FORUM 



OUR MEMBERS SPEAK— 

 The Results of the NHPGA Membership Survey 



"Do we grow plants or old men?" 

 one member wrote alongside his 

 vote to change our logo. But the 

 intensity of six wasn't enough to 

 challenge the general fondness for 

 our familiar design. 

 This is one fact revealed in the 

 results of the survey sent out with 

 the 1993 membership forms. 



Only thirty members filled out 

 the form. But these thirty had 

 enough ideas to keep the Board 

 thinking for quite awhile. Below 

 are some highlights. 



The biggest problem facing New 

 Hampshire horticulture was felt to 

 be regulations in some form or 

 other: pesticide, environmental, mu- 

 nicipal, DOT.. .everyone had their 

 favorites. The problem wasn't nec- 

 essarily the regulations themselves, 

 but that they were too complicated 

 and change so often. As one mem- 

 ber put it, if s "the lack of direction 

 from the regulators themselves. 

 What are we to plan for the next 

 year, the next five years, in terms 

 of rules and regulations?" 



The second problem mentioned 

 most frequently was "the influx of 

 warehouse-type retailers." The 

 "dumping of inferior plants at unre- 

 alistic prices," concern with volume 

 rather than customer satisfaction — 

 members saw mass-marketers and 

 their techniques as real threats to 

 small growers and garden centers. 



There seemed to be no strong 

 third theme — ^just lots of individual 

 concerns — everything from supply 

 costs to plastic disposal to "remem 

 bering that consumers are ready 

 for new products and ideas." 



What members seemed to want 

 most from the NHPGA was more 

 information — they asked for "more 

 regular and informative seminars," 

 more technical information (on all 

 sorts of subjects) , and more on 

 marketing and marketing trends. 

 They asked for grower-to-grower 



(dividing growers into smaller 

 groups according to their interests) 

 sessions at our summer and winter 

 meetings and strong keynote 

 speakers. 



They asked for information about 

 upcoming laws and suggested that 

 the NHPGA lobby the state legisla- 

 ture. And that we "need to commu- 

 nicate more with other organiza- 

 tions— FB or ANN or NENA— 

 so we can react better to legislative 

 changes and additions." 



There were plenty of ideas for 

 The Plantsman — more information 

 on "new varieties and cultivars," 

 "trends," and "alternate ways of 

 doing things;" also "more informa- 

 tion for landscapers." "How-to sec- 

 tions, handy hints, ideas from mem- 

 bers, ideas on crop culture...." were 

 requested. One member wanted 

 "more seed company ads and a 

 mailing card that you could send 

 to get more information;" another 

 suggested beginning a "stock ex- 

 change" (plant stock) by expanding 

 on the classified ad section. These 

 are a just a few of the many good 

 suggestions. 



The Board thanks everyone 

 who took the time to respond. It 

 is hoped that members' concerns 

 will define the activities of the 

 organization. 



Thanks Go To.... 



Thanks go to the various businesses 

 and people who helped with the 

 NHPGA display at this year's Farm 

 & Forest Exposition. These include 

 Chris Robarge and Bob Demers, Jr., 

 who set up and took down the ex- 

 hibit; Demers Garden Center and 

 Paul Godbout Qacques' Flower 

 Shop), who furnished the plant 

 material; and Dick Zoerb and Roger 

 Warren, who helped man the 

 booth. .^ 



WELCOME, 

 NEW MEMBERS... 



Gordon & Powers Insurance 

 490 South Main Street 

 Manchester, NH 03102 



Hall's Greenhouse & Nursery 



RR 2, Box 80, Lisbon Road 



Littleton, NH 03561 



Lloyd Hayner 



Uniroyal Chemical 



3106 Hearthstone Road 



Endicott City, MD 21042 



Dan Hock 



Merrimack Flower Shop 



& Greenhouse 



PO Box 131 



Merrimack, NH 03054 



Betsy Hoffman 



Hayden Hillsgrove 



Stone Masonry 



HCR 61, Box 30 



North Sandwich, NH 03259 



Cynthia Smerdon 



114 Chester Road 



Raymond, NH 03077 



Smithers-Oasis USA 

 919 Marvin Avenue 

 Kent, Ohio 44240 



Webber's Dublin Nursery 



PO Box 26, Route 101 



Dublin, NH 03444 



...AND NEW 

 ADVERTISERS. 



Webber's Dublin Nursery 



PO Box 26, Route 101 



Dublin, NH 03444 



April (Sf May 1993 



