FROM THE BOARD 



Past, Present, and Future 



Dick Zoerb 



SOMETIMES its difficult to sepa- 

 rate the periods addressed in 

 the above title because history al- 

 ways seems to be repeating itself 

 However. Id like to touch upon 

 some points which fall into each of 

 the three categories 



I'm certain most growers in the 

 New England area are happy that 

 the spring season of 1994 is behind 

 them For growers of geraniums, 

 concern began in October of '93. 

 when Fischers operation in Mexico 

 collapsed (for whatever reasons 

 you may have heard or wish to be- 

 lieve). This prompted a scramble 

 for replacements for the four mil- 

 lion or so unrooted cuttings that 

 were to have come from that 

 source. Domestic producers, such 

 as Oglevee. Goldsmith. Ecke. and 

 Bartlett increased production 

 Fischer was able to supply a por- 

 tion of that need from their Canary 

 islands facility This included vari- 

 eties usually sold only to the Euro- 

 pean market that were unfamiliar 

 to US growers — but last fall and 

 winter, variety didn't matter as 

 much as being able to get replace- 

 ments. 



An unfortunate side-effect of the 

 geranium debacle was the higher 

 incidence of disease throughout 

 the country. The demand for re- 

 placement cuttings prompted some 

 growers to keep over stock and 

 propagate their own. This was not 

 limited to just small growers — and 

 serves to remind us that disease is 

 always with us and constant vigi- 

 lance is needed 



(And along with all this, the 

 weather in the Northwest in the 

 summer of 1993 caused shortages 

 in the Easter lily and iris crops ) 



This past spring season, unlike 

 1993. got off to a slow start, due to 

 cooler and wetter weather well into 

 the month of May Fortunately for 

 most, by the end of that crucial 

 business month, the shortfall had 

 been made up or the demand for 



product had extended into June 

 Unless you were lucky enough to 

 be located in a summer tourist 

 area, the sales period was com- 

 pressed into a hectic three or four 

 weeks 



BUT GROWERS and retailers, being 

 basically an optimistic breed le g . 

 Red Sox fans. Patriots fans, or golf- 

 ers] always look to "next year" for 

 another go at the brass ring and — 

 once again — there are reasons for 

 optimism 



The anticipated devastating ef- 

 fect that the big discounters (Wal- 

 Mart. Home Depot, etc.) were sup- 

 posed to have on the bedding 

 plant retailers didn't always materi- 

 alize Those who tried to compete 

 on price alone did suffer, but those 

 who emphasized quality, variety, 

 and service did well. In some 

 cases, the very proximity of a dis- 

 counter was a benefit, in that it 

 created traffic and also made it 

 easier for the public to compare 

 quality. Local growers/retailers 

 won thai competition hands down. 



New varieties and types of plant 

 material are more available than 

 ever before and it behooves pro- 

 ducers to offer them in their mix 

 while they are -hit" items. Out- 

 standing examples this year were 

 the trailing petunia cultivars devel- 

 oped in Europe and lapan known 

 by such trade names as "Super- 

 tunias" and Surfinia petunias As a 

 basket or window box item, or as a 

 ground cover offered in four-inch 

 pots, these proved to be the 

 "sleeper" of the season Along 

 with these were other "proven win- 

 ners" — Brachycome " Ultra. "Scaevola 

 "Blue Wonder." Bacopa "Snow- 

 flake.' and Helichrysum "Golden 

 Beauty ' 



WHILE THE Selecta Series of gera- 

 niums by Klemm was available 

 only on a limited basis this past 

 season. Ecke will be up to speed 



for '94-95 with a total of 23 zonal 

 and ivy varieties to choose from. 



Ecke will offer 1 1 new varieties 

 of New Guinea impatiens in their 

 Pure Beauty and Paradise Series: 

 Oglevee has added six new zonals 

 and two Floribunds (renamed "Star- 

 dom" geraniums), as well as two 

 Regal geranium varieties; Yoder 

 will add ten new garden mums to 

 their Prophet series; Walters and 

 Green Leaf have added a host of 

 new bare-root and plug-size peren- 

 nials, herbs, and grasses. 



The new seed varieties are too 

 numerous to mention and if you 

 feel that there are just too many to 

 choose from, think of the alterna- 

 tive: if the industry offered only 

 red. pink, and white geraniums, 

 would there be any reason for 

 people not to flock to the discount- 

 ers? It s the new that attracts cus- 

 tomers and keeps them coming 

 back Extending the season (Yes. 1 

 know some of you want to shut 

 down by June 15) with six-inch or 

 larger annuals, perennials, and Asi- 

 atic and oriental lilies opens up 

 another area in which discounters 

 do not often choose to compete 



As a final comment. Id encour- 

 age joining the Professional Plant 

 Growers Association, subscribing to 

 one of the fine national industry- 

 oriented magazines, and attending 

 the New England Greenhouse Con- 

 ference, held in Sturbridge on al- 

 ternate years Dr DC. Kiplinger, 

 renowned educator at Ohio State 

 and a professor of mine during my 

 three years there, used to encour- 

 age his students "not to hide your 

 knowledge under a flower pot." nor 

 to be adverse to change, nor lack 

 the willingness to learn constantly. 

 The options are still applicable — 

 stay the same and stagnate, or 

 adapt and move successfully into 

 the future 



Dick Zoerb is sales representative tor 

 Fred C Checkner & Company. \nc . 

 and can be reached at (603) 886-8665. 



OCTOBER NOVEMBER 1994 



