How You Can Create a Mutually Beneficial Internship Program
February 20, 2023 
At Loma Vista Nursery in Kansas, interns develop skills in horticulture and beyond. Photo: Loma Vista Nursery
It’s no secret that labor continues to be a challenge in the greenhouse industry. Not only is it difficult to find employees to work on transplant lines and in shipping, but it is also a challenge to find new employees to move through the ranks to become the future leaders of your company.
According to Greenhouse Grower’s State of the Industry report from 2017, most greenhouse operation owners are over age 55 (65%). Some greenhouse owners are preparing succession plans for their children, while others are putting their businesses up for sale or selling to real estate firms where the land is highly valuable.
How can you, as a business owner or manager, prepare yourself for the future? How do you ensure that there’s a pipeline of new talent and passion coming into the business? In a recent e-GRO alert from Michigan State University Floriculture Extension Educator Heidi Lindberg, the answer may be in internships.
“Hosting interns can be time-consuming, but hopefully you can recruit a bright, fresh person into the industry, and maybe even your business,” Lindberg says. “Interns at your business can provide the opportunity to have additional help and maybe even complete a special project that has been put on the back burner for too long. You can showcase your business and even expose a student to other aspects of the greenhouse industry. Their fresh minds are receptive to new information and are eager to learn from those with more experience.”
In the e-GRO story, Lindberg reflects on her own internship path, first with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and then with the National Museum on Natural History at the Smithsonian. She also presents highlights from a panel discussion at the 2022 Greenhouse Growers Expo in Michigan, where five greenhouse businesses shared details about their internship programs.
Learn more in the original e-GRO alert here.
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