Hort Journal welcomes new subscribers

By Karen Smith

If you haven’t had a chance to look at our website lately, we have made a few changes. The opportunity to receive a digital version of Hort Journal is available. Interestingly, we have a steady stream of new subscribers each week and yet 82% still prefer the printed copy. Who said print media was dead? I personally receive a few online newsletters or eblasts and if you receive a lot of emails on any one day, it is very easy for them to disappear off your screen only to be forgotten about. Or worse they get hijacked into spam. Whereas with a printed magazine, I can relate to people thinking “I’ll put that magazine aside and during my lunch or after dinner I will find a comfy spot, grab a cuppa and quietly read it.”

Thanks, and welcome to all our new subscribers, it is very reassuring to know that we are doing our job right!

Australia began the year on the back foot this year with another round of natural disasters. Many nurseries, along with many other businesses, have seen the worst of it. If you have been affected and require assistance, go to www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/natural-disaster or contact your state bodies. We wish you well and hope the recovery is speedy.

We celebrated Eucalyptus Day during March. The National Eucalypt Day has been running since 2017 with the aim of raising awareness of Eucalypts and to celebrate their importance. The program aims to promote awareness through education, research and the conservation objectives of Eucalypt Australia. There will be a series of articles and podcasts on eucalypts in Hort Journal magazine and on our website.

As restrictions ease and borders open, events both nationally and internationally are starting to be locked in to people calendars. We have conferences coming up such as the International Plant Propagators being held in Leura, NSW, plant fairs and expos.

The International Floriade Expo 2022 begins this month and runs through until October. It is held once every ten years. The host city is Almere, the youngest city in the Netherlands and less than 30km from Amsterdam. The theme is Growing Green Cities. I went to this expo in 2012 and it was very worthwhile. As companies from all over the world come together to exhibit, it is like taking a trip around the world within Floriade. There is so much to see. It showcases how to make cities more enjoyable and liveable, there is lots of innovation mixed with gardens and attractions, playgrounds and more. I would suggest you allow plenty of time to see everything due to the size of the event. You may want to allow a few days. Their website is excellent and you could probably plan your trip from it.

Once again, we wish those affected by natural disasters all the very best. We hope to see some of you in Leura. If you are going to be there, come and say hello. It will be so nice to see familiar faces, and hopefully some new ones, in person.

Karen Smith and your Hort Journal Team