WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) announces that President Bush signed H.R. 1268, the "Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act," which provides funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This bill also contains the "Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2005," which would provide cap exemptions for service sector guest workers who participated in the H-2B visa program in any of the last three years.
"This legislation was made possible by the tireless grass roots efforts of ANLA members and other service sector employers," said John Meredith, ANLA's director of legislative relations. According to Meredith, "this legislation rewards those firms relying on the only legal channel to obtain seasonal help." The passage of the H-2B legislation means that employers will have access to a foreign labor "safety net" despite the 66,000 worker cap being hit in January of 2005. Employers depend on these seasonal workers to make up shortfalls in the domestic workforce.
Chick here for more information or visit Save Small Business- www.savesmallbusiness.org

MLNA GREEN LEADER Loma Vista accepts the challenge

Ottawa, Kansas - This spring, Loma Vista Nursery launches a company wide “green initiative” with the goal of implementing more sustainable business practices. Spear heading their “green initiative” is Loma Vista Nursery’s Pot Return Program. This program encourages local customers to recycle their empty plastic container pots by returning them to Loma Vista in one of two ways. Loma Vista has set up collection bins at their Landscape Distribution Center in Olathe, KS for customers to drop off empty container pots during normal hours of operation.

In addition to the drop off location, Loma Vista Nursery offers a collection service to select local customers. To date, the participating businesses include Kokopelli Nursery, Curby’s Lawn and Garden, and Northstar Garden Center.

The majority of containers collected will be reused. Those that aren’t will be recycled. Loma Vista has joined forces with a company that collects their unusable container pots and their used greenhouse plastic and turns it into usable plastic for various items.

Loma Vista’s commitment doesn’t end at plastics. They have put into practice a company wide recycling program that includes recycling of paper products, cardboard, and aluminum in addition to plastics.

Loma Vista Nursery is a wholesale nursery specializing in high quality, cold hardy plant material. They produce containerized plants and field grown trees for retailers, wholesale distributors, and landscapers across the Midwest.
Founded in 1991 by Mark Clear, Loma Vista Nursery is family owned and operated. Their 310 acre container production nursery is located in Ottawa, Kansas, just 40 minutes south of Kansas City. They have over 650 acres of in ground tree production just 20 minutes west of the container nursery in Baldwin City and Willow Springs, Kansas. Loma Vista Nursery also maintains a full service Landscape Distribution Center in Olathe, Kansas, to meet the needs of their local customers.

Bailey Nurseries, Welcomes MLNA Past President As New Sales Representative

St. Paul, Minn. (Spring 2008) Bailey Nurseries welcomes Bill Harbstreet as sales representative for AK, KS, MO, Southern IL, and the Quad Cities area. Bill comes to us with over 20 years of experience in the nursery industry. Bill’s experience includes retail sales, wholesale purchasing and operations/senior management. Bill has been very active in the Missouri Landscape and Nursery Association, serving on the board as well as President n 2004. We are excited at the experience Bill brings to Bailey’s. Bill can be reached at: Office 660-638-4514, Fax 660-638-4515, Cell 816-813-6661.

Bailey Nurseries is a family-owned wholesale nursery with home offices in St. Paul, Minnesota. It is among the top wholesale nurseries in the United States and provides industry members throughout the U.S. and Canada with a full line of bareroot and container-grown plants from Bailey’s properties in Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington.

For more information on Bailey Nurseries, log on to our web sites at: http://www.baileynurseries.com/, http://www.endlesssummerblooms.com/, http://www.easyeleganceroses.com/ and http://www.newgrowthmarketing.com/

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