Greenhouse Grower to Grower

Ep. 67 - Why Metrolina Greenhouses and South Central Growers Are Coming Together, Featuring Abe VanWingerden and Alex Van Der Hengst

This week Metrolina Greenhouses and South Central Growers announced a strategic merger. The two companies have a long history of collaboration and shared values and business philosophies, and together, they will form a growth-focused organization designed to respond to evolving customer expectations and increasing industry complexity. While the news was breaking, I caught up with Abe VanWingerden, CEO of Metrolina Greenhouses, and Alex Van Der Hengst, CEO of South Central Growers, to learn more about why the two companies are coming together, the key attributes each company brings, and how they will be able to integrate all current employees into the new operation. Here’s our conversation. 

Ep. 66 - Checking in With the Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Association

The Canadian Sphagnum Peat Moss Association represents companies that are actively involved in the extraction and processing of peat. CSPMA members are committed to responsible peatland management and sustainability, ensuring their practices meet high environmental and industry standards. In this episode, I was joined by my colleague Marisa Reyes for a discussion with CSPMA President Asha Hingorani, Vice President of Science and Research Partnerships Stephanie Boudreau, and Communications Coordinator Charleen McCartney. We talked about the current peat situation in Canada, and how members strive for sustainable peatland management. We also dispel some common myths and misconceptions about peat. Here’s our conversation. 

Ep. 65 - Insights From Greenhouse Grower’s Two Award-Winning Growers From 2025

During Cultivate’25, Greenhouse Grower presented its Head Grower of the Year award to Brad Meyer of Bachman’s, and its Operation of the Year award to Hampshire Farms in Illinois. In this episode of Greenhouse Grower to Grower, we go behind the scenes with Brad Mayer, and with Fred Wacker at Hampshire Farms, about building a team, working with consumers, and more. 

Ep.64 - Alicain Carlson on This Year’s International Plant Trialing Conference

The International Plant Trialing Conference took place for the first time in several years this past month in Minneapolis. The event brought together plant trial managers from growing operations, universities, and botanical gardens, as well as plant breeders responsible for developing the varieties featured at trial gardens across the country. In this episode, I talk to Alicain Carlson of Syngenta Flowers, who was one of the main organizers of the conference along with the National Garden Bureau. Alicain shares her thoughts on how plant trials continue to evolve, her takeaways from the event, and much more. Here’s our conversation. 

Ep.63 - Two Growers Share Their Takeaways From Impact Washington

Last month, AmericanHort held its Impact Washington Fly-In Summit, where over three days, more than 140 participants from 25 states met with lawmakers and their staffs to discuss their biggest priorities, including labor, the upcoming Farm Bill, horticulture research funding, and more. In this episode, I talk to two of the growers who attended the event: Alan Jones of Manor View Farm in Maryland, who’s been a long-time attendee of Impact Washington, and first-timer Jonathan Jasinski of Microplant Nurseries in Oregon. We discussed each of their immediate takeaways, the importance of meeting with lawmakers both on Capitol Hill and on your own farm, and why advocacy plays a critical role in the future of the floriculture industry. Here’s our conversation. 

Ep.62 - Proven Winners’ Leadership Discusses What the New Merger Means for Growers and Retailers

Last week Proven Winners announced that its two growing businesses, Four Star Greenhouse and Pleasant View Gardens, would be combining to form one Proven Winners company. In this special episode of the Greenhouse Grower to Grower podcast, I caught up with Proven Winners CEO Mark Broxon, as well as Four Star Greenhouse owner Tom Smith and Pleasant View Gardens owner Henry Huntington, to learn more about how this arrangement came about, and what it means for each company involved, the grower and retail customers of Proven Winners, and the industry as a whole.  Here’s our conversation. 

Ep.61 - The IR-4 Project’s Jerry Baron on the Evolution of Crop Protection in the Specialty Crops Market

Later this year, Jerry Baron will wrap up his tenure as executive director of the IR-4 Project, a USDA-funded program that facilities the EPA registration of crop protection products for specialty or minor crops. Jerry has been involved in specialty agriculture for many years, and I recently caught up with him to talk about his background in pest management at The Ohio State University, how IR-4’s mission has evolved over the years, and how he sees the crop protection industry continuing to innovate as it moves into the future. Here’s our conversation. 

Ep.60 - Turning Garden Trends Into Action: A Conversation With Katie Dubow of Garden Media Group

In early September the Garden Media Group released its 2026 Garden Trends Report. The downloadable report is not just a closer look at what is up and coming in gardening, landscape design, and green living. It’s also the 25th anniversary of the Garden Media Group team’s forecasting what’s next in the garden world. In this episode, I’m joined by Marisa Reyes, Greenhouse Grower’s new Content Specialist. We chat with Garden Media Group president Katie Dubow about some of the themes in this year’s report, how everyone in the horticulture industry can turn these trends into action, and some of the hits, and misses, from past trends reports. Here’s our conversation.