Pre-Conference Tours 2015
We will head north from Cincinnati to the Columbus area on Friday, September 25th with a choice between two pre-conference tour options. While the tours will follow two different paths as the day progresses, both groups will visit Decker's Nursery first thing so that no one misses the demonstrations that are being planned. After Decker's, the Nursery Pre-Tour will continue on to Acorn Farms and Meadow View Growers while the Educational/Botanical Garden Pre-Tour will visit Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens and the Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center at Ohio State. There will be time to check out the OSU annual trial gardens, Howlett Hall's green roof and the Steven Still Perennial Garden as well. You face a tough decision between these two great tour options!
Pre-Conference Nursery Tour
Decker’s Nursery
Decker’s Nursery has been a family owned business in central Ohio since 1921. It currently sits on about of 150 acres and is broken down into three different facets: field, container, and liner production. They are nationally known for their industry leading grafted evergreens, rhododendrons, and ornamental trees. They also provide high quality, well branched, specialty and industry standard shrub liners in a variety of sizes. The container and field operations supply landscapers and garden centers throughout Ohio and the surrounding states. It is a point of pride at Decker’s Nursery to constantly strive to be on the forefront of new technology, improve plant quality, and become more efficient. Third generation owner, Brian Decker, and his team of managers, have made Decker’s Nursery a nationally recognized company in our industry.
The tour at Decker's Nursery will have multiple stations to demonstrate different styles of equipment and production systems. Some of the potential stations include: container trimming, liner trimming, field cultivation, container spacing, propagation overview, and water treatment.
http://www.deckersnursery.com/
Acorn Farms
Acorn Farms was founded as a wholesale nursery in 1976 in Galena Ohio. Currently over 900 acres are in operation. Balled and burlap trees shrubs make up a large percentage of woody plant production, but automated potting equipment assist crews in efficiently producing an extensive selection of deciduous and evergreen material. Over 200,000 perennials and a wide selection of grasses are grown annually, including several of Acorn’s own selections. Over an acre of greenhouse is devoted to annual production.
Acorn farms has been recognized for its active commitment and proactive stance in the conservation and recycling of water and protection of the environment. Approximately 350,000 gallons of water are recycled daily, and the entire east side of the nursery is irrigated with recaptured and recycled water. Lower water soluble herbicides are used to reduce excessive runoff and well spaced applications of slow release fertilizers reduce the amounts of nutrients being returned to the pond. Every effort is made to maintain the ecosystem in the ponds, which have a good population invertebrate, fish, frogs, ducks, and geese.
Meadow View Growers
Meadow View Growers is a family business located north of Dayton, OH with 6 family members involved in the vertically integrated business from propagation through finished product. Meadow View produces finished plants for their own retail store as well as other local greenhouses, garden centers, landscape contractors and institutional sales. MVG also grows a wide range of annuals including Suntory, Danziger and Green Fuse varieties that are shipped to other growers. Perennials round out the product line and have become a significant item for their wholesale growers and also for retail sales. This is a destination garden center in southwest Ohio, known for its Creativity, Selection and Inspiration. The Bloomin’ Bus finds its home here and travels to local parades taking smiles to the community. During this past year their newest attraction at the garden center is the Ole Barn, a portion of a local 100 year old barn that is being repurposed for a storage building. Some of the timbers have 117 growth rings meaning that the acorn for that timber began to grow when, do the math….. about 1800. Who knows what the Robinson family will come up with next? They just love producing good plants for their retail and wholesale customers and finding creative ways to present them.
www.meadowview.cc (wholesale) www.meadowview.com (retail)
Pre-Conference Educational/Botanical Tour
Decker’s Nursery
Decker’s Nursery has been a family owned business in central Ohio since 1921. It currently sits on about of 150 acres and is broken down into three different facets: field, container, and liner production. They are nationally known for their industry leading grafted evergreens, rhododendrons, and ornamental trees. They also provide high quality, well branched, specialty and industry standard shrub liners in a variety of sizes. The container and field operations supply landscapers and garden centers throughout Ohio and the surrounding states. It is a point of pride at Decker’s Nursery to constantly strive to be on the forefront of new technology, improve plant quality, and become more efficient. Third generation owner, Brian Decker, and his team of managers, have made Decker’s Nursery a nationally recognized company in our industry.
The tour at Decker's Nursery will have multiple stations to demonstrate different styles of equipment and production systems. Some of the potential stations include: container trimming, liner trimming, field cultivation, container spacing, propagation overview, and water treatment.
Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
Historic Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is a premier botanical landmark and cultural attraction featuring exceptional plant collections and gardens, seasonal art- and nature-based exhibitions.
The Conservatory is situated in the 88-acre Franklin Park just two miles east of downtown Columbus. Featuring indoor gardens filled with exotic plant life and artwork, including a collection of glass works by artist Dale Chihuly, the Conservatory offers enjoyment of the natural world any time of the day or year. Outdoors, botanical gardens, art sculptures, open green space and a one-mile walking loop offer respite from everyday life.
The intensely gardened outer grounds have become just as impressive as the Conservatory, with seasonal displays, the Crane Conifer and Ornamental Grass Collection, a massive Daylily Collection, Trials Gardens, the formal Grand Mallway, and one of the best Community Vegetable and Food Gardens you’ll ever see.
The Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center
The Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center (OPGC) is part of the USDA National Plant Germplasm System which seeks to conserve and study genetic resources important for agriculture. The OPGC is the only gene bank in the world dedicated exclusively to the acquisition, conservation, analysis, and enhancement of herbaceous ornamental plant germplasm. Germplasm of approximately 1000 species is conserved at the OPGC, but our current focus is on native North American genera, such as Coreopsis, Lilium, Phlox and Rudbeckia that show potential for development of new products of benefit to the floriculture and nursery industry. We explore for wild germplasm, develop methods to produce seed for long-term preservation, examine ornamental characteristics of different species and accessions, as well as assess the potential for interspecific hybridization within each genus. Our germplasm is available to the floriculture and nursery industry for unrestricted use in further development of useful products.
In addition to the Germplasm Center, within close proximity, OSU’s annual trials are available to tour, along with the impressive Howlett Hall Greenroof, and the beautiful, Adrian Bloom designed, Steve Stills Perennial Garden.
chadwickarboretum.osu.edu/our-gardens/learning-gardens/steven-m-still-perennial-garden
chadwickarboretum.osu.edu/plant-collections-gardens/green-roof-howlett-hall
chadwickarboretum.osu.edu/educationresearch/cultivar-trial-gardens
We will return to the hotel for our Welcome Reception which not only kicks off the conference but also the Silent Auction. You will have dinner on your own in beautiful downtown Cincinnati.