Republican leadership in the House of Representatives is mounting a strong effort to force a floor vote on the "SAVE" Act (H.R. 4088). SAF has called the passage of the SAVE Act an "act of war" against agriculture. SAF is urging members to e-mail or call your Representative to urge that he or she not sign the "Discharge Petition" to bring the SAVE Act to the floor.

Silicon was a hot topic among growers in attendance at SAF's 24th annual conference on Pest and Disease Management in Ornamentals in Atlanta, held late in February.

Flowers and culture became the centerpiece of a celebration to commemorate International Women's Day. The Ohio-based Great Lakes Consortium and an Ohio florist teamed up to produce the 7th annual multicultural celebration that featured a silent auction, design contest for vocational school students, ethnic floral show, networking, and more.

A 30-year career in the floral industry that began by selling flowers out of a tiny MGB was celebrated during last week's WF&FSA Convention, when Peter Ullrich was named the 2008 WF&FSA Leland T. Kintzele (LTK) Distinguished Service Award recipient, WF&FSA's highest honor.

It's good to be considered a "favorite" anything, but to be labeled "favorite florist" and talked about in a major Metropolitan newspaper, well, that's another story. That's the case for five florists named the "FiveFaves: Places to Get Flowers" by The Seattle Times.

A New Jersey florist is all set to do double duty, quite literally, as he prepares to temporarily hand the reins of his shop to his staff before leaving to serve the country in Iraq this summer.

The Joseph Shinoda Memorial Scholarship Foundation, named for the late president of San Lorenzo Nursery in Oakland, Calif., has announced a new scholarship for floral design students.

Despite anti-discrimination and sexual harassment laws, off-color comments in the workplace aren't a thing of the past; in fact, they're more common now than ever, according to a recent survey.

More and more, today's brides- and grooms-to-be in the United States are looking for ways to incorporate their heritage into their weddings — and, not only can florists help, they can capitalize on this market with some insight into each culture.

Brides- and grooms-to-be in Mexico may re-think taking action on the cold feet they get at the altar. A proposed law would make a betrothed who skips out on the wedding pony up some cash to the one they left behind.

SAF members who've had the chance to attend one of our conventions at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla., know why our meetings there are always among the best-attended SAF events. 

• "Keys to Communication" by SAF's PFCI featuring Sharon McGukin, AAF, AIFD, PFCI: July 7, 2-3 p.m. in Chicago, in conjunction with the AIFD National Symposium.
• SAF Palm Beach 2008: Sept. 17-20, 2008, at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla.

 On Feb. 20, E-Brief editors reported that Real Simple magazine ran an article giving readers advice how to best arrange cut flowers and elongate their vase life.

Planning a wedding can be a stressful time for your customers. Help your brides-to-be plan their flower allowance by downloading the Wedding Flower Calculator from SAF's Web site. This easy-to-use tool allows customers to calculate their wedding budget. Just download the calculator, and enter your shop's information and flower prices. They can enter what they need and it will calculate approximately how much they can expect to spend. (Requires Microsoft Word and Excel.)

Don't forget about the March 2008 coupon located at the back of the 2007-2008 Resource Guide. Order SAF'S "Relax: We Make All The Arrangements" wedding postcard and receive the corresponding poster absolutely free!

Members are talking about offering floral classes in shops and using Web sites to increase business.

An overwhelming 61 percent of respondents to last week's e-poll only allow employees to wear earrings on earlobes while on the job.

Of the 35 percent of florists who reported Easter sales increases in 2007 over 2006, about 40 percent were in the $1 million and above annual sales category. Sales increases at mid-sized shops were less likely; however, more than a third of the smaller shops, defined as those with less than $300,000 in annual sales, also reported increases.