Digger magazine

Written to make you a nursery industry expert.

HRI accepting grant proposals for 2021

By — Posted

Horticultural Research Institute (HRI), the foundation of AmericanHort, is now accepting research project proposals for the 2021 grant cycle. Applications are due no later than June 1. Each year, the institute funds projects that are designed to improve green industry efficiencies and profitability. Grants of between $5,000 and $35,000 may be awarded to research projects […]

May 2020: Coping with COVID-19

By — Posted

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended business-to-business relationships and the entire retail marketplace for the green industry. From navigating social distancing requirements on the worksite to offering services to quarantined customers, nurseries and greenhouses explain how they are doing their best in this issue. Plus, researchers describe how mycorrhizae amendments add to plant efficiency, and scientists […]

Michigan nurseries can resume operations

By — Posted

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has modified that state’s stay-at-home orders from March 23 and 30 with a new order issued April 24, thereby allowing the state’s green industry businesses to resume operations immediately — provided they follow “enhanced” social distancing rules, as required by the state. Although the state’s stay-at-home mandate was extended through May 15, […]

A helper for plant roots

By — Posted

Mycorrhizae use in nursery and greenhouse production can enhance nutrient absorption and plant growth Mycorrhizal fungi are beneficial microscopic soil organisms that have evolved in a symbiotic relationship with approximately 95% of the world’s plant species over the past several hundred million years. These fungi predate the evolution of terrestrial plants, and it was the […]

Up and running — online

By — Posted

For retailers, an unfortunate pandemic accelerates the trend towards online ordering It’s May, the month of Mother’s Day and, typically, the peak season for garden centers and nurseries in Oregon and around the Northwest. It’s the month when Americans usually spend close to $1.9 billion on flowers to honor their moms and when pastime gardeners […]

The first employee people see

By — Posted

Imagine you hired an employee who, when asked about your inventory, could only tell people what you used to sell. Or when asked where an item could be found, could only inexplicably point to empty space or not answer at all. Simply put, a single interaction with this employee might lead your customers to assume […]

Nurseries problem solve a pandemic

By — Posted

Ben Rough (pronounced “row,” rhymes with “now”) will never forget his first day of work at J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co. nursery in Boring, Oregon. The newly hired CEO of the company started on March 23 — the same day that Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued a mandatory stay-in-place order for Oregonians in response […]

Director’s Desk: We have your back

By — Posted

Gardening is not canceled. Oregon’s nursery, greenhouse, retail and supply chains are open for business. Our state and governor could have mandated full closures and declared our businesses non-essential. The fact they didn’t do this is a credit to the OAN’s leadership and its advocacy team. They were the perfect picture of vision, pure effort […]

President’s Message: Into the unknown

By — Posted

Spring is a hectic time. Add in a worldwide pandemic with economic uncertainties, and it can be a recipe for disaster. The most unnerving aspect is the unknown. As an industry, we are accustomed to unpredictable weather. We see damaging frosts, rainy weekends, and hot, dry summers stressing the growing season. These are all hiccups […]