SATO, John Henry form alliance
SATO Labeling Solutions America Inc. and John Henry Hort. formed a strategic alliance to offer merchandising and packaging solutions for growers and retailers. The alliance augments John Henry's POP, print, packaging, labeling, databases and creative resources with SATO's tagging systems and expanded production capabilities for labels, signs and banners.

GE offers consumers credit for landscaping
GE Money's Sales Finance unit and LandOpt LLC announced a new multi-year relationship to provide consumers with financing for landscaping services and products.

New company fills online orders for finished containers
Bloomscape is a new company that is selling and shipping finished plants in decorative containers ordered online. It was started by Justin Mast, son of Rick Mast, owner of Glass Corner Greenhouses in Grand Rapids, Mich. Plants are grown in Earth-friendly containers filled with a fiber-woven growing medium that provides support for the root system, protects plants from shipping stress and keeps plants in the containers. Justin is gearing sales to young urbanites who often don't have space to repot plants and may not have cars to transport plants home from retailers.

Texas A&M names Ellison Chair
Charlie Hall has been named to the Ellen and Jim Ellison Chair in Int'l. Floriculture at Texas A&M Univ.'s Department of Hort. Sciences. Hall, who for the past 5 years has been professor of ag. economics at Univ. of Tenn., previously was a Texas co-op. ext. specialist. The floriculture chair was created in 2004 after the Texas floriculture and greenhouse industry pooled $500,000, which was then matched by Texas A&M to endow the $1 million chair. The program aims at ensuring that floriculture and greenhouse research and education will be a permanent part of the Texas A&M Univ. system.

Overwatering can cause oedema
Oedema can occur on ivy geraniums and kalanchoes during periods of cool, cloudy weather. Under these conditions, the growing medium is moist and warm and plants can take in large amounts of water without transpiring it. Symptoms of oedema are pimplelike blisters that appear on plant leaves as cells swell with water. The cells burst to leave corky lesions on the leaf surface. Univ. of Md. ext. personnel said that although oedema generally doesn't have a negative impact on plant health, it can greatly reduce marketability. The easiest solution is not to overwater during overcast, cool periods.

Worth a visit
Learn to grow Nemesia x hybrida Sachet series from Ecke Ranch. It's part of the company's Fast Crop program, so plants can be produced for quick turnover after peak selling weeks. Only on GreenBeam.com.

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