Celebrating 15 years of Forty under 40 and innovation with the Class of 2026
Celebrating GPN’s Forty Under 40 Class of 2026. These honorees represent the next generation of horticulture, making meaningful contributions across all areas of the industry and helping it grow stronger, more resilient and more dynamic.
9 minute read
For our 15th anniversary, 40 just wasn’t enough.
This year’s class is so strong, we’re celebrating 41 outstanding honorees, a fitting way to mark this milestone.
The horticulture industry is driven forward by passionate professionals who bring fresh ideas, strong leadership and a commitment to progress. Each year, a new class of emerging leaders demonstrates how innovation, collaboration and dedication continue to shape the future of the horticulture industry.
The celebration this year at Cultivate’26 was one for the books! So many of you showed up to clap and shout for our honorees this year, and as you can see in the photos below, we quickly ran out of chairs to seat the hundreds of people that attended. Thank you all for coming and showing of 2026 honorees how important they are to our industry.
It’s time to introduce GPN’s Forty Under 40 Class of 2026. These honorees represent the next generation of horticulture, making meaningful contributions across all areas of the industry and helping it grow stronger, more resilient and more dynamic.
Congratulations to this year’s award winners.
Alejandra Romero Vargas
Shipping and transplanting manager at Smith Gardens
Ankit Singh
Assistant Extension professor at University of Maine
Anthony Cornacchia
Territory manager at Ball FloraPlant
Ardian Abazi
Location manager and grower at Kurt Weiss Greenhouses
Ashlee Ritschdorff
Art director at Ball Horticultural Co.
Bella Violante
Acclimation and stock lead grower at Walters Gardens
Ben Schuneman
Procurement specialist at Griffin Greenhouse Supplies
Carleton Stuecker
Director of growing propagation at Metrolina Greenhouses
Caroline Phillips
Marketing lead
Carrington Misener
ERP project manager at Midwest Groundcovers
Casey Jones
Production manager at Certified Nurseries
Claire Zuidervliet
Owner and grower at Octoraro Native Plant Nursery
Danielle Ernster
Marketing director at BioTherm
Danielle Rivera
Vice president of greenhouse operations at Goodmark Nurseries
Denée Shelton
Inventory and shipping manager
Fela Lafi
Plant trials manager at Monrovia
Gabriel Negrete
Customer service at Pacific Plug & Liner
Garett Vaisman
Young plants head grower at Lucas Greenhouses
Glenn Qiaolu Hou
CEO at Grower Direct Supply
Gurleen Kaur
Plant breeder at Syngenta
Justin Schulze
Georgia operations manager at Bailey Nurseries
Kaitlyn Sterner
Director of technical support at Jack’s Fertilizers
Katie Axelson
Sales and operations planning manager for Dümmen Orange
Kevin Lawler
Sales representative at EHR
Kevin Meade
Growing area and assistant propagation coach/new plants grower at Monrovia
Kyle Brupbacher
Account manager at Express Seed Co.
Libby Brallier
Biological solutions advisor at BioWorks
Mark Thies
Greenhouse and Nursery manager at Thies Farm & Greenhouses
Michael Alden
Plant health manager at Everde Growers
Michael Wiebe
Technical services manager at Sakata Seed America
Moises Cadenas
General manager at Red Fox Las Mercedes Farm, El Salvador for Dümmen Orange
Pëllumb Berisha
Head grower at Kingsbury Acres Greenhouse
Peyton Edwards
Florida turf and ornamental territory manager at Corteva Agriscience
Rachel Perry
Design manager at Star Roses and Plants
Roberto Cesar Corea Rodriguez
Head propagation grower at Jolly Farmer Products
Rose Daly
Inventory and production coordinator at North Creek Nurseries
Samya Chretien
Sales operations manager at Berger
Sarah Houtsma
Account development representative at Ball Horticultural Co.
Stephanie Goesmann
Head grower of flowering plants at Alexander Hay Greenhouses
Tabitha Samuels Slattery
Perennial grower at Emerald Coast Growers
Yu Ma
Assistant professor and director at The Ohio State University
