Overview (All sessions)

Owning your own business is challenging, but it comes with the awesome potential to build a highly valuable asset and gain your financial freedom. To do this, you must master your finances and turn your company into a highly profitable entity.

Jeffrey will guide you on which financial key indicators to manage, and how to engage your team in order to win at the game of business. He will show you the secrets that highly successful landscape entrepreneurs use to achieve a higher return-on-investment, and to ultimately gain their financial freedom.

Ficaria verna (Lesser celandine) is a perennial ground-covering plant native to northern Europe, newly found to be invasive in the Great Lakes region. F. verna forms a dense mat in the early spring, outcompeting native ephemeral species, many of which are already threatened. It can be identified by its small (1-4 cm), lobed leaves growing in clusters with 7-12 petaled, glossy, yellow inflorescences (2-5 cm). After blooming, F. verna forms clusters of small bulblets and tubers which spread and easily propagate if disturbed.

The year of 2024 will certainly go down as one of the most challenging turf management years in recent memory. Summer conditions could generally be described as uncomfortable. Hot, wet, humid conditions resulted in an abundance of turfgrass diseases including red thread, dollar spot, brown patch, and pythium blight.

This presentation will recap 2024 and discuss both cultural and pesticide recommendations for managing turf in less-than-ideal conditions.

Spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula), or SLF, is an invasive insect that has spread throughout the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Midwest since its discovery in central Pennsylvania in 2014.  SLF damages plants directly while feeding and excretes honeydew that can foul surfaces and attract other pests.  Infestations in both rural and urban areas can be a significant nuisance to the public. Though SLF can cause damage to a wide variety of plants, it is of specific concern for grape producers and a potential concern for other fruit producers.

Why should you stay ahead of garden trends? It's straightforward: understanding trends allows businesses to align with consumer interests, driving sales and fostering growth. Join us for a cutting-edge session, where the spotlight will be on the latest in garden trends.

Learn how to encourage repeat visits, raise your average ticket amount, and nurture customer loyalty with proven secrets from e-commerce marketing programs. You don't have to have e-commerce to grow your business while using e-comm strategies. Most of the technology is just as applicable to brick-and-mortar retail, and you might already have access to it and not realize it. There are easier ways to make more money without doing more work. This session will include real-world examples from other garden centers using these tricks. Leave with new initiatives to try this spring.

In today's dynamic market landscape, millennials wield significant purchasing influence. Join Garden Media Group's resident millennial gardener Aubrey Olson as she unpacks the core values driving this demographic. Discover actionable insights on how Green Industry brands can effectively engage with and appeal to millennials. Leverage these strategies to ensure that your business thrives and remains at the forefront of relevance.

From the rushing waters of Niagara Falls through the turquoise shores of Lake Michigan, we are blessed to work in a community adjacent to the modern wonder that is The Great Lakes. In addition to being known for amazing boating, agriculture production, and recreation, the Great Lakes Region spans an incredibly diverse growing region with some truly amazing gardens. 

Explore some of Canada and America’s most impactful horticultural displays and a few hidden gems.  We will explore over 20 gardens and parks that you’ll definitely want to add to your Botanical Bucket List!

An introduction to some new and unusual perennials that can be used in the landscape. Homer will cover plant characteristics, growth habits, and care needs, as well as his experiences growing them at the nursery. Most of the plants covered are varieties coming out of Europe and favored by Piet Oudolf-style gardens. Some examples of the plants include Eryngium, Echinops, Thalictrum, Saponaria, Dedecatheon, etc.

One of the most significant areas of concern in designing climate resilient landscapes is storm water management. Conventional drainage systems designed to capture water and pipe it to municipal systems or daylight are being replaced or enhanced by a more holistic, intergrated approach to managing storm water.  We are mandated by federal, state and local regulations to contain and infiltrate rainfall/storm water on site. While this may seem like an impossible task there are many methods, systems and technologies available to make this happen.