4/28/2017
On The Move
Jennifer Zurko
BALL SEED
Kevin Roethle has been hired as Ball Seed Sales Representative for the newly created sales territory in western Wisconsin. Kevin will transition to the Sales Force from his current role leading Ball Ingenuity. Since 2010, Kevin has taken the lead on new product development for Ball Ingenuity and has negotiated for several Ball Seed exclusives with many breeders around the world while expanding the program exponentially. Kevin joined Ball in 2004 after graduating from the University of Wisconsin—River Falls. He was a Regional Supply Manager and the Geranium Business Manager between 2004 and 2010.
Also, Michael Annes has joined Supplier Relations as an Associate Regional Supply Manager. Mike was hired in January of 2016 as a Burpee Program Representative. In this role, he’s established relationships with current Ball Seed sales representatives. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Ornamental Horticulture Production and Management from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, College of ACES.
DANZIGER “DAN” FLOWER FARM
Danziger announced a new business structure for its North American market. Mike Fernandez has been appointed Market Manager North America for Bedding Plants and Perennials. Mike will continue leading the business activity in North America, developing new businesses and initiatives for further growth.
As part of the new structure, Kate Zvara is appointed as Key Account Manager and Retail Specialist. Kate brings many years of experience in the industry and will reinforce Danziger’s relationship with the market, focusing on retailers as well as growers.
DOSATRON INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Dosatron named Matthew Wellage as Regional Sales Manager. Matt brings to the Dosatron team six years of experience working for a manufacturer of chemical dispensing equipment. He also spent more than eight years gaining experience in industrial pipe, valve and fitting distribution.
Kira Plaut has been hired as Sales Representative—Hydroponics. Kira’s background brings a blend of nine years of greenhouse growing knowledge, specializing in integrated pest management and propagation, along with inside sales experience.
Rosanna Taylor has also been hired as Sales Administrator—Hydro-ponics. Rosanna brings more than 10 years of office management experience, working in the horticulture industry for a leading automation manufacturer, which built her experience in customer service, systems management and business development.
HOFFMAN NURSERY
Hoffman Nursery has advanced their growing and trial programs with the addition of Leanne Kenealy as Research and Development Horticulturist. Leanne will concentrate on establishing optimal growing methods and new product lines. Her research will address a wide range of options for best practices, plant health and efficient growing systems.
Leanne has a Masters in Horticulture from Clemson University in South Carolina. While there, she worked with Dr. Gregory Reighard on peach tree breeding and conducted annuals trials. Her most recent position was with Moore Farms Botanical Garden in Lake City, South Carolina, where she advanced from grower to production coordinator. She scheduled, produced and maintained all nursery and greenhouse crops for the garden.
HORT AMERICAS
Kyle Barnett has joined Hort Americas as regional sales manager for the Northeast. Kyle graduated from The Culinary Institute of America and began working in farm-to-table restaurants. While working in the restaurants, he became aware of the difficulty of sourcing high-quality, local ingredients during the winter. Kyle decided to change his career path and took a position at a local aquaponics facility. In 2014, Kyle moved to Pennsylvania to take a greenhouse associate position with BrightFarms Inc. He eventually became the company’s key account manager.
SYNGENTA
Syngenta launched a new online resource for greenhouse and nursery growers containing rotation and agronomic programs for a variety of crops. The programs were developed for common and problematic insects and diseases, including downy mildew, Botrytis and powdery mildew, as well as aphids, whiteflies and thrips. To view, save or download the predeveloped programs, visit
GreenCastOnline.com/Solutions.
VILLAGE NURSERIES WHOLESALE, LLC
Village Nurseries, a specialty grower for landscape professionals, announced Rick Rehm has been named the company’s new chief financial officer, replacing Wayne Johnson, who’s retiring after 16 years of service with the company.
Rick has more than 27 years of wholesale nursery industry experience, most recently at Bank of the West (BOTW) as vice president and senior relationship manager, where, for the past 10 years, he was in charge of the Village Nurseries account based out of Corona, California As a specialist commercial lending officer, he concentrated on middle market nursery/greenhouse financing, analyzing pertinent financial and credit information to ensure compliance with credit quality standards and regulatory requirements.
Prior to working at BOTW, Rick worked for Bordier’s Nursery in Irvine as their vice president of finance and CFO, where he directly supervised accounting, information, technology, credit purchasing, human resources and payroll departments.