This month's Nursery Management magazine is about roses

Roses

In this month’s cover story, Tyler Francis, CEO of Francis Roses, discusses why and how he launched April & Ashley, a direct-to-consumer brand. The Arizona nursery was founded in 1987 and has become a wholesale powerhouse. However, the second-generation leader was inspired to create the D2C brand as a way to sell roses that were great but didn’t fit the traditional wholesale supply chain.

Naming the brand after their wives was a smart and savvy move, too. Tyler and Brian Rhodes, co-CEOs of April & Ashley, say their wives have been inspirational and supportive through the entire journey. Not only that, but they plan to collaborate with them on this new venture for the business.

Our friends at the American Rose Trials for Sustainability have prepared their annual report of which new roses exceeded expectations. A.R.T.S. places a particular emphasis on regionality, so make sure to read that article to find out which roses did well in your neck of the woods.

DCA Outdoor files for bankruptcy

I had a candid conversation with Tory Schwope of DCA Outdoor about his company’s bankruptcy. We talked about what led to the decision to file for Chapter 11, why everything went down the way it did, and what comes next for the multi-state business, its nurseries, retail garden center and more. Righting the ship will be no easy feat, but Tory was open and honest about what he’s prepared to do. I’m rooting for the turnaround. Everyone loves a good comeback story.

Leading Women of Horticulture

We also have another profile from our Leading Women of Horticulture series, Judy Sharpton, a retail marketing guru who is known for a trademark hat.

Have you been reading our popular Get to Know column every month? Would you like to know even more about your interesting industry colleagues? Then you might be happy to know that associate editor Katie McDaniel has been doing many of these back-page interviews as longer-form videos. This month, Shelby Jackson shares more about how Carolina Native Nursery recovered from Hurricane Helene.