After an extended winter and a cold, wet spring, I thought summer would never get here. Finally, it has arrived. One thing I love about the summer months is the exciting flower displays many perennials provide.

Echinacea Amazing Grace - Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.	Rudbeckia Little Goldstar - Walters Gardens, Inc.

Items like the echinacea and rudbeckia shown above have become staples in the landscape. There are several more perennials like achillea, coreopsis, gaillardia, garden phlox, hibiscus, leucanthemum and monarda, to name a few, that absolutely brighten summer landscapes. What are some of your favorites? I hope you'll have the time to relax and enjoy the summer before it quickly passes by. 

This weekend is Cultivate'19 in Columbus, Ohio. Next month, the Farwest Show will be held in Portland, Oregon. These are very large trade events with hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of attendees held in very massive convention facilities. Getting through these venues can be challenging enough, but how can you maximize your time and get the most out of large trade events?

I'm sure all of us have slightly differing objectives: what we want to learn, things we'd like to purchase and people we'd like to network with. Regardless, one of the keys to succeeding at trade events is to have a game plan before even arriving at the event. You'll need to have some flexibility, but at least identify what you'd like to achieve and formulate a plan as to how to fulfill your objectives. Determine your primary objectives, as well as a listing of secondary priorities.

Here are some ideas to help you maximize your time and opportunities these events offer.

Before you arrive, review the educational sessions and determine which ones you must attend and which ones you'd like to attend. That's right—prioritize them in order of need or value to you and your organization.

Cultivate'19 Solutions Marketplace Floor Plan

The same priority system can be done with the trade show. Obtain a map of the tradeshow floor and a listing of the exhibitors. Determine who you must visit and who you'd like to visit. Then, highlight them on the map or make a list with the exhibitors and booth number. Try to coordinate your visits by tradeshow floor aisles or proximity to one another. Here are some other helpful tips:

• Wear comfortable shoes, as you'll likely be on your feet a lot.
• Bring a long-sleeved shirt or sweatshirt to the educational sessions, in case the air conditioning is keeping the rooms too cold.
• Bring lots of business cards. You can meet an important contact anywhere—like the elevator, hotel lobby, restaurants and even at the bar. You never know, so be prepared.
• There'll be tons of literature. Only pick up or accept literature that you'll need and intend to use. Picking up every piece of literature isn't necessary and can be heavy to lug around for several hours. Much of the information is available on the exhibitors' websites or perhaps, they can email it to you.
• Don't be intimidated or afraid of approaching the salespeople working the booths at the tradeshow. Introduce yourself, and when someone approaches you, compliment their booth or company's product(s). Then ask specific questions such as, "How does your product work?" or "What zones is this perennial hardy in?"
• If you don't already have a contact with the company you have an interest in, be sure to get a business card. It's not enough to only give someone your contact information.
• Follow up. About a week after the tradeshow, follow up with the companies you intend to work with. Following up is key to successfully maximizing your new contacts.

You'll quickly learn that there are likely conflicts keeping you from doing everything you'd like to do. If you're by yourself, you'll have to put some thought into how to maximize your time. If you're attending with others from your company, divide and conquer. Hit the priority sessions or exhibitors first. Once you've accomplished that list, move on to the secondary priorities. If you completed both of your priority lists, then you're free to walk the tradeshow floor or attend more educational sessions at your leisure. 

To help you get the most out of Cultivate'19, consider getting the official Cultivate'19 app at the App Store or Google Play. The app can be a valuable tool to help you plan your time or for getting around the venue.

With the Cultivate'19 app, you can map out the exhibitors you'd like to visit, create daily agendas of meetings and educational sessions, and much more. I've already downloaded the app on my phone. This will be my first time using an app at a trade event. I'll let you know how it goes. 

The 16th annual Michigan Garden Plant Tour is being held from July 29 to August 9, 2019. This is a coordinated event between Michigan State University and several leading young plant and ornamental producers in Michigan. The plant tour allows growers and industry professionals to observe many new and existing plant selections and how they perform in different outdoor settings.

Display gardens at Walters Gardens

This year, the Garden Plant Tour sites include Four Star Greenhouses, Mast Young Plants, MSU Trial Gardens, Raker-Roberta's Young Plants and Walters Gardens, Inc. You can elect to visit one of the sites or all of them—the choice is yours. Several of the sites will be hosting special events or customer appreciation days; check the company links on the 2019 Michigan Garden Plant Tour website for these events or by clicking the company names listed above. It's always best to call ahead rather than just showing up. The Garden Plant Tour is definitely economically priced—it's FREE!

Click here for more information on the 2019 Michigan Garden Plant Tour.

Last August, I mentioned an energy saving additive for hydronic HVAC boiler systems called EndoGreen. If you don't recall, EndoGreen is a thermally stable surfactant which improves the water's ability to transfer heat, thus allowing the system to hit temperature set points more effectively. It was estimated at the time that users could obtain a cost savings between 11 and 20%.

At that time, case studies were open for anyone interested in participating to see how well EndoGreen would work in their systems. Several subscribers participated in the case study. I believe the case study is still going on, but I reached out to Pace 49 and asked for preliminary results. Here are the results as they stand today.

  As you can see, some of the case studies were only conducted for a few months, but the savings realized by participants at this point have been significant. Pace 49 asked me to pass on a brief message: "Thank you to all who participated in our case studies thus far. We are thrilled by EndoGreen’s performance."

If you have a boiler system and are interested in increasing heat transfer efficiency and reducing heating and energy costs, lowering energy consumption, decreasing carbon emissions and footprint, and cutting carbon tax payments, I encourage you to look into EndoGreen.

Click here to learn more about EndoGreen and to review a few of the previous case studies.

Hot off the presses—unless you download a digital copy, then I suppose it's fresh off the internet. Regardless, Eason Horticultural Resources (EHR) just released their "Hot New Perennials for 2020" booklet.

In their 11th edition of this great resource, EHR assembled an impressive collection of promising up-and-comers (many I haven't seen myself). This new booklet containing future perennial best-sellers and eclectic novelty perennials can be downloaded for FREE. Click here to download your copy.