| Get Connected! |
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Plant People are People People Too! |
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 I was recently asked a question I had not been asked in a number of years: Are plant people, people people, too? Years ago, the question was often asked in management meetings, as various managers debated whether a certain employee was the type who would rather spend his days working with plants or with other employees. Little compromising is required when working with plants, and occasionally a grower finds the solitary hours of working in a greenhouse quite satisfying. Alternatively, many employees are great at interacting with others, and they become excellent candidates for working at retail or in team assignments.
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| AIB Symposium and Awards Program |
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 It's "Homecoming" for this year's 7th Annual America in Bloom Symposium and Awards Program, October 2-4. Celebrate in AIB's hometown of Columbus, Ohio, where you'll be treated to small-town hospitality and big-city culture.
Sessions and learning tours will provide easy-to-implement take-home ideas that relate to the eight AIB criteria (floral displays, landscaped areas, turf and groundcover areas, urban forestry, environmental awareness, tidiness, heritage preservation, and community involvement).
Begin planting pride in your community by attending this year's symposium!
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| Vermilion, Ohio - An AIB Sucess Story |
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| By Ed Rhinehart, AIB Judge
In 2003 the community of Vermilion, Ohio became engaged with America in Bloom and today the community is still blossoming - literally. The hanging baskets that adorn the streets in the historic district, began as a small donation-based program, has expanded to 250 large baskets and includes flower boxes along the main bridge (soon to be wired for lighting!).
In addition to the expansion of the hanging basket program, community volunteers cleaned, replanted, and mulched gardens. Additional trash receptacles were added and benches were placed in the parks.
The first AIB symposium we attended (2003) gave us the opportunity to talk with other cities and gather ideas for starting gardens, increasing community involvement, and improving our environment.
The city today has jumped leaps and bounds as a result of the involvement with America in Bloom. Through a grant, the city will be completing a new sidewalk and streetscape project for the historic district. A million dollar railroad quiet zone grant will silence the trains as they pass through the city and all new signage has been placed throughout the area with a historic logo. What are you waiting for? Get your community involved with America in Bloom today.
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Fast Food, Fast Flowers |
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By Evelyn Alemani, AIB Judge and Board Member
 A growling stomach might make us want to turn into the driveway of the next fast food place, but in New Bedford, Massachusetts, it's not the smell of french fries that's bringing them in, but the sight of flowers. The McDonald's restaurant on the corner of County and Elm Sreets. is the best landscaped McDonald's I have ever seen. If the food is as good as the landscaping, I'd probably want to eat every meal there!
The site is a welcoming oasis. Turf was perfect, trees and shrubs exquisitely pruned, and floral displays in primary colors surrounded the building and made visitors want to pull off the highway to view them up close. Congratulations to the store owner/manager for their vision and efforts. They should be held up as the model to other businesses of all kinds everywhere in the country.
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| Money Does Grow on Trees |
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By Pepper Provenzano, Sustainable Land Development Today
Six practical reasons illustrate how and why trees do actually bare green fruit.
The old joke among environmentalists is that developers bulldoze the trees and then name the streets after them. But today's leaders in developing planned communities are well aware of the value of green planning, sustainability, and green marketing.
For those who aren't, here is a primer: Trees are not only a major indicator species of a healthy community, dollar for dollar, there is no better investment in the local environment. Neither controversial nor political, trees bring a win-win to homeowners and businesses alike.
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| Generate Donations for AIB Just by Searching Online! |
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 What if America in Bloom earned a penny every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can! GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up! GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 37 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's, and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause. Just go to www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter America in Bloom as the charity you want to support. And, be sure to spread the word! Start searching! |
| Planting Pride Magazine |
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 A great resource for veteran and newly involved AIB communities is Planting Pride magazine.
Meister Media Worldwide prints the publication and donates thousands of copies to AIB so we can use them in our efforts to connect people with plants. In addition to Meister Media Worldwide, Benary and BloomMaster also support the publication.
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| Have a Story to Share? |
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We would love to hear from you! Tell us about AIB activities in your community, or let us know about a community you have visited that should get involved with AIB. E-mail your story to Laura Kunkle, LKunkle@ofa.org. | |
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September 15, 2008
