released and is now available, for the first time, on the SNA website. Version 3.0 features two new sections – Constructing Wetlands: A How To Guide for Nurseries, as well as Crop Insurance for Nurseries. Version 3.0 will also be translated to Spanish later this year. Both English and Spanish versions will be available to the industry on the SNA website and are scheduled for printing.

Funding for this update project is made possible by the USDA’s Risk Management Association (RMA) in cooperation with the North Central IPM Center at the University of Illinois. RMA’s mission is to promote, support, and regulate sound risk management solutions to preserve and strengthen the economic stability of America’s agricultural producers. As part of this mission, RMA operates and manages the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC).

Printed manuals will be available later this year. Past versions have cost $75 (member) and $100 (non-member), but through funding provided by the USDA’s Risk Management Association (RMA) in cooperation with the North Central IPM Center at the University of Illinois, the only cost for the printed manuals will be a small fee to cover shipping and handling.

To view the online BMP Manual, click here.

Managing Water Quality in the Green Industry

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Raudales 2Dr. Rosa Raudales, Assistant Professor, University of Connecticut. Growers are increasingly capturing irrigation water in ponds or tanks to avoid runoff into the environment. However, re-applying this water to crops increases the risk of distributing plant pathogens. Dr. Raudales recently completed her multidisciplinary PhD studies at the University of Florida, which focused on ways to help growers select the best water treatment technology, such as filtration, chlorination, or copper ionization. Rosa’s project exposed her to many fields, including surveying methods, economic analysis, plant pathology, and horticulture. Her outreach work on watereducationalliance.org won a national award for the best horticulture extension website, and Rosa also won a Florida State Horticultural Society award for the top graduate research presentation. While at the University of Florida, Rosa worked with Dr. Paul Fisher, another noted authority in the water area.

Title:    Managing Water Quality in the Green Industry
Date:    Monday, January 13, 2014
Time:    10:00 AM – 11:00 AM CST

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER NOW

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements:
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 8, 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server

Mac®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.6 or newer

Mobile attendees
Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet

Applications now being accepted for EAGL 2014

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StandPoint, Inc. announces the open application process for the second year of the Executive Academy for Growth & Leadership (EAGL) – a one year horticultural business certificate program conducted in partnership with Texas A&M University for nursery & greenhouse growers, culminating in a continuing education Certificate in Applied Horticultural Business Management from Texas A&M University.

Applications can be submitted online at www.eaglpro.com

EAGL is a one-year executive education program, developed specifically for growers in the nursery & greenhouse production industry. It is the product of a multi-year design collaboration between program principals Kip Creel of StandPoint and Dr. Charlie Hall of Texas A&M University.

Now in its second year, the EAGL program offers a proven process for delivering insights and tools to address the contemporary challenges of wholesale nursery & greenhouse production businesses. The current class of 10 participants is actively working through an intense year-long, multi-module curriculum to improve their companies’ competitive position and profitability.

One of the current students, Tom Demaline, president of Willoway Nursery (OH) says, (we have learned that) “the big question facing the industry currently is ‘how do you transition from a growth industry to a mature one and stay profitable?’ Working with industry experts in a collaborative group environment the EAGL Program has provided us the tools needed to start this paradigm shift. During the first six months of the program we have moved from concepts to implementation of a strategy allowing us to start the journey into the future:  the EAGL Program is providing the road map and actual tools to help get us there.”

EAGL is practical, not theoretical, and built with highly-interactive adult learning principles in mind. Each class has a maximum size of 15 executives, and meets four times in a year (in person), supplemented with significant webinar, preparation coursework, and 1:1 sessions with the faculty. Executives who complete the EAGL program will receive a Certificate in Applied Horticultural Business Management from Texas A&M University.

Dr. Dan Lineberger, head of the Department of Horticultural Sciences, adds “Texas A&M University is committed to providing continuing education programs that are useful to working professionals. This collaboration between the Ellison Chair and StandPoint, Inc. exemplifies the kind of applicable education that we strive to provide our students at every level. We are proud to offer the Continuing Education Certificate in Applied Horticultural Business Management beginning in 2013.”

Applications for the 2014 class are now being accepted, with a maximum of 15 seats available (Please note that direct competitors are not accepted in the program in the same year). The application (and contact info for Kip and Charlie) is online at http://eaglpro.com/investment/application.

To download a free whitepaper on business strategy, learn more about the curriculum, or submit an application for 2014, visit www.eaglpro.com.

Landscapes for life

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I am passing on a link for an excellent article Kelli Rodda just posted in Nursery Management summarizing the Sustainable Sites Initiative. Those of you selling into the landscape market will be particularly interested. Click HERE to go to the article.

Using Promotion to Increase Your Value Proposition

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Join us for a webinar on September 24!

Dr. Marvin Miller, market research manager of Ball Horticultural Company, will discuss a case study of how one garden center tackled the challenge of a widespread disease infestation in its market area to reinforce its value as an information source and replace the sales of one of its top lines. The net result was more customers, enhanced credibility, and increased total sales from effective advertising, publicity and public relations.

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Dr. Marvin N. Miller is market research manager for Ball Horticultural Company, West Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. Marvin has both a B.S. in Horticulture and a M.S. in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University and a PhD in Food and Resource Economics, majoring in Agricultural Marketing from the University of Florida. He has been with Ball since 1983. The focus of his research efforts involves the changing structure, conduct, and performance of the horticulture industry, with current emphasis on North American floriculture. He travels extensively visiting both greenhouses and retail establishments. Marvin also frequently writes and speaks about industry trends affecting the industry.

Marvin has served on the American in Bloom Board of Directors since its founding in 2001. Marvin was Vice President of the Board from 2005-present and has served as President of the Board since 2005. In addition to AIB activities, Marvin is active in a number of other horticultural industry organizations, regularly interacts with horticulture faculty throughout the U.S., and is himself an active gardener, chairing the Landscape and Grounds Committee of his homeowners association.

Title:    Using Promotion to Increase Your Value Proposition
Date:    Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Time:    10:00 AM – 11:00 AM CDT
After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Space is limited. Reserve your webinar seat now at:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/206794385