Research Proposals Being Accepted for 2020-2021 Funding Cycle

The American Floral Endowment (AFE) is calling for research proposal applications for the 2020-2021 funding cycle.Secure funding for your floriculture research project by applying before the June 1, 2020 deadline.The primary research funding priorities are relevant to all segments of the floral industry and include:Postharvest TechnologyProduction TechnologyAdvanced Breeding Technology, including CRISPRLong-Term Storage and Shipping Conditions for Cut Flowers, Bedding and Potted PlantsAutomation and Technology Leading to Labor SavingsBotrytis Control and ManagementThrips Control and ManagementAFE’s new research proposal application process established last year allows for a single application form to be used to help streamline the researcher’s request for funding.Research projects can last from one to three years and any reasonable but justifiable budget will be considered.For the current 2019-2020 cycle, the Endowment is funding more…

AFE Announces Garcia Family Scholarship Fund

The American Floral Endowment (AFE) is pleased to announce a new scholarship fund created thanks to generous contributions from The Garcia Family.  The Garcia Family Scholarship comes just in time for the 2020 scholarship application season. The Garcia Family Scholarship Fund is intended for students attending a two-year college, or Junior or Seniors attending a four-year institution with a career focus on the marketing or distribution of floral products, including retail, wholesale, manufacturing and/or floral business ownership/operations. “It is our family’s desire, by giving back to our industry, to attract and educate for the future,” says Pete Garcia, Chairman and CEO of The Pete Garcia Company and Garcia Group, Inc. The new scholarship joins more than 25 other scholarships AFE…

Ball Internship Scholarship: Why It’s Important

By Christopher J. Currey and Kimberly A. WilliamsThey say Christmas comes but once a year, but undergraduate students interested in floriculture crop production have two opportunities each year to apply for a paid internship with a leading greenhouse operation and gain valuable hands-on experience in our industry. Applications for the American Floral Endowment’s Vic and Margaret Ball Internship Scholarship Program are due March 1 and October 1 each year. This program follows through on Vic and Margaret Ball’s vision to support opportunities for floriculture production students to learn directly from growers. The Balls wanted to give students access to opportunities they may not otherwise have, providing first-rate experiences in nationally renowned production facilities that may not be possible without financial…

AFE Strengthens Bonds with Floral Funding Government Agencies

AFE Shares the Size, Complexity, and Importance of the Miami Import Cut Flower Businesses with USDA-ARSBy Dr. Terril Nell, AFE Research CoordinatorFloral and Nursery Research InitiativeUSDA-ARS coordinates funding for the Floral and Nursery Research Initiative (FNRI), a federally funded program dedicated to floriculture, nursery and landscape research. Recently, AFE took the lead on the FNRI initiative providing recommendations and identifying priorities. To further strengthen the importance of this funding, we headed down to Miami to show USDA-ARS National Program Leader, Tim Reinhardt what we’re all about!AFE spent the day showing Dr.Reinhardt the size, complexity, and importance of fresh cut flowers to the entire floral industry. AFE, in coordination with SAF, works with Dr. Reinhardt by identifying the research needs and…

Thank you, Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE® and Our Donors!

Thank you, Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE® for teaming up with AFE for a third year-end matching gift challenge.Due to their generosity, year-end donations made to the Endowment by December 31, 2019, were matched dollar-for-dollar up to $20,000.Industry members jumped at the chance to support floriculture and as a result, the goal was exceeded! Thanks to the support from the industry and Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE®.Thank you again to Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE® and our generous donors for your contributions and for supporting AFE’s programs that promote and advance the industry!Didn’t get a chance to donate? Support AFE’s industry efforts by making a tax-deductible contribution today. 

Service Is Tradition for Big-Picture Pioneers

Jack and Carolynn Van Namen Jack and Carolynn Van Namen. Third in a series honoring members of AFE’s Legacy Circle. Created to recognize persons who have made provision for a planned gift to AFE, the Legacy Circle celebrates their significant contributions, enriching our past and securing our future. For more information, contact Debi Chedester at (703) 838-5211 or visit endowment.org/legacy-circle/. Growing up in a floral industry that was traditionally segmented, with growers, wholesalers and retailers each performing a different function (often not knowing much about what the others did), Jack Van Namen nonetheless saw the potential for doing business a different way.Over the course of several decades, he worked alongside his father and company founder, Jacob Van Namen, to lead…

2020 National Floriculture Forum

The American Floral Endowment had the opportunity to partner with the 2020 National Floriculture Forum held in Charlotte, NC from February 28th through March 1st. This weekend was filled with an incredible depth of knowledge shared amongst peers and the industry. The National Floriculture Forum (NFF) is an annual educational meeting of stakeholders from academic institutions, governmental agencies, and the greenhouse industry. The timing of the NFF overlapped with AFE’s Board Meetings to create an impactful and engaging weekend for our industry. The weekend consisted of a number of meetings and presentations that included topics on the impact of hemp on the floriculture industry, how to develop effective collaborations, effective outreach to the floriculture industry, and other topics. The forum discussed how we…

Dollar-for-Dollar Gift-Match Opportunity!

Friends of the floral industry, double your impact!We are happy to announce that Smithers-Oasis/ FLORALIFE® is partnering with us for the third year in a row of gift-matching. The challenge supports AFE’s vital work that gives so much to the cut-flower industry.Today, you have the opportunity to support the Endowment, even MORE, thanks to the Gift-Matching AFE Challenge issued by Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE®.Now through December 31, 2019, Smithers-Oasis/FLORALIFE® will match your donations to AFE, dollar-for-dollar, up to $20,000. In other words, when you give your support to AFE, you’re not only investing in the future of the floral industry – you are DOUBLING your contribution!For nearly 60 years, AFE has been leading the charge to identify solutions to tough industry challenges. Since 1961, it…

Getting Back to the Basics: Cooling, Cleanliness and Care

Back to Basics: Floral customers want beautiful flowers that last. The biological mechanisms governing flower life and quality are complex, but the flower care practices recommended for growers, wholesalers, and retail florists are really quite simple. Get back to basics with the three c’s. AFE-supported research confirms that there are three keys to quality: cold, cleanliness and careful processing. Keep Flowers COLD (33 – 36° F)Temperature is the major factor governing flower life. Cold temperatures conserve the sugars stored in the leaves and stems needed for flowers to open and remain viable. Supplemental sugars provided by flower foods serve as a critical back-up to stored sugars. Cold temperatures also make flowers less sensitive to their archenemy – ethylene. Keeping flowers…

New Poster Gives Tips for Flower Care!