Hall Of Fame Inductees

 

The individuals nominated should have made a significant impact or positive influence that assures the future of our industry in the lives of generations to come.

 

Once nominated, an individual’s biography and photo are updated on the site, and he or she is placed in the polls for voting. At the end of the year the committee takes into consideration the votes and decides which candidates are inducted.

 

Those with a star (*) next to their name below were either inducted posthumously or have passed away since being inducted.

 

Nomination Qualifications

  • Person with integrity and passion
  • Minimum 20 years in industry
  • Someone who has developed  or invented  new technology
  • Has made contributions that resulted in change
  • Contributed to mankind’s needs in his field
  • Provided education and encouragement  with self-sacrifice
  • Changed the industry

Maria Zampini

 

Maria is a 4th generation nurseryman and proud of it!  After graduating from Penn State with a BS in Horticulture, she ran the family’s 1000 acre wholesale nursery, destination attraction garden center and new plant research and development division.  She took a new path in 2009 partnering with her father to form UpShoot LLC, a boutique horticultural marketing firm focusing on the global sales, marketing and licensing of new plant introductions and gardening related products. In 2019 Maria partnered with Spring Meadow Nursery to develop and manage the Proven Winners® ColorChoice® Flowering Tree program, which is part of the #1 consumer plant brand.

 

Maria is a freelance writer for both green industry trade journals and consumer gardening magazines. In 2015 she released her first book with co-author Pam Bennett titled Garden-pedia: An A-Z Guide to Gardening Terms. This ASHS award winning book is in its second printing and is available as an e-book. Additionally, she has spoken nationally and internationally on a variety of gardening related topics.

 

Maria has pushed the glass greenhouse ceiling becoming the 1st female President of the Ohio Nursery & Landscape Association (the 2nd female ever on the board) which is now known as the Ohio Green Industry Association or OGIA, and the International Ornamental Crabapple Society. She currently serves as the Past-President of Garden Communicator’s International and was recently named to the Horticultural Research Institute Board of Trustees. She previously served on the National Association of Plant Patents Owners.

 

She resides in Fairport Harbor, Ohio. Locally she is on the Fairport Harbor Tree Commission, Fairport Harbor America in Bloom Committee, Fairport Harbor Arts and Culture Alliance and Salvation Army Advisory Board in Painesville, Ohio. She has previously served on the Lake Erie College and Lake County Visitor’s Bureau Boards of Trustees.

 

Education

  • ·         1984 Bachelor of Science degree in horticulture Pennsylvania State University,
           State College, PA     
  •             Master Ohio Certified Nursery Technician in Grower, Retail and Landscape categories
  •            Graduate of Dale Carnegie Institute

Awards          

·         2015 Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame Inductee, Perry High School, Perry, OH

·         2006 “Honorarium”, The Nursery Growers of Lake County, OH

Horticulture Organizations – Current Member

  • GardenComm, aka Garden Communicator’s International, Past-President -
    AmericanHort
  • Ohio Green Industry Association
  • Nursery Growers of Lake County, Ohio
  • Oregon Association of Nurseries
  • National Garden Bureau

 

Horticulture Organizations – Past Involvement

  • American Nursery and Landscape Association, 2001 Convention & Executive Learning Retreat
  • The Design Network, Member
  • National Association of Plant Patent Owners, Board of Directors
  • International Ornamental Crabapple Society, Past President, Secretary, Board of Directors
  • International Plant Propagators, 2009 Eastern Regional Conference Site Committee
  • Nursery Growers of Lake County, Ohio, Summer Field Day Committee
  • Nursery Management Magazine, Advisory Panel
  • Ohio Nursery and Landscape Association
    -    2008 Centennial Celebration Committee Chair
    -    2001 President
    -    Hispanic; Certification; Retail; Budget, Policy and Review and Marketing Committees