Survey tests whether customers will pay more, as well as which messages resonate the most By Lloyd Nackley, Bruce Colman and Sharon Selvaggio We’ve all heard it. People are worried about pollinators and want to do what they can to help. Some are planting pollinator gardens, taking up beekeeping, or choosing organic foods to try […]
Plant Features
Remarkable annuals
Annual bedding and garden plant sales represent approximately 70 percent of the total U.S. bedding and garden category, according to the USDA National Agriculture Statistics Services, totaling $1.29 billion out of $1.86 billion wholesale. Annuals pick up where perennials leave off, providing colorful foliage and flower displays inside the season. Customers are continuously searching for […]
Trees for screens
Living screens are as versatile as they are varied. They hide the neighbors, block ugly views, provide backdrops and create garden rooms. Originally, though, screens were used to hem in livestock. When humans made the leap from hunter-gatherers to start an agrarian lifestyle, they prevented animals from wandering by using living screens left behind as […]
Nursery Operations
Building your Lean team
These analytical tools can help nurseries reach the next level of efficiency Last May, Digger presented the Efficiency Issue. We examined ways in which Oregon nurseries are making their operations more efficient, and we showed examples. Each nursery is unique. Our goal was to show off the ingenuity of some growers and inspire others to […]
Identifying value and waste
The key is in knowing what the customer is actually willing to pay for The central concept of Lean is to identify process steps that add value and those that are wasteful, eliminating the latter to become more efficient. It sounds simple but isn’t. Rick and Elizabeth Peters own a Wilsonville, Oregon-based Lean consulting firm, […]
Creating ‘standard work’
Finding and reinforcing best work flows helps nurseries run a tighter ship Walk into JLPN Inc., a seeding operation and nursery in Salem, Oregon, and even if you’re not familiar with how to harvest or grade container seedlings, you’d soon be doing it like an experienced hand. How? Simply by looking at the laminated diagrams […]
The Value of Membership
Meet the leader: Janet Poot
Tell us about yourself. I grew up on a farm in the San Joaquin Valley of California where my parents had a greenhouse operation that grew hothouse tomatoes and European cucumbers for grocery stores. In 1985, we moved up to Hubbard, Oregon. In high school, I worked for Case Nursery (Aurora, Oregon) doing cuttings on […]
Green Industry Networking Calendar 2019
Make connections with OAN The Oregon Association of Nurseries is the community dedicated to the long-term success, profitability and excellence of Oregon’s nursery and greenhouse industry. Below are opportunities to connect with the industry, build your network and pursue your business success. Denotes OAN Event Download a print version of OAN’s Green Industry Neworking Calendar […]
