The International Plant Trialing Conference took place for the first time in several years this past month in Minneapolis. The event brought together plant trial managers from growing operations, universities, and botanical gardens, as well as plant breeders responsible for developing the varieties featured at trial gardens across the country. In this episode, I talk to Alicain Carlson of Syngenta Flowers, who was one of the main organizers of the conference along with the National Garden Bureau. Alicain shares her thoughts on how plant trials continue to evolve, her takeaways from the event, and much more. Here’s our conversation. 

Last month, AmericanHort held its Impact Washington Fly-In Summit, where over three days, more than 140 participants from 25 states met with lawmakers and their staffs to discuss their biggest priorities, including labor, the upcoming Farm Bill, horticulture research funding, and more. In this episode, I talk to two of the growers who attended the event: Alan Jones of Manor View Farm in Maryland, who’s been a long-time attendee of Impact Washington, and first-timer Jonathan Jasinski of Microplant Nurseries in Oregon. We discussed each of their immediate takeaways, the importance of meeting with lawmakers both on Capitol Hill and on your own farm, and why advocacy plays a critical role in the future of the floriculture industry. Here’s our conversation. 

Last week Proven Winners announced that its two growing businesses, Four Star Greenhouse and Pleasant View Gardens, would be combining to form one Proven Winners company. In this special episode of the Greenhouse Grower to Grower podcast, I caught up with Proven Winners CEO Mark Broxon, as well as Four Star Greenhouse owner Tom Smith and Pleasant View Gardens owner Henry Huntington, to learn more about how this arrangement came about, and what it means for each company involved, the grower and retail customers of Proven Winners, and the industry as a whole.  Here’s our conversation. 

Later this year, Jerry Baron will wrap up his tenure as executive director of the IR-4 Project, a USDA-funded program that facilities the EPA registration of crop protection products for specialty or minor crops. Jerry has been involved in specialty agriculture for many years, and I recently caught up with him to talk about his background in pest management at The Ohio State University, how IR-4’s mission has evolved over the years, and how he sees the crop protection industry continuing to innovate as it moves into the future. Here’s our conversation. 

In early September the Garden Media Group released its 2026 Garden Trends Report. The downloadable report is not just a closer look at what is up and coming in gardening, landscape design, and green living. It’s also the 25th anniversary of the Garden Media Group team’s forecasting what’s next in the garden world. In this episode, I’m joined by Marisa Reyes, Greenhouse Grower’s new Content Specialist. We chat with Garden Media Group president Katie Dubow about some of the themes in this year’s report, how everyone in the horticulture industry can turn these trends into action, and some of the hits, and misses, from past trends reports. Here’s our conversation. 

During Cultivate’25, Chris Cimaglio and Ken Lane of PivotPoint Business Solutions shared results from the second annual State of Succession and Exit Planning in the Horticulture Industry Survey. In this episode, I talk to Chris about key findings from the survey, why it also includes industry pulse questions covering everything from tariffs to labor, and actionable responses that business owners can take from the survey results. Here’s our conversation.    #GreenhouseGrower #Greenhouse #ControlledEnvironmentAgriculture #CEA #Horticulture #Floriculture #Hydroponics #VerticalFarming #LEDLighting #IPM #Biocontrols #ClimateControl #GreenhouseAutomation #AgPodcast

Claire Chambers is the founder of Meadow Lab, which develops plant products that accelerate the creation of biodiverse and high-performance landscapes. Meadow Lab is focused on the native plant space and has developed a wildflower sod that makes installing meadows faster, easier, and more scalable. I recently spoke with Claire about trends in the native plant category, and how growers can balance sustainability with production and economic challenges. Here’s our conversation. 

In early July, Joche Smith Jr. was named president of Costa Farms. Smith succeeds his father, Joche Smith Sr., and will oversee day-to-day operations across Costa’s domestic and international business units, and lead strategic initiatives that position the company for continued growth. I recently caught up with Joche to talk more about his background, consumer trends shaping the plant industry, and the biggest opportunities and challenges facing both Costa Farms and the floriculture market. Here’s our conversation. 

AmericanHort’s Impact Washington Fly-in Summit of the nation’s capitol, which takes place in mid-September, gives growers and other members of the floriculture industry a chance to connect with policymakers and advocate for their businesses, and for the industry. In this episode, I talk to Matt Mika, Vice President of Advocacy and Government Affairs at AmericanHort, about what Impact Washington attendees can expect, the important issues they will be discussing on Capitol Hill, and why telling your story is critical in helping to educate lawmakers about the present and future of horticulture. Here’s our conversation. 

Greenhouse Grower Editor Brian Sparks and CEAg World Content Lead Kristin Zeit were both at Cultivate’25 in Columbus, OH, this past week. In this episode, Brian and Kristin recorded a live conversation on the trade show floor, where they discussed impressions of Cultivate, common challenges and opportunities facing the greenhouse floriculture and controlled-environment agriculture markets, and other insights from their respective markets. Here’s the conversation! 

After a 10-year absence, the International Plant Trialing Conference is coming back. The event will be held in Minneapolis in mid-October and is organized by All-America Selections and the National Garden Bureau. In this episode, I talk to Diane Blazek, Executive Director of All-America Selections, about why the time was right to bring back the conference, what attendees can expect to learn, and how the format of the event will offer enhanced networking opportunities for experienced trial managers as well as novices. Here’s our conversation.

Safety in the greenhouse, whether it’s safe handling of crop protection materials or preventing slips and falls, is an important but sometimes overlooked concept. During Cultivate’25, a group of growers will come together for a panel discussion on why adopting a safety-first mindset is essential to protecting employees and ensuring smooth, productive operations. In this episode, I talked to two of these growers – Katie Jent of Metrolina Greenhouses and Lyndsey Zinni of Millcreek Gardens – as well as Elizabeth Dunbar of BASF, who is moderating the panel, about best practices, lessons they’ve learned, and more. Here’s our conversation. 

Greenhouse Grower Editor Brian Sparks attended California Spring Trials for the first time this year. In this episode, he shares insights on some of his favorite new plants and series, how breeders continue to innovate, and more. 

Laura Barth is the research coordinator at American Floral Endowment (AFE), which has been monitoring the impacts of federal funding cuts on horticulture research. In this episode, I talk to Laura about the uncertainties being felt at many institutions, how American Floral Endowment can be a funding resource for research, how the AFE endowment works, and AFE’s upcoming Rise to Support fundraising campaign. Here’s our conversation. 

This is the 50th episode of the Greenhouse Grower to Grower podcast, and in recognition of that milestone, we want to share some of our favorite insights and perspectives from the conversations we’ve had since launching this podcast. 

This year’s Southern Garden Tour takes place June 3-5, and features plant trials at Young’s Plant Farm in Alabama, the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and Metrolina Greenhouses’ North Carolina facilities. This past week, I had a great conversation with the trial managers at each location: Dr. Mark Yelanich, Director of R&D at Metrolina, Penny Merritt-Price, Product Development Manager at Young’s Plant Farm, and John Ruter, Director of the Trial Gardens at the University of Georgia. We talked about the trials process from beginning to end, what’s new for this year, and why these trials benefit both growers and plant consumers. Here’s our conversation. 

Earlier this month, we learned that the Hoffmann Family of Companies, a family-owned private equity firm, was acquiring N.G. Heimos Greenhouses, a family-run growing operation based in Illinois and one of the nation’s largest poinsettia growers. I caught up with Bernie Heimos, President of N.G. Heimos, and David Hoffmann, Founder and Chairman of HF Companies, to learn more about the purchase makes sense for both companies, and why it makes N.G. Heimos well-positioned for a bright future in the floriculture industry. Here’s our conversation. 

In this episode of Greenhouse Grower, you can learn more about California Spring Trials, Greenhouse Grower’s Top 100 program, and how to nominate a grower for our Medal of Excellence awards. Plus, get a recap of the 10th annual BioSolutions Conference. 

Ken Littrell grew up on a family farm, and since then he’s worked in and out of floriculture, including spending time with some of the industry’s leading growing operations. He specializes in leadership development, change management, and how to build a better team through transparency and communication. In my recent conversation with Ken, we talked about everything from how to keep your team motivated and mission-focused during the busy spring season, to how the best leaders lead by example. Here’s our conversation.

Jazmin Albarran is the Executive Director of Seed Your Future, an organization focused on educating young people about plants, as well as developing the next generation of industry leaders. I recently caught up with Jazmin to learn more about how Seed Your Future has evolved since its formation in 2014, and in particular in the last four years under her leadership, and what it is in the works for 2025. Here’s my conversation.