Newman Elected To CNLA Board

Darryl Newman of Planters’ Choice Nursery in Newtown was recently elected to serve on the board of the Botsford-based Connecticut Nursery & Landscape Association (CNLA).

In related news, Kristen VanCott of Planters’ Choice Nursery was among just 38 green industry persons who recently passed one of the toughest courses in horticulture in Connecticut to be certified as “Connecticut Accredited Nursery Professionals” (CANP).

The rigorous 13-week course is held every fall for tradespeople employed by garden centers, landscapers, nurseries, and greenhouses in the state; 99 persons who took the course this year, only 38 passed the exam.

Taught by instructors of the University of Connecticut and Naugatuck Valley Community College, the CANP course covers must-know horticultural studies such as plant identification, botany, soils, plant nutrition, plant diseases, insects, weeds, lawns, landscaping, safety, worker protection, etc.

The course is open only to the green trade. Persons passing the CANP regimen are considered among the top professionals among the 48,000 persons who work daily in Connecticut’s green industry, and are entitled to use the certification letters “CANP” after their name.

Since the accreditation program started by the Connecticut Nursery & Landscape Association in 1981, more than 800 have received certification. Connecticut’s green industry has more than 3,000 independently owned companies, operating in every town of the state, with $1 billion-plus in annual sales.

CNLA is the state trade association that represents Connecticut’s nurseries, garden centers, landscapers, nursery and perennial growers, and landscape designers. For more information, www.FlowersPlantsInCT.com.