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NEW HAMPSHIRE NEWS 



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101; go south past Mall of New 

 Hampshire to lights at Huse Road; 

 go left and after a quarter mile, go 

 left onto Weston Road and take an 

 immediate left into the church park- 

 ing lot). 



Last year over 400 plants do- 

 nated by vendors and hobbyists 

 from all over the country were auc- 

 tioned off. This year's auction be- 

 gins at one; registration and pre- 

 view is at 12. ("A great way to add 

 to your collection.") 



Also, the early stages of organiz- 

 ing have begun for the Third An- 

 nual New Hampshire Orchid Show. 

 The date is set: April 27- May 1. A 

 location has not been chosen yet 

 and sites are being looked at not 

 only in Manchester, but in Hampton 

 and Durham as well. 



For information on both the auc- 

 tion and the spring show, contact 

 Joanna Eckstrom at (603) 654-5070. 



This May Apply to You.... 



UNH Cooperative Extension has a 

 newly revised publication entitled 

 "Review of Selected State and Fed- 

 eral Laws that Apply to Agricultural 

 Employers;" this talks about se- 

 lected state and federal laws and 

 gives names of specific agencies 

 you can call for explanation and 

 clarification. 



The publication defines "regular 

 employment" (as opposed to "agri- 

 cultural employment") and "employ- 

 ees" (as opposed to independent 

 contractors). Defining what consti- 

 tutes agricultural labor is particu- 

 lady important to producers operat- 

 ing roadside stands or other retail 

 outlets because several labor laws 

 differentiate between these and 

 other classes of employees. 



Copies are available at all UNH 

 Cooperative Extension offices. 



TIPS FROM THE GRIFFIN GURU 



DID YOU READ THE INSTRUCTIONS? 



IF YOU'RE LIKE ME, the answer is "half-and-half"— half 1 know all 

 about, so I read only what pertains to the half I don't. Sooner or 

 later, you will do the same. But cut the piece too short and you 

 may have to get a new one. 



We recently have been made aware of some real problems 

 with heating system installations that need not have happened if the 

 directions had been read. New safety devises were installed and a 

 critical change in the vent stack system was required After much 

 aggravation and the cost of replacing the destroyed parts, the in- 

 structions were followed and everything now works fine. 



Please — take time to read the instructions. 



PPGA HIGHLIGHTS 



nn 



STANDARD WEEK ADOPTED 

 (from Greenhouse Manager, August, 1993) 



IF NORTH AMERICAN GROWERS adopt an international standard for 

 numbering weeks for scheduling activities — such as germination, 

 flower response time and propagation — they'd finally be in sync with 

 the rest of the world 



The Professional Plant Growers Association decided to adopt 

 the standard at its |une board meeting and hopes the International 

 Standard, ISO 2015 or ISO 8601:1988, will simplify things for growers 

 here and for suppliers and customers abroad. 



Theo Blom, research scientist at the Horticultural Research Insti- 

 tute of Ontario, Vineland Station, said the system is so simple that it 

 should have no problem replacing widely varying methods now used. 

 It is compatible with computerized scheduling. 



The system has two rules: a week must always consist of seven 

 days and start on a Monday; and the first calendar week of the year 

 is the one that includes the first Thursday of that year. 



Although this is not part of the standard, PPGA suggests that 

 growers use a particular format for listing the week of the year. For 

 example, the 15th week could be written !993W15 (complete), 93WI5 

 (year and week of that year), or -W15 (the fifteenth week of any 

 year). 



"I would hope that people will accept the system," Blom says. 

 "Although some companies already use the international system, if 

 we all get going in the same direction — in the same stream — then 

 we'll all move along together." 



For more: PPGA, PO Box 27515, Lansing, MI 27517; phone: (517) 

 694-7700. 



October & November 1993 

 9 



