A lot to be grateful for
It is with sincere gratitude that we say a massive thank you to Dan Austin for the many years he has contributed to Hort Journal Australia as writer on behalf of the International Plant Propagators Society. Dan’s horticultural knowledge along with his experience both as a lecturer with TAFESA and his vast experience working overseas brought interest to his articles and we have all benefited from that. I am sure Dan is probably unaware of the impact he has had on all our lives and in particular the inspiration he has provided for young people starting out in the industry. I remember fondly a couple of lecturers that I had when studying horticulture that had a profound impact on me due to their passion for working in horticulture. Students would be lucky to have Dan as a lecturer because his interest and love of horticulture is genuine.
If you read Dan’s book ‘Off the Garden Path – Green Wonders of the World’ you will understand Dan’s keen interest in the natural world and exploring what different cultures have to offer. We will be forever grateful for his contribution to the magazine, and we wish Dan and his wife Auria all the very best as they excitedly await the arrival of their second child.
On another note, as we move further into 2024 events are starting to occur. We cover this month the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show which was a resounding success, and as I write this the Collectors Plant Fair took place in Sydney over the weekend, and from all accounts it too was a great success. Perth Garden Festival is held early May, and Therapeutic Horticulture Australia is hosting their conference in Noosa in May.
We will be attending the International Plant Propagators Society Conference in Ballina. The state of Queensland will be hosting both the Queensland Garden Expo in Nambour early in July, and Nursery & Garden Industry Queensland will host Green Expo in July at the Gold Coast Turf Club and Event Centre.
We have an events page on our website so you can look online to find out more. If your organisation or state is hosting an event, Hort Journal is happy to place your event on our event calendar so everyone will be able to look there first to decide what they are able to attend, or to see when is a suitable time to host an event so that they don’t clash with other events.
As you can see there are a lot of events choose from and not everyone can attend every event, so choose what event suits you or your team best. It is such a great way to keep up with industry news as well as building on your professional growth. There is something to be learnt at every event particularly when excellent speakers are booked in. A lot of work goes into organising a conference and we should all be grateful to those who dedicate their time to ensure a successful event – it’s hard work and stressful!
We hope to see you at some of these events, as it’s always a bonus to see people face to face.
Enjoy the read.
Karen Smith and your Hort Journal team