The 2024 Farwest Show (21-23 August) will be a place for go-getters. “Go get ideas. Go get knowledge. Go make connections,” show director Allan Niemi said. “Get it all at Farwest and meet the future of the nursery industry.”
That’s particularly true for the Farwest Show seminars, which this year will offer more than 36 hours of instructional time across a variety of essential subject areas. Topics include green marketing, consumer trends, succession planning, pest issues, spray drones, climate change, talent recruitment, landscaping, partner programs and much, much more.
“Our seminar schedule is designed around the green industry professional,” Niemi said. “We’ve made it our mission to help them power up their careers, and even their businesses, with engaging seminars on the cutting edge of thought leadership. They’ll get actionable, game-changing ideas they can take home and put to work immediately.”
Farwest takes place August 21–23, 2024 at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon. Registration is now open. Early Bird rates on expo and seminar passes are available until July 31 at www.FarwestShow.com/Register, good for up to $40 in savings per person.
Educational seminars will take place all three days of the show, featuring various “treks” for different professional areas (Business Trek, Grower Trek, Landscaping Trek, Pest Management Trek). There are sessions suitable for arborists, breeders, business leaders, designers, growers, landscapers, marketers, municipalities, retailers, pest control and more, with an additional focus area on sustainability.
The seminars will be augmented with Solution Center mini-sessions right on the show expo floor during open hours (10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Friday). These will cover marketing to new generations, pruning demonstrations, solar grants, brand programs and more. Between the seminars and Solution Center, there are more than 45 sessions in all.
When learning opportunities wrap up Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, on-site networking gatherings will directly follow. At the NexGen and Women in Horticulture socials (all are welcome at both), professionals can exchange ideas, share what they learned, reflect on the day’s offerings, even talk about something cool they found on the show floor, all while enjoying drinks and light bites.
Those first two days of Farwest will then conclude with a Happy Hour Wednesday at 5 p.m., and the legendary Farwest Pub Crawl on Thursday, starting at 5 p.m. and lasting into the night. Truth be told, there are few gaps in the show schedule for those wanting to squeeze every drop of value.
“Farwest offers nonstop benefit, from your arrival on site until your head hits the pillow,” Niemi said. “The only limit is how much you’re willing to grow.”
The three-day show kicks off with a Farwest Keynote from leadership author, motivational speaker and improv comedian James Robiolotta to jack up the energy and set a positive and uplifting mood. It’s free for all registered Farwest attendees.
Two all-day tours of local nurseries and retail garden centers precede the show, starting at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, August 20. (Both are sold out and have waiting lists.) The show also offers its traditional New Varieties Showcase featuring gorgeous and useful new plant introductions, and New Products Showcase offering clever and problem-solving technologies to help businesses and gardeners.
In all, the show floor will be packed with more than 300 exhibiting companies, including wholesale growers, re-wholesalers, garden centers, landscape designers and service providers, allied service providers and suppliers, and more. An estimated 4,000+ attendees and guests will browse the latest plants, products and services available to horticultural businesses.
“There’s a continued sense of excitement around Farwest,” Niemi said. “Attendees will find more grower booths on the floor than last year’s 50th anniversary edition of the show, or the year before that. We’ve worked hard with partners around the host city to get things ready and bring more excitement back.”
Oregon is a nationwide nursery industry leader, with more than $1.2 billion in sales during the most recent year tallied. It’s the leading state for coniferous evergreens, deciduous shade trees, deciduous flowering trees, bareroot nursery products, B&B nursery products and cut Christmas trees.
The Oregon Association of Nurseries (OAN), based in Wilsonville, represents more than 700 wholesale growers, retailers, landscapers, and suppliers. Oregon’s ornamental horticulture industry is one of the state’s largest agricultural commodities, with annual sales of $1.22 billion. Oregon’s nursery industry is a traded sector; more than 75% of the nursery plants grown in Oregon are shipped out of state. For information, visit www.oan.org or call 503-682-5089.
The Farwest Show is produced by the OAN, a nonprofit organisation that represents and serves the interests of Oregon’s nursery, retail, and greenhouse industry. The show was founded in 1973, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023, and is now poised to help green industry professionals “Meet the Future.” Any revenue realised by the OAN is reinvested into the industry through education, research, marketing support and government relations.
For more information visit www.FarwestShow.com
