IT SEEMED a ready made opportunity A local society asked if I would fill one of their winter slots by giving a talk on dahlias This, I reckoned, was the chance to put into play my own recruiting experiment.
My troubles proved to be just starting Joe Gartshore explained, apologetically, that our own society did not hold a standard set of slides to illustrate any “Beginner’s Guide talk. It seemed we stocked plenty pictures of champion vases But no special sequence to illustrate a simple talk on the basic growing cycle However, all credit to Joe, he dug out a pile of general shots and I managed to string some together.
Difficulty in the recruitment’ of exhibitors has often intrigued me. All local shows are desperate for new entrants. Yet interest in gardening is booming, nursery centres are a growth industry, and most TV gardening programmes collect respectable ratings. Clearly there exists a huge interest in growing - if not in showing.
Dave Sutherland and his Perth boys have evolved their own formula. They seem to have a successful policy of linking a beginner to a mentor, who then guides the novice through the first crucial show season. Getting them actually started would appear to be the key factor.
My own idea was a bit more blatant and based on the concept that the punter is usually a sucker for any free offer. So, ahead of my April talk, I worked out the details. The local committee were very enthusiastic. They agreed to introduce a one bloom’ class for novices in their show schedule -- if there was a positive reaction to my free offer scheme.
It might be worth mentioning that this particular society,
based in Glasgow’s
affluent south side suburbs, has about 150 members. Only about
30 seem to regularly exhibit at their annual show Even then, most
of their entries fall into the category of favourite pot plants
I had never attended any of their winter sessions. On the night,
there were about 30 in the pews. Women were in the majority and
there were quite a few couples All were clearly interested in
‘gardening rather than “exhibiting.”
I raced through the 12 month cycle of storing tubers .. propagating . potting up plants ... and growing to the stage of cutting a bloom. The audience were impressed by the slides of colourful show blooms, rather than by Robertsons rambling. They became even more alive when the sound of clinking cups emanated from the kitchen.
Heads perked up at the mention of free plants. This was a chance to grow the type of flowers that they had just admired on screen. They had merely to volunteer, in return, to have a go at getting one bloom for the August show. Eight names went down on my order sheet.
A few days later, studying their details, snags began to surface. Only two out of the eight had heated greenhouses. Of the other six, four had no greenhouses. Not even frames. The remaining two had greenhouses, but no heating. This statistical breakdown, in itself, gave an interesting insight into the membership make up.
To be safe in the early stages, I wanted to prepare four plants per applicant - just in case of unforeseen disease or disaster. I realised that I could be tending some additional 32 pots, all occupying space, until the start of June.
Another difficulty dawned I am a small grower with bedspace for only about 55 plants, spread over a few varieties.
It hardly seemed suitable to lumber novices with some of my current stock such as Karenglen and Andrew Magson. Which both need to be double stopped. Or “Kiwi Gloria”, a variety which is both late and difficult Playing safe, I ended up acquiring some easily managed varieties at our own society sale.
Come planting out time, I did my delivery boy act. It was an eye opener. All eight gardens were neat, certainly tidier than my own. With plenty evidence of greenery accumulated over the years from expensive nurseries. At each address, I left three plants of one variety along with a typed sheet of growing guidelines and my telephone number.
There were no calls for help. But I soon heard that one trialist, having studied my easy to follow advice, decided it was all far too “complicated’. She passed on the plants to a friend. That was one down.. It was still June when the second dropped out.
A special video, or a set of slides plus script, would be useful
aides for any member giving a talk to local societies
I have no knowledge of success rates in other recruiting schemes.
However, I have a hunch that the free offer formula, linked to
a local society, may be a more fruitful method than some of the
other ploys that have been tried. It might prove, for instance,
more effective than the manning of traditional recruitment “stands’
at major venues.
Perhaps our own society could hold a seminar to review recruitment
techniques and investigate the possibility of coordinating a nationwide
drive.
Affiliated societies are desperate to fill their winter meeting
schedules and to attract more exhibitors from within their own
local membership A free plant offer, targeted specifically at
such groups, is a direct incentive to actually get newcomers
involved for at least one second dropped out.
Weeks passed The show morning and, to my relief, two exhibits
were staged from the remaining runners. Both, I must add, were
creditable entries. And, on reflection, two from eight starters
seems a pretty fair return. What can be learned from this wee
experiment? The scheme’s timetable allows the minimum of
days for any lack of interest to creep in and for the novice to
drop out. It also allows the results to be quickly assessed.
This particular project started on an April night. From eight recipients at the start of June, two persevered and staged an entry at the August show. A 25 percent success rate.
Ideally, all the original volunteers should be followed up in a bid to keep them interested and growing dahlias again 1997. Our own society should consider reviewing its own promotional material.
A special video, or a set of slides plus script, would be useful
aides for any member giving a talk to local societies
I have no knowledge of success rates in other recruiting schemes.
However, I have a hunch that the free offer formula, linked to
a local society, may be a more fruitful method than some of the
other ploys that have been tried. It might prove, for instance,
more effective than the manning of traditional recruitment “stands”
at major venues.
Perhaps our own society could hold a seminar to review recruitment
techniques and investigate the possibility of coordinating a nationwide
drive.
Affiliated societies are desperate to fill their winter meeting
schedules and to attract more exhibitors from within their own
local membership A free plant offer, targeted specifically at
such groups, is a direct incentive to actually get newcomers involved
for at least one season.
My little experiment, of course, dealt only with dahlias. Chrysanthemum
growing, I suspect, may
prove to be a bit more technical for absolute beginners. Here,
the attachment of a personal mentor throughout the season is probably
much more vital for the novice. However, the chrysanthemum boys
no doubt can adapt the same “free offer” formula to
their own recruitment schemes.
Our society, understandably, devotes a lot of time and effort,
each year, to the organisation of our National Show, and in attracting
top exhibitors from the south.
However, as we move towards the 21st century, it may be timely
to recall and reconsider our wider objectives and obligations.
More direct support to affiliated societies might boost the interest
in our particular flowers.
Just consider the impact, nationally, if every local society in
Scotland recruited just one new enthusiast into the ranks of dahlia
and chrysanthemum growing and showing