News

Griffin Greenhouse Supplies acquires Syngenta Horticultural Services
Syngenta and Griffin Greenhouse Supplies (“Griffin”) announced Nov. 14 that Griffin has acquired Syngenta Horticultural Services (“SHS”).

Headquartered in Lisle, Ill., SHS is a leading distributor and broker of seeds, cuttings and young plants to growers across the United States. Headquartered in Tewksbury, Mass., Griffin is a leading provider of greenhouse and nursery supplies in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region.

Under terms of the agreement, Griffin acquired the SHS business, including distribution and brokerage capabilities and assets affiliated with the Lisle, Ill., headquarters and Downers Grove, Ill., facility. Employees housed at both sites transferred to Griffin at closing. In addition, Griffin signed a long-term agreement to distribute and broker Syngenta Flowers genetics throughout the U.S. With this agreement in place, Syngenta Flowers and Griffin will continue to work closely together to address the horticultural needs of greenhouse and nursery growers.

The transaction signed and closed simultaneously on Tuesday, November 13. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

For more: www.syngenta.com; www.griffins.com

News Notes

ONLA launches new certification method
The Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association announced the release of new training manuals to be used with the Ohio Certified Nursery Technician Program.

This program assists in helping green industry employees improve their skills in three specialized areas: garden center, grower and landscape. The two most recently updated were the Landscape Training manual and the Core Training manual.

Next in line to be revised and updated are the Grower and Garden Training manuals, expected to be released in the next few years.

For more: www.onla.org or (614) 899-1195.

American Beauties, NWF team with Groupon
American Beauties and the National Wildlife Federation have developed a Groupon to help give native plants.

A $10 donation to the NWF will plant and care for one tree. All $10 donations purchased through the Groupon will be matched with $20 worth of plants by American Beauties Native Plants, up to 3,000 plants, for NWF to use in community planting projects across America.

The Groupon will run from Nov. 12 through Dec. 23 with a “Buy it for a Friend” option, useful for the gift-giving season.

For more: www.nwf.org; www.abnativeplants.com

IPPS Eastern Region sets up donation site in memory of Hamernik
Those wishing to make a donation to the IPPS Eastern Region Foundation in memory of Harlan Hamernik may make a donation online: http://fs16.formsite.com/IPPSER/form19/index.html.

Checks made payable to “IPPS Eastern Region Foundation” may be sent to IPPS Eastern Region Foundation, 1700 N Parish Drive, Southold, NY 11971. The funds will be used to support student scholarships as per Harlan’s wishes.

Nurseries honored for selling non-invasive plants
The Southern Appalachian Cooperative Weed Management Partnership recently presented Carolina Native Nursery and Growing Native Nursery with its first “Forest Friendly” certificates in recognition of regional nurseries and retailers that focus on growing and selling only native or noninvasive plants.

Business owners Bill Jones, of Carolina Native Nursery, and Sadie Adams, of Growing Native Nursery, received the awards.

For more: www.carolinanativenursery.com/

TN Nursery donates to Hurricane Sandy victims
TN Nursery in Altamont, Tenn., is offering the hurricane victims of Sandy’s destruction free garden plants, trees and shrubs to help aid in their reconstruction and replanting efforts. Fill in the online application and free trees will be on their way. TN Nursery is also covering the shipping charges on the free plants.

For more: www.tnnursery.net

American Hosta Growers Association names hosta of the year
The hosta cultivar ‘Abiqua Drinking Gourd’ has been named the 2014 Hosta of the Year by the American Hosta Growers Association. This cultivar’s huge, heavily-textured, blue-green leaves cup and twist into a unique display. It boasts white flowers in early summer and good slug resistance. It reaches 18 inches tall, 22 inches when flowering.

Hosta are versatile East Asian natives with lush foliage in diverse colors, heights and textures. They have an ability to excel in deep shade. It’s a good selection for the coldest areas (USDA Hardiness Zones 3-4) and for gulf states (Zones 8-10).

The AHGA’s members have voted to select a hosta of the year since 1996. Award winners are hostas that are good garden plants in all regions of the country, are widely available and in sufficient supply and retail for about $15 in the year of selection.

New resource to support sustainability
University of Georgia researchers with the Center for Urban Agriculture in Griffin are developing a resource tool showcasing common plants that exhibit improved environmental adaptation, and tolerance or resistance to key diseases and pests.

Known as GardenSource, the web-based resource will allow ag professionals, Master Gardeners, homeowners, and nursery and landscape specialists to search through hundreds of herbaceous plants, ornamentals, trees and shrubs that, not only showcase their aesthetic qualities, but also exhibit environmental benefits and Integrated Pest Management (IPM) characteristics — factors important for sustainable ecological systems.

GardenSource is the product of a comprehensive, multi-state Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE)-funded project where researchers in Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi evaluated hundreds of ornamental and turfgrass cultivars. The goal of the project was to increase production and use of low-input, pest resistant plants in the southeastern U.S.

For more: www.southernsare.org

Scientific Certification Systems rebrands to SCS Global Services
Third-party certifier Scientific Certification Systems Inc. announced in November that it is now operating under the trade name, SCS Global Services. The new corporate identity reflects the company’s position as a global leader in third-party certification, auditing, testing and standards development in the burgeoning field of environmental, sustainability and quality performance claims.

Now in its 28th year, SCS Global Services provides services in key sectors of the green economy, including forestry, agriculture, fisheries, energy, climate, green building, manufactured goods and printers. It also includes Veriflora certification, a program for growers, garden centers, distributors and input manufacturers.

Headquartered in Emeryville, Calif., SCS Global Services operates on six continents, with 14 strategic offices and regional representatives and an extensive network of auditors. Its clientele includes well-known product and retail brands, as well as small and medium business enterprises, innovative start-ups, government agencies and non-governmental organizations.

For more: www.scsglobalservices.com