March 8, 2006
2006 Perennial Plant Conference

Session A (Attendees may move freely between both sessions):

9:10 Plants for the Front of the Border, or Shorter Is Better!!!!
Stephanie Cohen, Collegeville, PA
The plants for the front of the border play an important role in tying the garden together from spring to fall. Join Stephanie as she focuses on perennial plants with a long season of bloom, few insect and disease problems, and foliage plants with interesting textures and colors. Recommendations will be made for both sun and shade situations. Since Stephanie is "vertically challenged" she strongly identifies with her lineup of stellar shorties.

10:10 Good Design - Good Business
Jerry Fritz, Jerry Fritz Garden Design, Ottsville, PA
To build a successful garden design business, you must practice what you preach. Jerry will address such essential elements as fundamental soil preparation, being daring, bold and confident, and dedication to the highest level of communication, quality, and service to promote your garden design business.

11:10 - 11:30 Break

11:30 New Perennials
Stephanie Cohen, Collegeville, PA
"When a customer asks, "What's new?" you'd better have lots of options." This seminar will concentrate on new plants that drive the perennial industry and some of the underused perennials that never got their fair share of publicity. See what's hot and what's not in this presentation that is sure to please genuine plantaholics!

12:30 - 1:45 Lunch

1:45 Garden Center Idea Exchange (2-hour session)
Chris Beytes, GrowerTalks and Green Profit, Batavia, IL

Retail Panel: Joyce Hart, Hart's Greenhouse and Florist (CT), Jeff O'Donal, O'Donal Nurseries (ME), Scott Longfellow, Longfellow Greenhouses (ME), Sarah Partyka, Farmer's Daughter (RI), Lew Russell, Russell's Garden Center (MA)

Ever wonder what other garden centers are doing to be so successful? This informative and interactive session will provide an opportunity to hear innovative, cutting edge ideas from garden center owners and operators from New England. Find out from your colleagues what works for them and what doesn't. Participate in an open discussion to ask your questions and hear what others in the audience have to add.

2:45 -3:00 Break

3:00 Garden Center Idea Exchange, continued

Session B (Attendees may move freely between both sessions):

9:10 Selecting Peonies for Landscapes
Don Hollingsworth, Hollingsworth Nursery, Maryville, MO
Peony cultivar selection was long dominated by a focus on blooms for use as cut flowers. Effectively using these cultivars in the landscape required high labor inputs. Don will discuss improved attributes of peonies, including disease resistance, and the steps involved in selecting these perennials for use in your garden landscape.

10:10 Consumer Trends, Perennial Trends
Chris Beytes, GrowerTalks and Green Profit, Batavia, IL
It doesn't matter what you grow or whom you sell it to, if you're in the horticulture industry, it pays to keep up with consumer trends. What are consumers buying and why? What influences them? And what can we do as growers or retailers to get them to buy more of our products? Chris Beytes, editor of GrowerTalks and executive editor of Green Profit, loves figuring out what makes consumers tick. He'll outline some of the hot consumer trends, both general trends and those that apply directly to horticulture, so you can better serve your end consumer.

11:10 - 11:30 Break

11:30 Mastering Diseases of Perennials (*pesticide credit)
Margery Daughtrey, Long Island Horticultural Research and Extension Center, Cornell University, Riverhead, NY
Diseases afflicting herbaceous perennials range from the ever-familiar powdery mildew to the more insidious problems caused by foliar nematodes and viruses. Learn how to recognize and how to cope with the various contagious plant diseases that may occur on perennials in gardens or production sites.

12:30 - 1:45 Lunch

1:45 Destination Helleborus
Barry Glick, Sunshine Farm and Gardens, Renick, WV
Hellebores have become one of America's favorite shade perennials. Join Barry, a noted plant breeder and creator of Helleborus x hybridus 'Sunshine Selections' and self proclaimed "King of Helleborus" for an educating and entertaining tour of this genus from hybridizing to propagation.

2:45 - 3:00 Break

3:00 Beneficial Utilization of Composts (*pesticide credit)
Harry Hoitink, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH
Compost-amended container media suppress the severity of many diseases, but several factors must be controlled to provide consistent effects. Beneficial microbial inoculants such as Trichoderma can add to this suppressive effect that is compatible with most fungicides. Harry will discuss several uses of disease-suppressive compost that are practiced widely in the industry today.