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  • Solving Plant Problems Virtually

    Room B110

    Speaker: George Grant, GGSPro Technical Specialist, Griffin Greenhouse Supplies
    Whether a grower is working internally with their cultivation team or externally with cooperative extension personnel, product vendor representatives or technical specialists often rely on some form of virtual communication (e.g., cellphones, emails, or video conferences). We are all familiar with the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” but knowing what picture to take and what information to gather before reaching out for consultation is important in diagnosing an issue correctly and efficiently. The objective of this presentation will be to build a checklist growers can use for gathering valuable information once they have identified an issue in their production setting.

    Registration Required

  • Take Advantage of the Boom: Leverage Extra Cash for Long-Term Gains

    Room B113

    Speaker: Timothy Howard, President/Founder, Clarity Connect, Inc.
    In today’s market, most growers and garden centers, are selling virtually every plant they have. It is somewhat counter-intuitive to invest in your business when you don’t need to. However, now is the perfect time to leverage extra cash for long-term gains. This presentation will demonstrate multiple ways growers and garden centers can upgrade their websites, invest in employees, purchase new technology and tools, and increase marketing efforts, to help secure customers for the long haul while making it easier on their operations.

    Registration Required

  • How to Deal With Mite Pests in Landscapes and Nurseries

    Room B119

    Speaker: Raymond Cloyd, Ph.D., Professor and Extension Specialist, Kansas State University Raymond will discuss the different types of mite pests, and the biology, ecology, and

    Registration Required

  • Current Market Demands New Approaches to Container Growing

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Co-Presenters: Tom Springer, Chris Murphey, NurserySource
    This FREE mini-session is included with your trade show pass!
    NurserySource’s and RediRoot’s goal is to help nurseries and grow operations integrate new approaches to container production and gardening. Their markets span nursery, cannabis and home gardeners giving them a unique look into the ways all growers are learning from each other and improving their production. They see the pressure labor and regulatory costs have upon different operations and work to help clients mitigate those challenges. This seminar will briefly detail their observations and recommendations.

    FREE

  • The Art and Science of Pricing Products

    Room B110

    Speaker: Bridget Behe, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Michigan State University

    There is more to pricing than simply calculating costs and mark-up. Bridget will discuss some pricing strategies and share some research-based findings on how consumers react to pricing in communications. Price increases are always a concern. The presentation includes some ways for you to consider increasing prices that consumers will accept.

    Registration Required

  • Grow Profits Using Job Costing to Identify and Eliminate Waste in Your Company

    Room B116

    Speaker: Rich Thiebaud, Director of Sales, Landscape Management Network (LMN)

    With more than 25 years of experience, Rich will bring a wealth of knowledge to this seminar giving an overview of the importance of job costing and how to keep it as simple and automated as possible. Most importantly, Rich will give an overview of the nine wastes of landscaping, which are the biggest reasons landscape companies lose efficiency and profitability, and how to snuff those wastes out for good.

    Registration Required

  • Crop Protection and Cultural Considerations When Propagating

    Room B113

    Speaker: George Grant, GGSPro Technical Specialist Supervisor, Griffin Greenhouse Supplies

    Propagation is a balance between maintaining an environment conducive to young plant production while managing a myriad of insect and disease pests that also thrive in these conditions. We will walk through various cultural, chemical, and biological inputs useful when propagating to ensure an efficiently and cleanly grown product. Strategies discussed during this presentation include moisture management, biological and conventional pesticides for below and above ground pests, cleaning up material using plant dips, sanitation steps, use of plant root stimulants and more!

    Registration Required

  • 20/24 Vision for Garden Retailing

    Room B110

    Speaker: Danny Summers, Managing Director/Chief Instigator, The Garden Center Group

    Garden retailing has experienced major growth in new customers and sales since 2019. As we look forward to 2024, Danny will share insight of the The Group's 150+ Garden Centers performances and the Best Practices Benchmarks from The Group's Annual P&L Studies of 2020, 2021, and 2022 plus additional observations and trends to help you prepare for 2024–and beyond.

    Registration Required

  • Transforming vs. Evolving: Turn Your Vision into Dramatic, Measurable Results Using Policy Deployment

    Room B119

    Speaker: Rick Peters, President, The Peters Company

    Every leader faces the challenge of translating vision into results. Most have goals to achieve over the next 3–5 years; the difficulty is converting long-term goals into daily activities that can be measured. Oregon nurseries are using policy deployment ("Hoshin Kanri") to develop annual improvement targets that align and link with their long-term strategies. The process engages team members at every level. Each person understands how they can impact the organization's goals. Bring your leadership team for an introduction to this powerful tool. Learn how Robinson Nursery uses policy deployment to transform the business and achieve their mission of “growing people and plants to change the world.”

    Registration Required

  • A Milkweed Contamination Study Spotlights Pollinator-Safe Growing – An Oregon Nursery Shows the Way

    Room B113

    Co-Presenters:
    Sharon Selvaggio, Pesticide Program Specialist, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
    Sam Bidwell, Integrated Pest Manager, Log House Plants; Founder, Sunnyside Sam’s Wholesale

    People across the country are working to help restore monarch butterflies by planting milkweed. A recent study showed that milkweed plants purchased from garden centers across the country contained a wide variety of pesticide residues, putting monarchs at risk. In this seminar, we invite a thoughtful conversation about how nurseries can use practices that result in pollinator-safe plants. We will present the findings and implications of the milkweed study and share examples of how a local nursery, Log House Plants, puts pollinator-safe growing into practice.

    Registration Required

  • Selecting Plants for Success!

    Room B116

    Speaker: Ben Hoover, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Sustainable Nursery Production, California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

    Millions of plants are purchased and planted every year in the United States. Many of those plants are destined for failure. Selecting the right plants and location for planting them appropriately can increase your credibility, customer base, and profitability. We will talk about making good decisions, communicating your expertise with customers, and benefiting the environment and your company at the same time. FYI: your concept of a native plant might be challenged!

    Registration Required

  • Fixing Workplace Conflict

    Room B110

    Speaker: Chris Sheesley, President, In-Accord

    You're surrounded, but don't give up. Being a member of an organization inevitably places you in situations of conflict, but there are ways to reduce its negative impact on you and your coworkers. The savvy response to the uncomfortable messiness of workplace discord is to develop keener insights and skills. Through this engaging presentation, you'll gain easy-to-remember and easy-to-apply mindsets and tools to be an effective resolver whether you are a participant or in a position to be helpful to others.

    Registration Required

  • Profiting With Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Mary Choate, Chief Operating Officer, Pest Wizard Brands LLC

    Integrated Pest Management is good for the environment, but did you know it is also good for your bottom line? IPM is a great tool for improved profitability for Independent Garden Centers (IGCs) and for growers. Learn how to implement an effective IPM strategy in your greenhouse or nursery to reduce costs and decrease loss from pests. For IGC, we’ll discuss how IPM can be a key marketing strategy to improve sales through cross-marketing and upselling for your entire line, from irrigation to green goods.

    FREE

  • Make Signs People Will Read

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Bridget Behe, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Michigan State University

    Bridget will present research-based information about how consumers read or ignore signage in the retail store. Signage is essential to communicate many things about the plants (and other products) people can’t know without you telling them.

    FREE

  • What Do Washing Dishes and Sanitation for Plant Production Have in Common?

    Room B113

    Speaker: George Grant, GGSPro Technical Specialist Supervisor, Griffin Greenhouse Supplies

    Regardless of your standard operating procedures, sanitation is a key factor in having a successful season. Very few management practices have the duality of being preventative, curative, and cost-effective whereas a strong pre-season and mid-season sanitation plan does. For this reason, we strongly focus on maintaining clean production spaces, inputs, and equipment to manage a wide variety of plant-related issues. Surprisingly, there are scenarios we run into in our daily lives that overlap with plant production such as washing dirty dishes. We will use these common scenarios to help demonstrate the cultural and chemical steps necessary for effective sanitation.

    Registration Required

  • 10 Effective Ways to Communicate the Value of Your Products

    Room B110

    Speaker: Katie Tamony , Chief Marketing Officer, Monrovia Nursery Company and Former Editor-in-Chief of Sunset Magazine and Sunset Books

    In this seminar, Katie will present 10 effective ways to communicate the value of your products or services to a demanding consumer in today’s market. Using examples from Monrovia and other premium brands, Katie will share insights and success stories that will help you retain customers in the long term and grow your perceived value.

    Registration Required

  • People, Plants and a Backyard – An Exploration of How and Why We Interpret Urban Landscapes the Way We Do

    Room B116

    Speaker: Alan Shay, Senior Instructor, Horticulture Department, Oregon State University

    In this presentation we will examine the cultural heritage we in the west have inherited that leads us to react to management in landscapes in a particular fashion. Can we afford to prioritize aesthetics over functionality in a world of rapidly diminishing resources and climate change? How can we design landscapes sensibly, that look good and still make a profit for ourselves? It's all about education.

    Registration Required

  • Soil Oxygen: The Real Limiting Factor For Trees

    Room B119

    Speaker: Wei Zhang, Ph.D., Vice President of Research and Development, Zynnovation LLC

    This presentation answers common questions, such as: Why do we have to water trees so often? Why can't we supply them with one year's water supply at a time? Why don’t roots grow deep? Why is compacted soil bad for urban trees? Why is volcano mulching bad for trees while leaf piling against tree trunks in natural forests is good? Why is deicing salt bad for plants? What makes the space under sidewalks so attractive to tree roots? One thing in common with all these problems - Soil Oxygen! Join us for live demonstrations throughout the seminar.

    Registration Required

  • The Shoppers Journey

    Room B110

    Speaker: Bridget Behe, Professor Emeritus, Michigan State University

    Recent studies with real consumers in both the lab and retail environment give great insight into how consumers shop in the store. This presentation is packed with helpful tips to create more shoppable displays and merchandising information to generate higher sales.

    Registration Required

  • The UC Landscape Plants Irrigation Trials (Part One)

    Room B116

    Speaker: Lorence Oki, Ph.D., Specialist in Cooperative Extension, University of California, Davis

    The University of California Landscape Plants Irrigation Trials project evaluates performance of plants exposed to three different irrigation treatments based on evapotranspiration (ETo). The data collected leads to recommendations for irrigating those plants that are used by landscape designers and architects to design landscapes that comply with California water conservation regulations. This project started in 2004 as a graduate student research project, was expanded periodically, and then duplicated at the UC South Coast Research and Extension Center in 2017. We will discuss plant lists, data collected, irrigation recommendations, and project background.

    Registration Required

  • Trial Garden Report: Best in NEW Annuals and Perennials for Spring 2024

    Room B119

    Speaker: Allison Pennell, Sales Representative and Horticulturalist, McHutchison Horticultural Distributors

    This session will report on new introductions from trial gardens across the country. Annuals and perennials from your favorite breeders will be the focus. Ali will share garden performance results from trial sites to help you decide what to add to your own production plans for 2024. This session’s focus is on spring and summer selling crops. Breeders covered will include: Dummen Orange, SelectaOne, Syngenta, Danziger, Ball, Pan American Seed, Westhoff, Terra Nova Nurseries, Sakata, Think Plants and more!

    Registration Required

  • Prune Clematis Like a Pro! (Pruning Demo)

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Linda Beutler, Rogerson Clematis Garden

    Forget everything you have ever heard about Clematis pruning. Linda, the curator of the Rogerson Clematis Garden, North America's only accredited collection of clematis through the Plant Collections Network, will share her wealth of knowledge is this fantastic pruning demo. Rather than learning the "rules", follow some common sense-based suggestions to open a world of beautiful possibilities for your garden and your clematis.

  • Indoor Gardening: The Hottest in Lawn & Garden Retail

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Joe Farinacci, Director New Market Development, BFG Supply Co.

    Grow Your Own!! The hottest trend in Lawn & Garden Retail. Retailers have been selling seed starting products for decades. It's time to take Indoor Gardening to the next level. We will talk about what Indoor Gardening is today, what products and brands young and old gardeners are looking for, and how to get the consumer into your store.

    FREE

  • Topiary Demo

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Todd Nelson, Bountiful Farms

    Join Todd Nelson, as he shares his topiary knowledge with the audience in this one-of-a-kind demo! Learn tips and tricks to the art of clipping shrubs into ornamental shapes such as boxes, spirals and spheres.

    FREE

  • Defining and Building Your Culture to Create a Thriving Team (SPANISH ONLY)

    Room B119

    Speaker: Elizabeth Peña, Value Stream Leader, Peoria Gardens Inc.

    A culture is how you solve problems and how you behave toward others. You must strike a balance between knowledge and behaviors, between head and heart. If you want your team to thrive, you must first define your culture, then do the important work of building your culture into everything you do together. You are invited to learn how Peoria Gardens, a second-generation greenhouse in Albany, Oregon, defined their culture, then built that culture into a business that continues to be recognized as one of the best places to work in the horticulture industry.

    Registration Required

  • Butterfly Bush: Sterility and Availability

    Room B113

    Co-Presenters:
    Ryan Contreras, Ph.D., Associate Department Head and Professor, Oregon State University
    Kara Mills, Lead Horticulturist, Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA)

    OSU has conducted extensive research to evaluate nearly three dozen cultivars for their seedling production and attraction to pollinators. This work has identified the relative fecundity of all selections within the context of current regulation for Buddleja. The Oregon Department of Agriculture will describe how Butterfly Bush is currently regulated and forecast the future of these regulations in light of new data.

    Registration Required

  • Soil Health – The Role of Water Demo

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Vance Almquist, Vice President of Oregon Society of Soil Scientists, Instructor at OSU

    One of the primary characteristics of soil, which allows it to support such a wide variety of organisms, is its ability to store and release water. This talk will focus on unpacking the complex processes which affect soil water storage and what measures we can take to improve the water storage characteristics of soils, whether natural or man-made.

    FREE

  • Marketing to Capture Consumers Environmental Focused Purchasing Habits

    Room B110

    Speaker: Andony Melathopoulos, Associate Professor, Pollinator Health Program, Oregon State University

    There is considerable 'buzz' about Millennial-aged consumers and the shift in their plant buying preferences. Analysts have suggested that Millennial's are inclined to 'cause purchasing' and value additional environmental or social benefits. In this seminar, Andony will talk about research to specify how pollinator benefits should be displayed on plant labels and some strategies to maximize the benefits of different nursery plants to pollinators.

    Registration Required

  • The Climate Ready Landscape Plants Project (Part TWO)

    Room B116

    Speaker: Lorence Oki, Ph.D., Specialist in Cooperative Extension, University of California, Davis

    The University of California Landscape Plants Irrigation Trials project evaluates performance of plants exposed to three different irrigation treatments based on evapotranspiration (ETo). The data collected leads to recommendations for irrigating those plants that are used by landscape designers and architects to design landscapes that comply with California water conservation regulations. This project started in 2004 as a graduate student research project, was expanded periodically, and then duplicated at the UC South Coast Research and Extension Center in 2017. The project recently has expanded to the University of Washington, Oregon State University, Utah State University, and the University of Arizona that facilitates the comparison of plant performance in response to deficit irrigation treatments across the western region of the U.S. We will discuss plant lists, data collected, irrigation recommendations, and project background.

    Registration Required

  • Pesticides and Water Quality

    Room B113

    Co-Presenters:
    Kathryn Rifenburg, Pesticide Stewardship Partnership Coordinator, Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA)
    David Green, Columbia River Coordinator, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

    The Pesticide Stewardship Partnerships (PSP) program is a locally led, voluntary program to identify potential concerns and improve water quality affected by pesticide use. Partnerships combine local expertise and water quality sampling results to encourage voluntary changes in pesticide use and management practices. This presentation will give recommendations for keeping pesticides on site and protecting water quality and regional biocontrol projects happening around the state.

    Registration Required

  • Values as a Business Model: The Story of Botanical Interests

    Room B110

    Speaker: Curtis Jones, Co-founder and Former Co-owner/President, Botanical Interests Inc.

    The co-founder and former co-owner/President of Botanical Interests Inc., Curtis Jones, speaks out about how his and his business partner Judy Seaborn’s personal values influenced the success of Botanical Interests seeds in a stagnant seed packet market and changed the direction of packaging in horticulture. Curtis will describe the new and unique direction Botanical Interests has taken in order to further educate the gardener, increase brand loyalty, and support their retail stores. During the presentation, Curtis might sneak in a funny or harrowing story about the 28-year journey they experienced.

    Registration Required

  • Mycorrhizae: Benefits and Use in Grower Operations and the Landscape

    Room B119

    Speaker: Jason Padden, Sales Account Manager, Mycorrhizal Applications

    Explore the science behind beneficial mycorrhizal fungi, with a focus on how growers and landscapers may utilize the power of mycorrhizae in their operations. Participants will learn how the addition of mycorrhizal inoculant products helps plants increase their efficiency of water use, nutrient uptake, and boost other plant health treatments. We will discuss how these benefits reduce plant loss by increasing plant vigor helping to grow hardier while saving time and money. Mycorrhizal inoculants have been used in sustainable growing systems for decades. Those that use them have been able to reduce the stress to both the plants they are growing and themselves.

    Registration Required

  • Biopesticides: The Ideal Team Players in Plant Health Programs with a Focus on Biofungicides

    Room B113

    Speaker: Michael Brownbridge, Ph.D., Biological Program Manager, Plant Diseases, BioWorks Inc.

    In North America, moves to adopt more biological inputs in plant production are driven by issues with pesticide resistance, market trends and restrictive re-entry intervals. This is where biopesticides can help. Their unique modes of action bring value in resistance management. The fact that they are derived from natural sources makes them more acceptable to consumers, and their safety means they can be applied with minimal disruption to day-to-day crop management activities. Yet there are still many misconceptions around what biopesticides are, their efficacy, and where and how they can be used. This presentation focuses on the use of biofungicides and their effective positioning in plant health programs.

    Registration Required

  • A Plantsman’s Notebook: New Plants and a Reminder of Some ‘Smokers’ We Often Forget About

    Room B119

    Speaker: Nicholas Staddon, Company Spokesman/Plantsman, Everde Growers

    In this session, we will look at a number of new plants that have appeared on the marketplace in recent years. There will be something for everyone, trees, shrubs, perennials, and a few surprises! Staddon will also nudge our memories on a few of the great plants from the past. Nicholas will cover a few of the notable trends he believes hold water for us. As always, he is an avid reader and will share a few choice titles with the audience. With terrific pictures, supported by an informative and humorous narrative, this session is not to be missed if you are into plants.

    Registration Required

  • Pollinators of the Rogerson Clematis Garden

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Linda Beutler, Rogerson Clematis Garden

    Linda, the curator of the Rogerson Clematis Garden, North America's only accredited collection of clematis through the Plant Collections Network, will share the Clematis that attracts pollinators and which pollinators those are. Additionally, she will share her knowledge of the many native, native-vars, and non-native companion plants that enhance our clematis garden.

    FREE

  • Discover the 50% Off Solar Project USDA REAP Grant Program

    Solution Center (end of Aisle 10,000)

    Speaker: Zachary Peek, Owner, Atlas Consulting LLC

    Join this session to learn how Nurseries, Farms, Ranches and Rural Small Businesses are eligible to receive an award equal to 50% of the total solar system cost. Zack will describe eligibility, timing considerations, and next steps for interested organizations. Attendees will also learn how all the available incentives can be combined to bring the payback period of a solar installation to just 1 or 2 years.

    FREE

  • Danny Summers Managing director and chief instigator, The Garden Center Group

    The Garden Retailing Train

    Room B110

    Speaker: Danny Summers, Managing Director/Chief Instigator, The Garden Center Group Garden retailing is changing. It's like a train moving down the tracks to a new

  • Nursery Science Summit: Plant Pathology

    Room B119

      Speaker 1: Jay W. Pscheidt, Ph.D., Extension Plant Pathology Specialist, Oregon State University Title: Smart Spraying Grapes Leads to New Boxwood Blight Management Description:

  • Raymond Cloyd

    The Fundamentals of Resistance Management

    Room B113

    Unfortunately, Raymond Cloyd is not be able to attend the show this year. Speaker: Raymond A. Cloyd, Ph.D., Professor and Extension Specialist, Kansas State University

  • Top Consumer Garden Trends to Drive Sales

    Room B110

    Speaker: Katie Tamony, Chief Marketing Officer and Trend Spotter, Monrovia Nursery Company Want to know what home gardeners are thinking? Every year, Monrovia conducts large

  • Nursery Science Summit: Plant Selection and Production

    Room B119

    Speaker 1: Ryan Contreras, Ph.D., Professor, Oregon State University Title: Past Successes and Future Directions for Nursery Breeding at Oregon State Description: Since 2009, the

  • The Retail Experience: Boxwood Problem Solving

    Room B119

    Speaker: Pat Reilly, Horticulture Outreach Specialist, Saunders Genetics LLC and NewGen Boxwood Landscapers, garden center staff, growers, and homeowners alike encounter issues with boxwood. Attention to

  • Advancing Boxwood Blight Monitoring Techniques

    Room B113

    Speaker: Luisa Santamaria, Ph.D., Professor, Extension Plant Pathologist, Oregon State University Boxwood plants, which are widely utilized in gardening and landscaping, are seriously threatened by

  • AI in the Landscaping World

    Room B116

    Speaker: Paige Tisdale, Business Developer, Dennis’ 7 Dees This presentation explores the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) in revolutionizing the landscaping industry. It highlights how

  • Danny Summers Managing director and chief instigator, The Garden Center Group

    The Garden Retailing Train: Looking Ahead to 2026

    Room B110

    Garden retailing is like a train moving down the tracks to a new destination and the constant evolution of trends and management needs requires you to stay on the train in order to meet the changing needs of the consumer. Garden retailing has experienced major growth in new customers and sales since 2019. [read more]

  • Todd Davis Director of the Catalog/OnSyte Division of Veritiv Visual/Horticultural Printers

    Labels, Tags and Marketing: The Latest Trends and Innovations

    Room B119

    This seminar will discuss everything from the latest in FRID tags to printing your own labels in house. Whether you're new to labeling and tagging or looking for the most up-to-date systems, this seminar will help you find the best solutions for your needs. [read more]

  • The Importance of Emotional Intelligence in the Green Industry

    Room B110

    As innovations in technology, automation and AI are on the rise, our ability to connect with and understand each other on a humanistic and emotional level declines. Now more than ever, emotional intelligence, or EQ, is a valuable and necessary skill in the workplace [read more]

  • Broch Martindale National nursery and greenhouse account manager at Corteva Agriscience

    The Importance of Training in Your IPM Program

    Room B113

    How we train greatly depends on several factors. In this talk Martindale will demonstrate the importance in training your team. Martindale will highlight some techniques for you to use the next time you train members of your team. [read more]

  • Tim Quebedeaux Owner of RetailKPI, service provider for The Garden Center Group

    Streamline your Inventory

    Room B110

    Learn the key performance indicators that will show you how your inventory is performing. By measuring three KPIs down to the category level, you will learn where to spend your time improving your business. [read more]

  • ODA Case Studies and Lessons Learned

    Room B119

    This presentation includes a review of several ODA pesticide investigations from recent years. We will discuss the lessons that can be learned from these investigations to improve future pesticide applications. [read more]

  • John Kennedy Co-founder of Boomerwrangle

    You Can’t Expect What You Can’t Inspect

    Room C124

    Fostering a culture of measurement and metrics is vital for a profitable and productive workplace in the green industry. Knowing your numbers and sharing them with your team is a great way to create a culture of engagement [read more]

  • Ron McCabe President of Everbearing Services

    Creating Your Internet Marketing Plan 2025–2026

    Room B110

    Digital marketing shapes how customers find and choose services. This session covers proven strategies to strengthen you online presence, connect with the right audience, and turn website visits into business growth. [read more]

  • Ryan Watkins Founder, HortMentor

    How A Quick Sketch Can Double Your Sale

    Room B110

    Boost sales by providing clients with a basic, hand-drawn visual of their space. This simple, yet effective tool can be utilized by sales associates to illustrate recommendations and assist clients with understanding how to accomplish their landscape goals. [read more]

  • Hot Yards, Cool Tips: Fire-wise Landscaping 101

    Room B119

    Speaker: Amy Jo Detweiler, professor and Extension horticulturist, Oregon State University Extension Service Join us for a practical approach to fire-wise landscaping. We’ll break down

  • Michael Maggiotto Jr., PHR, SHRM-SCP Director of human resource solutions, BEST Human Capital & Advisory Group

    Human Capital Risks When You Have Limited Resources

    Room B110

    Are your people generating unnecessary risks to your business? Do you struggle managing people risks because of limited resources? Simple mistakes can cost a company millions or even end a business altogether. [read more]

  • Ryan Watkins Founder, HortMentor

    Landscape Design Basics: Time-Saving Tips

    Room B116

    Learn concepts of landscape design in this introductory class tailored to industry professionals. Dive into the 4Ts and DS4, two powerful methods that streamline plant selection while guaranteeing results your clients will rave about. [read more]

  • Plants that Pay the Rent

    Room B119

    No plant — be it tree, shrub, bulb, or perennial — evades eviction. Tap Heims’ 50+ years of plant knowledge to find out which plants fill multiple seasons with foliage color, long bloom times, fragrance, and decorative character. [read more]

  • Raymond Cloyd

    Biological Control: The Importance of Quality Assessment

    Room B113

    Cloyd will provide a brief introduction to biological control and will then focus on the importance of quality assessment associated with biological control agents, such as, parasitoids, predators, and entomopathogenic nematodes. [read more]

  • AI for the Green Industry

    Room B110

    Learn how to overcome labor shortages, grow revenue, and optimize inventory by leveraging AI. In this session, we'll cover tactical tools and insights [read more]

  • Purchasing 101: Horticultural Professionals Discuss Purchasing

    Room B110

    Panel: Representatives from Growscape, Monrovia Nursery Company, Smith Gardens, Al’s Garden & Home, Anderson Pots, and OBC Northwest Inc.

    Panel discussion on basic purchasing and receiving processes and best practices from three growers and two manufacturers/distributors. Principles and processes that ensure efficient operations by securing the right product, right customer, right quantity, right condition, right place, right time, a

  • How We Relate to Plants Today — and Why We Buy Them

    Room B116

    Speaker: Erica Grivas, garden journalist/speaker

    Plants are more than decorations, they function as companions, wellness tools, and lifestyle statements. This session looks at how today’s buyers relate to plants, from food growers and pollinator supporters to low-maintenance gardeners and self-described “plant parents.”

  • How Diseases Hitch a Ride: When Insects Act as Plant Pathogen Vectors

    Room B113

    Speaker: Sierra Laverty, assistant professor and horticulture educator, University of Idaho Extension

    Some of the most common greenhouse, nursery, and landscape pests are also harbingers of plant diseases. Certain insect pests act as pathogen vectors, spreading fungal, bacterial, and viral diseases from plant to plant like wildfire through a growing operation or landscape.

  • Purchasing 102: A Deeper Dive

    Room B110

    Panel: Representatives from Growscape, Monrovia Nursery Company, Smith Gardens, Al’s Garden & Home, Anderson Pots, OBC Northwest Inc., Simplot Turf & Horticulture.

    A deeper discussion of today’s supply chain and how it’s affected by issues like tariffs, price, environmental legislation, and long lead times.

  • Listen Up! Garden Podcasts are in Your Customers’ Ears

    Room B116

    Speaker: Kathy Jentz, author, podcaster, Washington (DC) Gardener Magazine editor, GardenDC Podcast

    Garden podcasts are wired directly into your customers’ brains. Their hosts are telling them what to grow and purchase on this unique medium. You need to get hooked on them to reach this growing audience and spread plant knowledge.

  • Charlie Hall, Professor and Ellison Chair in International Floriculture at Texas A&M

    KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Charlie Hall, Ph.D.

    Featured
    Room C124

    Overcoming Decision Paralysis in the Midst of Uncertainty WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 11 a.m. in Room C124 FREE to all registered Farwest Participants. Charlie Hall, Ph.D.

  • Hands-On: New Ways to Host High-Profit Creative Workshops at Garden Centers

    Room B110

    Speaker: Katie Elzer-Peters, CEO, The Garden of Words LLC

    Attendees will learn about the rise of maker spaces at retail and how a garden center can hop on board this emerging, profitable trend driven by the age 25–45 demographic. They will learn how to teach two types of garden-adjacent creative art projects that use the same low-cost

  • Beyond the Hype: Targeting Trends that Matter

    Room B116

    Speaker: Erica Grivas, award-winning garden journalist

    Garden trends don’t move in a straight line. Why do some fade quickly while others persist? In this session, a national garden journalist presents a curated roundup of garden trends showing signals of staying power, drawn from reporting and industry observation.

  • Chaos to Clarity: Building an AI Stack for Growers and the Green Industry

    Room B116

    Speaker: Chris Sabbarese, co-founder, Infusion Management Services

    Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping how businesses operate, but many organizations struggle to move from curiosity to practical implementation. This session provides a clear framework for understanding and building an AI technology stack that supports marketing,

  • The Retail Playbook: Strengthen Sales Without ‘Selling’

    Room B110

    Speaker: Neal Glatt, founder and CEO, Neal Glatt Sales & Strategy

    In this extended session for retailers, you'll learn to build a practical retail playbook to help your team confidently guide customers to increased ticket volumes without making customers feel sold to. Explore how customers shop, decide, and engage with your team. Learn how to use

  • Mastering Career Development Planning Part 1: The Foundations of a Career Advancement

    Room B110

    Speaker: Neal Glatt, founder and CEO, Neal Glatt Sales & Strategy

    Employees don’t just want a job — they want a clear pathway for growth. A career advancement plan gives them a documented roadmap for developing skills, earning new responsibilities, and achieving meaningful progress in their careers. When implemented well, it creates consistency

  • Vascular Streak Dieback (VSD): What Growers Need to Know

    Room B113

    Speaker: Luisa Santamaria, Ph.D., professor, Oregon State University

    Vascular streak dieback (VSD) is an emerging disease affecting woody ornamentals in several regions of the United States and has raised concern for nursery production systems. Increased awareness is essential for early detection and prevention in the Pacific Northwest.

  • Consumers and Environmental Health: How Growers Can Respond to Changing Market Demand

    Room B119

    Speaker: Marie Chieppo, CFS Regenerative Design Studios LLC

    Climate change and rising environmental awareness are reshaping how plants and horticultural products are selected, specified, and purchased. Designers, municipalities, and consumers are prioritizing climate-resilient, ecologically functional plant material while also examining

  • Mastering Career Development Planning Part 2: Designing Clear Roles, Skills, and Pathways

    Room B110

    Speaker: Neal Glatt, founder and CEO, Neal Glatt Sales & Strategy

    Employees don’t just want a job — they want a clear pathway for growth. A career advancement plan gives them a documented roadmap for developing skills, earning new responsibilities, and achieving meaningful progress in their careers. When implemented well, it creates consistency

  • Annual Worker Protection Standard (WPS) Training for Handlers: (Spanish session)

    Room B113

    Speaker: Vanessa Vassilaros, outreach specialist, Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) Note: This session will be presented entirely in Spanish. English translation will not be available. Attendants will receive their annual training on pesticide safety according to the Worker Protection Standard (WPS).

  • How to Upsell Existing Customers with Engaging Email

    Room B110

    Speaker: Katie Elzer-Peters, CEO, The Garden of Words LLC

    In this session, attendees will learn how to engage their existing customers to sell more services, higher tiers of service and raise average order value. During the session they’ll also learn and take home templates for batching their email campaigns

  • There is No Such Thing as Dwarf: Compact Plants for the Landscape

    Room B116

    Speaker: Bryce Lane, distinguished professor alumnus, North Carolina State University

    Home landscapes are shrinking, the average residential property size is now less than a quarter of an acre. More and more people are living in the city and have less and less space for plants. This has resulted in an increasing demand for dwarf/compact, self-contained plants. In this talk

  • Deep Dive into Displays for the Retail Garden Center

    Room B110

    Speakers: David Williams and Erik Dietl-Friedli, partners, Garden Center Consultants LLC

    An inspiring and highly visual presentation showcasing innovative display strategies that drive customer engagement and increase sales.  Learn how to design intentional merchandising experiences that convert browsers into buyers.

  • Future of Plastic and Bioplastic Horticulture Containers

    Room B110

    Speakers: Tom Marting, director of sustainable solutions, and Grace Hungerford, sustainability analyst, Growscape

    This session explores rising consumer demand for more sustainable packaging materials, with a particular focus on bioplastics. We will examine the current landscape of bioplastic technologies available in the market today, including their regulatory pressures, performance, benefits,

  • How to Recruit, Train and Retain Talent in the Post-Baby-Boomer Era

    Room B110

    Speaker: Erick Harris, nursery sales director, Breezy Hill Nursery

    Companies all over the world have to contend with the fact that Baby Boomers are about to sail off into the sunset. By 2030, all of the Boomers, the second biggest generation ever, will be 65 or older. Because our industry is such a special place to work, we probably have more