Vic and Margaret Ball Internship
Tagawa Greenhouses, Brighton, Colorado
Spring 2007

During spring semester, 2007, I participated in a Vic and Margaret Ball Internship with Tagawa Greenhouses Enterprises in Brighton, Colorado. During my internship I learned different skills that will be applicable in my future career. I also learned and evaluated how a commercial greenhouse operates on a daily and seasonal basis.

I performed many different types of work during my internship, with the majority of my time spent in annual plug production and finished production of annual cell packs and hanging baskets. My internship was constructed so that I would learn all processes of production and perform all the jobs of the greenhouse in chronological order.

One of the most interesting weeks of my internship was spent in sales and marketing. Here I was able to travel with Tagawa's category managers to different Home Depot locations organizing and setting up stores to make them look more eye-appealing to customers. Some of my internship was spent learning the business aspects of a greenhouse and the Tagawa company. I shadowed individuals, inquiring how and what they do affect what happens in the greenhouse. This was very informative because it consolidated all the information and questions that I accumulated while completing my internship.

My six-month internship at Tagawa's, had a huge impact on my career plans and goals. Before arriving at Tagawa's, I thought I wanted to be a vegetative-young plant grower in a commercial greenhouse operation. After leaving my internship, I learned that type of position was not for me. This internship experience enabled me to determine my areas of strengths and weaknesses, interests and dislikes. I believe I need to improve my business and marketing acumen. With this in mind, I made changes in my class schedule at Iowa State to help strengthen those two areas before I graduate. I determined my future plans are to work in new product development, for a leading company in the areas of breeding, development and production of vegetative plants. I would like to be the company's breeder relations individual and travel nationally and internationally looking for new and improved species that can be introduced into the American market.