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AFE Appoints New Chairman and Trustees

AFE announced that Jim Daly, VP of Floralife/Smithers-Oasis has been elected to serve a two-year term as AFE Chairman.His appointment began during the AFE Annual Fundraising Dinner in Palm Springs, CA. Jim replaces Dwight Larimer of DESIGN MASTER color tool, inc. who served as Chairman for the past two years and will remain on the Board for two additional years as Past Chairman.Jim joined the AFE Board in 2012 and since that time has served on the AFE Research Committee. Most recently he has served as Chairman of the Research Committee.AFE also announced four new industry members joining their AFE Board.All will serve a three-year term and can be re-appointed for a second term. AFE Trustees are industry leaders who…

AFE and e-Gro Partner on Webinars

We have partnered with e-Gro to present webinars focusing on new findings from AFE-funded research projects. The webinars are free. They aim to better communicate the results to growers and to share how to best implement the findings. They also allow for a greater number of managers and staff to hear this information first-hand.The new AFE/e-Gro webinars will be one hour in length with time for participants to ask specific questions of the researchers. They will complement the successful webinars that e-Gro is already conducting and provide greater resources for growers.The first webinar, “New Daily Light Integral Maps and Advances in Supplemental Lighting for Ornamentals” is slated for November 2nd from Noon – 1:00 p.m. Eastern.Presenters Jim Faust, Clemson University…

5 Tips to Creating a Winning Flower Love Video

FMRF’s 2nd Annual Flower Love Video Contest launched earlier this month and is now accepting submissions through December 2. Want to make your video the best it can be? We’ve got some tips for you:1. Check out the contest rulesFirst things first, make sure you are following the rules. Unfortunately, if you break any of the rules listed in the rule guidelines, you could be disqualified. For example, remember that you CANNOT have any logos in your video (even your own!) Check the rules out before you start creating your video, so you don’t have to re-do any part of the process.2. Avoid technology mishapsIt happens. But we’re here to warn you before you make the mistake. If you shoot your video…

AFE-Funded Researchers Go Face to Face with Thrips

Sound scientific research has guided many of the flower crop production and postharvest handling practices used by growers, wholesalers, supermarkets and retail outlets today. AFE realizes that research you support must have direct value to each of you and to your companies.Assuring that research is relevant to flower production begins with making sure that researchers are familiar and see first-hand the conditions upon which their results will be used. During the first week of October, three accomplished thrips researchers accompanied me to Medellin, Colombia to visit flower farms. These researchers included JC Chong of Clemson University and Margaret Skinner and Bruce Parker of the University of Vermont.In late 2016, we also took AFE-funded Botrytis researchers to flower farms. The following…

Message from the Chairman

   It is an exciting time to be in the floral industry, and I am looking forward to serving as the AFE Chairman of the Board for the next two years.It looks like supplies have stabilized for floriculture products both in domestic and international markets. Retailers – namely, florists, supermarkets and big boxes – are doing well. Data predicts a growth of 2-3% in the near future for the ornamental market.Through industry support, AFE continues its mission to fund even more floriculture research, internships, scholarships and programs that solve industry challenges and strengthen the industry.In partnership with the Society of American Florists, AFE is now reviewing and recommending projects for funding through the Floral and Nursery Research Initiative (FNRI). SAF’s major…

AFE Bulletin – September 2018

The September issue of the 2018 AFE Bulletin has been released and features a recap of our 42nd Annual Fundraising Dinner, our board meeting in Canada, a HUGE announcement and more! Get the latest AFE news and help support future programs advancing floriculture!To receive future editions of the Bulletin via email, please send your email address to aalexander@endowment.org.

Road Trip to Canada!

AFE held this year’s August board and committee meetings in Niagara Falls, Ontario in conjunction with tours to Orchard Park Growers, Westbrook Greenhouses, Schenck Farms and an afternoon with researchers at Vineland Research & Innovation Centre.Our first stop, Orchard Park Growers, in St. Catharines, Ontario was established in 1969 as a family-run fruit farm. The land was fully transitioned to floral greenhouses in 2000. Head Grower Matthew Terlouw, Propagation Grower Joelle Eisses and Operations Manager Karl Schouwenaar showed us their site.Next, we visited Westbrook Greenhouses, which has been in operation for over 50 years. Westbrook Greenhouses is a major distributor to local growers in both Canada and the United States. We were given a tour of their operations. There we…

AFE Fundraising Dinner 2018

The AFE 42nd Annual Fundraising Dinner, scheduled in conjunction with the SAF Annual Convention in Palm Springs, California was held on Thursday, September 13, 2018. The evening was full of celebration; we recognized two years’ worth of new named funds, donor giving-levels and AFE accomplishments (last year’s event was canceled due to Hurricane Irma.)The night concluded with a special gift given to our Past-Chairman, Dwight Larimer, as he hands over the position to the incoming Chairman, Jim Daly. We thank Dwight for all he has done for the Endowment and are thankful he will serve on the Board for two more years.  Other special thanks of the night go to: 50+ sponsors (see below) 20 organizations who have helped to…

AFE Grant Helps Improve Spanish Language Access

 A new education grant from the American Floral Endowment helps improve Spanish language access to University of Florida online grower coursesGreenhouse Training Online courses, including Disease Management, offered by University of Florida IFAS Extension (UF) have received a boost with an education grant from the American Floral Endowment (AFE). The four-week courses in English and Spanish are designed for growers or technical managers in the US and other countries and have been completed by over 1,000 growers.The education grant from AFE will help cover the cost of translating course materials into Spanish. This commitment to diversity training is critical. Even though approximately 80% of agricultural workers in the U.S. are of Hispanic origin and are Spanish‐speaking, there is a lack…

2nd Annual Flower Love Video Contest Launches October 1!

2nd Annual Flower Love Video Contest!$4,000 GRAND PRIZEThe 2nd Annual #FlowerLoveVideoContest kicked off October 1, 2018. Sponsored by Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF) and American Floral Endowment (AFE), the contest aims to inspire creative videos from anyone and everyone who loves flowers, and promotes the use and giving of fresh flowers.Submissions should be 30-60 second videos that may be skits, animation, surprise moments, musicals, testimonials, or other types of videos, as long as they feature and promote fresh flowers. The top 10 video finalists chosen by a selection committee will be eligible for the $4,000 grand prize and two honorable mentions of $500 each.The contest website went live Oct. 1 and the deadline for submissions will be Dec. 2. Finalists will be announced and public voting…

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