Gerry Hionis, left, and Tim Hionis, right, finally met NJ agricultural legend Art Brown, Jr. at the June 2010 Eastern Produce Council dinner meeting. Art Brown, Jr. was New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture from 1982-2001. Brown served under, four Governors and kept the New Jersey agriculture industry vital and thriving for almost 20 years. With nursery and greenhouse production topping the list of New Jersey's agricultural products under Brown, the state ranked third in the Northeast in agricultural production and annually ranked in the top 10 nationally in the production of a number of fruits and vegetables. Brown also developed the award-winning Jersey Fresh marketing and promotion program, which has become the model that many states are still trying to emulate. Brown received the National Future Farmers of America's highest honor, the Honorary American Farmer Degree; the Southern New Jersey Development Council's Statesman Award; and the Golden Flower Award from the New Jersey State Florists Association and the New Jersey Plant and Flower Growers Association; and the New Jersey Education Association's 1996 Leadership Award. He was named the 1995 Horseman of the Year by the New Jersey Horse Council and he received the President's Award from the US Harness Writers Association in 1996. In 2001 he was named Horseperson of the Year by the New Jersey Equine Advisory Board. In 2000, Brown received the New Jersey Agricultural Society's Gold Medallion Award for service to the industry, Distinguished Service Awards from both the Essex County and Cape May County Boards of Agriculture, and the New Jersey Farm Bureau's Distinguished Service to New Jersey Agriculture Award.

Herb Sudzin, a longtime radio personality for WRSU-FM in New Brunswick, stopped by our family's Coddington Road location, in late March 2010, for a behind the scenes (spring bulb) tour of our greenhouses. Sudzin's show, "Sudzin Country," plays country music classics and the ones that will be classics, bluegrass and Western favorites. Herb Sudzin established Sudzin Country in 1977 as an alternative to mainstream country radio. With more variety to listen to, Sudzin Country has become a favorite in the New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania areas, where it is heard every weekend morning on 88.7 FM. Pictured from left to right are: Angie Hionis, Gerry Hionis, Herb Sudzin and Tim Hionis.

New Jersey's 51st Governor Donald T. DiFrancesco, center, stopped by our booth during the 8th Annual New Jersey Flower and Garden Show in Edison. The New Jersey Flower Show attracts over 25,000 flower and garden enthusiasts annually, highlighting fabulous display gardens, a Standard Flower Show presented by the Garden Club of New Jersey, the Garden Marketplace, top-quality seminars and so much more! Pictured from left to right is: Tim Hionis, Governor DiFrancesco and Gerry Hionis.

On February 9, 2010 we were invited to attend the 95th NJ State Agriculture Convention in East Brunswick. Major issues in New Jersey agriculture were discussed. Pictured from left to right are: Pete Hionis, Spiro Hionis, New Jersey Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Al Murray, Gerry Hionis and Tim Hionis.

New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott, center, stopped by our booth on Saturday, January 30 during the 16th Annual Home and Landscape Show at National Guard Armory in Morristown. Pictured from left to right is: Gerry Hionis, Bart Scott and Tim Hionis.

New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher, center, stopped by our booth to say hello at the New Jersey Nursery and Landscape Association's (NJNLA) Annual Trade Show and Conference. The show was held January 13-14, 2010 at the Garden State Convention Center in Somerset. It provides our industry with the premier, private marketplace for finding "Jersey Grown" plants and nursery stock, landscape and garden items, heavy and light duty equipment, tools, and hundreds of other allied industry products. Founded in 1915, the NJNLA is a non-profit trade organization representing landscape professionals, landscape designers and retail garden centers as well as wholesale production nurseries. Pictured from left to right is: Tim Hionis, Secretary Fisher and Gerry Hionis.

Troy Josuha, director, USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, New Jersey Field office, stopped by our booth to discuss the new “Census of Horticulture” at the New Jersey Nursery and Landscape Association's (NJNLA) Annual Trade Show and Conference. Taken once every 10 years, this census provides detailed information on horticultural production and sales across the United States. The results of the census are used by industry, government, acedemia and others, aiding in the development of sound programs and policies, research, and market analysis and business planning. The show was held January 13-14, 2010 at the Garden State Convention Center in Somerset. It provides our industry with the premier, private marketplace for finding "Jersey Grown" plants and nursery stock, landscape and garden items, heavy and light duty equipment, tools, and hundreds of other allied industry products. Founded in 1915, the NJNLA is a non-profit trade organization representing landscape professionals, landscape designers and retail garden centers as well as wholesale production nurseries. Pictured from left to right is: Gerry Hionis, Troy Josuha and Tim Hionis.

New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher on June 10 stopped by our Garden Center, to see how our greenhouse water recycling system works and to see how the early poinsettia planting was going. Sitting on the bench in front is Spiro Hionis and Angie Hionis. In the back row from left to right are: Gerry Hionis, Tim Hionis, New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher, Pete Hionis and Spiro Hionis