No matter when Ramadan falls on the calendar, it is one of the busiest times for date industry. Typically, preparations for the holiday require a 10-week pipeline in order to ramp up for the increase in demand. This year, however, that timeline coincided with Christmas, New Year’s and other holidays. For date shippers, that created an especially busy period from the end of 2022 well into 2023. “For us it feels very rushed,” said Mark Tadros of Aziz Farms. “Ramadan is much closer this year and our sales got off to a very slow start. All of a sudden the market woke up and woke up fast.

WF&FSA, the Wholesale Florist and Florist Supplier Association, will bring its Floral Distribution Conference (FDC) once again to the Doral in Miami March 6-8, 2023. This event is expected to gather more than 700 industry professionals, ranging from wholesalers to growers to hard good suppliers and breeders, for three full days of education, networking, and tabletops displays of the greatest floral products this industry has to offer.

March 8 is International Women’s Day when people around the world show appreciation for the strong women in their lives. They do this in various ways, but most commonly with a gift of flowers.

International Women’s Day is a global celebration of women’s social, economic, cultural, and political achievements. Each year’s theme is different; for 2023, it’s #EmbraceEquity.

1-800-Flowers.com has collaborated with plant influencer and educator, Christopher Griffin, also known as Plant Kween, to provide customers with fresh green offerings and engaging resources that will help and inspire them along their plant parenting journey. Available now for a limited time, the Plant Kween for 1-800-Flowers.com collection is a lush assortment of on-trend plants that has been specially curated by Christopher.

Consalo Family Farms has been in the farming industry since the 1920s and four generations of the Consalo family have kept the company thriving and successful. That includes attending events like the Southeast Produce Council’s Southern Exposure show.

ASHEVILLE, NC — The National Watermelon Association kicked off its 108th annual convention, here, on Feb. 22 with an opening reception at the historic Omni Grove Park Inn, overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains in western North Carolina. This year’s convention is notable for the retirement of longtime Executive Director Bob Morrissey and National Watermelon Queen Coordinator Eleanore Bullock, and the welcoming of new Executive Director George Szczepanski and National Watermelon Queen Coordinator Kerri Wiggins.