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Measuring return on investment of OAN membership

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OAN member benefits are designed to save members money and improve business outcomes Any experienced grower or supplier will continually evaluate the performance of their business. From measuring the intake of supplies for production or calculating the costs for off-loading inventory, a successful business makes continuous adjustments to streamline their operation. The Oregon Association of […]

Finding your way

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Green industry professionals and the businesses they serve can thrive by cultivating strong relationships As the English poet John Donne wrote in 1624, “No man is an island, entire of itself.” The same could be said of a business. A thriving nursery needs its key relationships. It requires customers, vendors, suppliers and advocates. Just as […]

Our mission is to serve

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The Oregon Association of Nurseries wouldn’t have lasted for over eight decades without changing with the times, but the pace of societal change feels like it is accelerating. We must keep up.    All across the country, trade associations have struggled to demonstrate the return on investment (ROI) to their membership. They’ve presented a wide […]

Teamwork matters

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Growing up, I was always a foot shorter and roughly 20 pounds lighter than my age group, and my coordination was not exactly stellar. As a result of all this, sports analogies can go right over my head. These days I rarely watch sports events on television, and I definitely haven’t ever had a fantasy […]

New immigration bill would create ‘chaos for farmers’

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In January, Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced a new bill to reform immigration laws. But according to OAN Executive Director Jeff Stone, the bill as presently constituted would leave agriculture sectors, including nurseries, far short of the workers they need. Among its requirements, the bill would force all employers to implement the […]

January 2018 — The Nursery Country Issue

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Oregon is Nursery Country. OregonGrown™ plants are outstanding because of the state’s rich soil, ideal climate and concentration of skilled growers. In 2016, nursery and greenhouse products reclaimed their place as Oregon’s top grossing agricultural product, selling more than $909 million worth of material. We thought you might like to meet the people behind these outstanding numbers. […]

Convention and the nursery family

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Something special happened at this year’s OAN Convention, held in November at Salishan. Anytime there’s a large gathering of our membership, I find myself rejuvenated. The camaraderie is something to behold. You see titans of the industry interacting with up-and-comers and the future of the industry. They talk about trends, production and labor challenges as […]

A winter respite

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Growing up on a farm and container nursery, I have always noticed a slight lull in the pace when fall and winter roll around. While many of my childhood friends went out of town for Spring Break and often went on numerous summer camping and fishing trips, it didn’t make sense for our family to […]