Mid-Am Speaker's Design Message Pervades Whole Industry

“Get out and see things, buy magazines, watch HGTV, invest in yourself so you don’t dry out,” Professor Greg Pierceall said to a room full of landscape designers and architects at the 35^th annual Mid-American Horticultural Trade Show, which took place at Chicago's McCormick Place Lakeside Center last week. His talk on “Design Trends” was more about inspiration for designers than it was about what’s new in plants and materials.

“You have to have more coming in than you have going out,” he said.

This lesson was directed to designers, but should resonate with any green industry professional. “Our future is about being creative problem solvers and great thinkers,” said Pierceall, professor of urban ecosystem design at the University of Illinois. “If you’re not nurturing yourself, how are you going to nurture your client?”

Luckily, he was somewhat preaching to the choir – as attendees to Mid-Am and its accompanying educational sessions visited the show to seek new products and services, solidify supplier relationships and brush up on technical and management topics.

More than 600 exhibitors displayed their products and services and show organizers were pleased with the attendance, which they expected to top 12,000, although a final count is not yet available. “I believe Thursday was our busiest day – and probably even our busiest Thursday ever,” says Mid-Am Communications Manager Nancy Molenda. “We were very pleased and I think the exhibitors were pleased as well.”

More than 800 participants were pre-registered to attend the Midwinter Conference education sessions, which Pierceall’s talk was a part of, and attendance likely topped 1,000 considering on-site registration. In addition to management-focused topics like immigration, safety and hiring, landscape services providers also brushed up on retaining wall installation, plant selection and green roof best practices.

“The world is changing around us,” Pierceall said. “You must plug yourself in to the world your clients live in.”