The National Floriculture Forum (NFF) will meet from February 16-17, 2019, in Chicago, Illinois. The NFF continues an annual tradition dating back to the early 1990s, with an educational meeting for industry leaders, university faculty, graduate students and government scientists from academic institutions, governmental agencies and the greenhouse industry.
The NFF brings together diverse floricultural communities with the objectives to
- address issues of importance to the floriculture industry,
- form collaborative relationships, and
- improve communication within the American floriculture industry to share and disseminate information.
The 2019 NFF will open with an optional tour on Saturday morning to the Chicago Botanic Garden for those arriving early. At the Chicago Botanic Garden, Dr. Jim Ault will lead a tour of the newly renovated greenhouses and speak about the scientific endeavors of the garden, which includes the breeding and introduction program associated with Chicagoland Grows. Participants will also tour the gardens. Following the tour and the provided lunch on Saturday, they begin the afternoon with a business meeting with presentations from various speakers on research funding opportunities, industry trends, and the like. Faculty members and graduate students will also be asked to update the group on their universities’ programs including enrollments, and teaching, research and extension programs. This will continue into Sunday morning’s session. On Saturday evening, Dr. Charlie Hall, holder of the Ellison Chair in International Floriculture at Texas A&M University, will address the group on “Incorporating the Value of Plants and Our Industry into Curricula.”
Registration for the NFF is only $150, thanks to financial support from the American Floral Endowment. This fee includes the tour to the Chicago Botanic Garden, including bus transportation on Saturday morning, lunch and dinner on Saturday, and refreshments at breaks. To register for the Forum and arrange your hotel reservation, go to http://endowment.org and click on the National Floriculture Forum link, followed by the Registration link. The host hotel is the Crowne Plaza O'Hare Hotel and Conference Center in Rosemont, IL, and the hotel will provide free shuttle transportation but only from and back to O’Hare International Airport. (Attendees may fly through Chicago’s Midway Airport, but transportation to the hotel will be on your own and could be quite expensive.) The complimentary hotel shuttle from and back to O’Hare International Airport, guest room Wi-Fi, and breakfast are included in the $119 per night (plus tax) hotel rate (tax is currently 14% but is subject to change). Parking is extra. Registration for this discounted hotel rate is due by January 15; hotel guest rooms are limited.
For specific questions, contact the 2019 event organizer, Dr. Marvin Miller of Ball Horticultural Company at mnmiller@ballhort.com.