SNA Ceases Operation
Following the announcement of canceling the SNA Conference scheduled for February, the Southern Nursery Association has announced that in a unanimous vote the board of directors has made the difficult decision to cease operation of the 121-year-old organization. Since the conference is the main source of income and with declining membership, the board determined that the association cannot be sustained.
Founded in 1899, the SNA, a non-profit association representing the horticulture industry in the Southeastern U.S., accomplished many achievements in fulfilling its mission “to unite and advance the horticulture industry through educational, research and marketing efforts.”
The SNA produced one of the industry’s largest trade shows from 1950 to 2009, the SNA Research Conference from 1955 to 2020, and the SNA Plant Conference from 1991 to 2020. In addition, the association hosted a State Officer’s Conference to encourage the exchange of information and learn about various issues affecting the industry throughout the region. Through a collaborative effort with industry researchers, the SNA produced The Best Management Practices (BMP) Guide, designed to help growers identify and promote exceptional management practices, methods and procedures.
The SNA also published the Proceedings of the SNA Research Conference and featured more than 3,000 titles comprised of more than 12,500 pages on the SNA website. Hundreds of topics in 13 categories were presented at the conference and the proceedings have been published online, in an easy-to-use format, as an industry service. This exhaustive library will be transferred to the Horticultural Research Institute website (www.hriresearch.org) for future reference.
In an effort to preserve the 121-year legacy of the SNA, two existing Horticultural Research Institute (HRI) Funds (the SNA Fund and the SNA Golf Classic Fund) will be combined (totaling approximately $300,000) and renamed the Southern Nursery Association Legacy Fund. SNA members are encouraged to continue to donate to this important fund (https://secure.givelively.org/donate/horticultural-research-institute-endowment-fund-inc/sna-1899-campaign) that awards funding for horticultural research in the Southeast region of the U.S.
Past SNA Executive Vice Presidents Danny Summers (1989-2006) and Karen Summers (2012-2020) have volunteered to maintain the sna.org website to house SNA’s rich history. Additionally, an SNA Facebook page will be maintained to create a community for past SNA members.
The Sidney B. Meadows Scholarship Endowment Fund, created by SNA in 1989, will not be impacted by this move. The Fund is a non-profit charitable corporation fully independent of the SNA and will continue its efforts to award academic scholarships to horticulture students throughout the Southeastern U.S.
To assist in the effort of preserving the legacy of SNA, AmericanHort is offering an introductory membership to current SNA members through June 30, 2021. SNA members, who are not already AmericanHort members, can join at the Basic Level at a special rate of $189 for the first year.
The creation of an SNA member group, based on the level of interest, inside AmericanHort, will help retain the identity and community of SNA. In the coming weeks, SNA will be exploring other avenues for AmericanHort to help preserve some of SNA’s programs. Final details of the effort to preserve the legacy of SNA will be forthcoming in the weeks ahead.
For more information on SNA, contact the organization at 678.809.9992 or mail@sna.org. You can also visit the SNA website at www.sna.org.