New association formed to unite California nursery industry

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Today members of California’s nursery industry announced the formation of a new organization to be known as the Plant California Alliance. The new organization has been formed to unify two organizations — the California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers and the Nursery Growers Association.

"Plant California Alliance was created to advocate for nurseries, horticulture and the California lifestyle," said Clayton Smith, who will serve as the organization’s first chairman of the board. "With the creation of this new entity we are uniting California’s nursery industry into one association of professionals who bring plants and landscape supplies to California and the rest of the world.

"The Plant California Alliance exists to promote and protect California’s nursery industry, because we believe a strong, viable nursery industry is critical to life in California," Smith said.

Members of the Plant California Alliance include farmers, growers, urban agriculturists, wholesalers, retail garden centers, landscape and garden suppliers, manufacturers, horticulturists, educators, researchers and plant experts who share a common goal to raise awareness about the value nurseries and landscaping bring to California.

“The Plant California Alliance plans to work hand-in-hand with California legislators, regulators and consumers because we want Californians to recognize that plants are an important part of our agriculture community,” continued Smith. “Not only are plants vital to California’s ecosystem, but they support the health and well-being of Californians and are essential to our state’s way of life.  Most importantly, plants bring joy–not just to the 77 percent of us who garden—but to everyone who enjoys beauty in their homes and surroundings.”

The Plant California Alliance is in the process of creating a new website and social media channels to communicate their message to the public and to support education, research and career development within California’s nursery industry.

In the meantime, the websites at www.cangc.org and www.nurserygrowers.org will continue to operate.

Members of the Board of Directors who will provide oversight for the Plant California Alliance are listed below. Industry members are encouraged to contact any of these individuals to learn more about the new association. For information about membership or other questions, please contact Agriculture Association Management Services, Inc. at (916) 448-3900.