Alisha Conde speaks at Eastern IPPS

Nursery Manager Alisha Conde Presents at Eastern I.P.P.S.

I made my way to Hauppauge Long Island, NY in the last week of September to have a meeting of the minds with the members of the Eastern Region International Plant Propagators’ Society. The member list includes many shades of horticulture professionals from educators to business owners, and authors. It is also an excellent opportunity for students of all ages to engage in conversation, and ask questions. I was petitioned to do a talk about our nursery and how it functions to produce potted plants in the absence of automation. My talk on Tuesday helped to spark interesting conversation at the end of the 30 minute time slot as well as conversations started throughout the rest of that week. I received many helpful tips from others in production nurseries about implementing automation, changing system approaches after implementation, and many happy stories about how said automation made their nurseries a more efficient workplace. I learned of new pests, and diseases that are proliferating (boo), and new plants that are being bred (yay). I was introduced to so many helpful and experienced minds, and I also got to network with others who were experiencing this field with the same amount of time under their belts as myself. I feel inspired and ready to continue to make changes towards being the best nursery that we can possibly be. I am already gearing up for the next IPPS Eastern Region meeting in Ontario Canada in the Fall of 2023.   -Alisha Conde: Nursery Manager