MINNEAPOLIS — Fresh flowers and timeless art came together, here, at the 31st annual Art in Bloom event held at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts May 1-4. Presented by Friends of the Institute, over 150 floral arrangements, created by professionals and amateurs to interpret and complement pieces of visual art from the MIA’s permanent collection, were on display to more than 35,000 visitors (the highest attendance to date) — all longing for a breath of spring.

Recently, publicly traded Safeway Stores put itself up for sale and found a suitor. Many looked at the sale and opined that the mega-supermarket format has passed it prime, with the firm being worth more to investors if it is sold and broken into pieces than if it continues to operate as one of the nation’s largest supermarket chains.

John Moore, branding expert and former Starbucks marketing manager and Whole Foods director of marketing, will be the keynote speaker at the International Floriculture Expo on June 12, according to a news release from the show organizers, Diversified Communications. Moore’s presentation, “Espresso Shots of Business Wisdom,” will provide industry insights that all floral professionals can apply to their floral businesses.

Congratulations — you did it. The spring holidays have passed and you are still alive. The reports coming in from around the country show that April and May were strong floral sales months, and hopefully that will reverse the flat sales trend from the first quarter of 2014.

So now that we are into June, what happens next?

The Western Growers Association board of directors, who descended upon Washington, DC, for the association's board meeting the third week of May, left town believing there still remains a window of opportunity for action on immigration reform this year.

“There are many new things going on at Trucco,” said Nick Pacia, vice president of A.J. Trucco Inc., located on the Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx, NY.

“One is our new domestic blueberry program. We are excited to announce that this summer we are launching this program for the first time,” he continued. “We currently have a strong Chilean blueberry program, and we are now happy to offer our customers an additional supply of blueberries during June. Our plans also include an expansion of our domestic program so that we can continue to lengthen our blueberry season.”