What I learned from FNGLA

I recently visited the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association's annual Landscape Show. It was a great convention featuring dozens of educational programs for anyone who does work around the yard. I got to learn more about my profession and really interact with like-minded individuals who have a passion for what they do.

 The hands-on workshops were where I believe I got the most benefit from the show. The workshops themselves ranged from pollination to threats for plants and everything in between. The coolest thing was that many allowed you to create your own workshop that would benefit you the most.

There was also a show that talked primarily about species and the exhibition on them was great. The ideas and values I obtained from this exhibit was excellent. I never knew that there were so many different species in my area alone.

Aside from those great workshops, there were also classes on pests that could endanger your yard. These ranged from squirrel removal to rodent removal and the identification of each. In many cases, it is okay, for example, to leave those little chipmunks in your garden alone as long as they are not causing too much trouble. The experts there primarily focused on humane removal of the animals, which is something I agree with as well. They are just trying to find their own home, after all.

Finally, the ideas sharing session allowed us all to sit down and exchange ideas on a variety of subjects that we felt we were comfortable with discussing. This lasted for about 30 minutes each, so I decided to attend two of the sessions, which were separated throughout the day. We got to talk in person with some really knowledgeable individuals including doctors! The main portions that I was interested in involved the Fruit and Spice Gardens, but I also visited the sessions on animal trapping, as those really interested me as well considering how many critters I get around my garden during the Summer time.

Overall, it was a great time and I learned a lot. I will definitely be going next year again.