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YPC Member Receives First Place at ASHS

Last month, during the 2018 American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) conference held in Washington, D.C., Sadikshya Sharma, received first place in the Graduate Student Poster competition at the master’s Level.Her poster illustrated the studies she has done on the “Effects of Narrow Bandwidth Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) on Petunia and Spathiphyllum.”“My research with LEDs helps in building a foundation for further combining different LEDs and optimizing light quality in commercial propagation and production industry. This would ultimately reduce the cost for the lights used in propagation and production of petunia and spathiphyllum,” says Sadikshya.She is a graduate student in the Department of Environmental Horticulture, at the University of Florida where her adviser is Dr. Thomas Colquhoun.We want to congratulate Sadikshya,…

AFE Awards More than $42,800 in 2018 Scholarships

The American Floral Endowment (AFE) has awarded 21 students with scholarships totaling $42,800. Eighty- seven applications were received for this 2018 scholarship cycle.“We had many outstanding students apply for scholarships this year, which is why some scholarships were awarded to two recipients,” said Dwight Larimer, AFE Chairman and Education Committee Chair.“I’m proud to see the high quality of students each year and I enjoy granting scholarships to these well-deserved students to help them continue their education and become passionate industry leaders.”AFE awards scholarships annually and applications are due by May 1 of each year.Scholarship descriptions are available at endowment.org/scholarships. American Florists’ Exchange Scholarship — $2,500Recipient: Helena Dondero – California Polytechnic State, San Luis ObispoA junior majoring in agricultural science with an…

#FlowerMarketingMonday

We’re up for the challenge…are you? Based on industry feedback, we’ve decided to release a new video on the first Monday of every month. You’ll be reminded during the rest of the month that this video is available to download and customize for your own business!Each flower-promoting video will be shared weekly on the AFE Facebook and Twitter pages. The campaign, complete with a catchy hashtag #FlowerMarketingMonday, showcases a video that is less than one minute. Retailers, wholesalers, growers, manufacturers and anyone else in the floral industry can share the videos on their own website and social media platforms. Furthermore, industry members can use these videos to help promote everyday buying and/or upcoming holidays.The goal is to make each video…

AFE Bulletin – July Issue

The July issue of the 2018 AFE Bulletin has been released and features a guide to #FlowerMarketingMonday, recaps of AFE presentations, information on how to order poster-sized Daily Light Integral maps 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 afe@endowment.org.

Daily Light Integral Maps for the U.S.

Daily Light Integral (DLI) maps display the ambient light delivered daily during each month across the entire U.S. These maps were researched and developed by James Faust of Clemson University and Joanne Logan of The University of Tennessee. They are unique because DLI is a measurement of light that is particularly valuable for estimating plant growth. Other solar radiation maps created for photovoltaic purposes, i.e., installing solar panels, are not directly applicable to horticultural applications. According to Faust, the project leader, the DLI maps are valuable because they allow growers to better manage the light environment of their plants. “For example, one can estimate the number of days per year that supplemental lighting may be necessary to achieve the desired…

AFE Bulletin – June Issue

The June issue of the 2018 AFE Bulletin has been released and features #FlowerMarketingMonday updates, an introduction to the new AFE staff members, an announcement of new Daily Light Integral maps 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 afe@endowment.org.

#FlowerMarketing Monday Videos Reach Thousands

According to Social Media Today, 90 percent of customers say videos help make buying decisions.  This is the strategy behind the American Floral Endowment’s (AFE’s)  #FlowerMarketingMonday weekly video series, which has reached more than 30,000 consumers in its few weeks.The video series that kicked off in mid-April, and continues through December 2018, features a weekly flower marketing video for the floral industry to use to promote everyday flower buying, holidays, and special life moments.  This campaign follows other successful efforts and programs the organization has created to support industry growth, including studies to Marketing to Millennials, Internship programs to bring top talent to the industry, and even a How-To Guide to selling on Pinterest.The first few videos in the series…

Two Students Receive Altman Family Scholarships

Two students were awarded $5,000 scholarships from the 2018 Altman Family Scholarship Fund.Krishna Bhattarai, a Ph.D student at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center, and Nathan Nordstedt, of The Ohio State University were both awarded the 2018 scholarship for their exemplary work and outstanding dedication to their floriculture studies.The Altman Family Scholarship was created in 2015 by Ken and Deena Altman (owners of Altman Plants) and assists in funding the education of floriculture graduate students (MS or Ph.D.), who will become leading floricultural scientists and educators.Krishna Bhattarai“I’m inspired when I review these applications,” said Ken Altman.  “Every single student was extremely deserving of a scholarship”.Krishna Bhattarai is a doctoral student at the University of Florida with…

2018 Paul Ecke Jr. Scholarship Announced

Melissa Muñoz, a Master of Science student at Clemson University, was awarded the 2018 Paul Ecke Jr., Scholarship Award — a $10,000 scholarship ($5,000 for two consecutive years).  She will be continuing for her Ph.D. upon completion of her Masters degree.“There were a record number of applications for the second year in a row, which shows the growing interest and need for these scholarships. The high quality of students is a testament to their exceptional determination and passion, and I am confident these future leaders will help the industry progress,” said Greg Royer, AFE Chairman and Education Committee Chair.Melissa Munoz, 2018 Paul Ecke, Jr.Scholarship RecipientMelissa graduated from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia sede Medellin in 2016 and is currently enrolled…

Gay Smith Memorial Tribute Established

She grew up in suburban Phoenix and attended the University of Arizona studying environmental horticulture. After college, she relocated to San Francisco and began working at a local florist in the late 1970s. Smith eventually found her way to the San Francisco Flower Market where she worked for Kitayama Brothers, filling and hauling buckets of carnations and roses. By 1981, she had made a name for herself as the first female manager working among the male-dominated world of growers and wholesalers at the market. She introduced the market to the idea of importing flowers from Holland, Israel and South America, and became an expert on unusual, unique blooms and their post-harvest needs. Smith was hired to open a small export…

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