The Roger Williams Park Botanical Gardens has established partnerships with many horticultural based non-profit organizations throughout the state. The following groups are providing their expertise and their volunteer labor to expand educational programs and opportunities as well as gardens at the Botanical Gardens.

The Rhode Island Nurserymen's Association was formed in 1919 by a small group of retail and whole sale nurserymen from Rhode Island. At the present time, we are in our 83rd year of business. In the 1960's it was realized by Nursery members of RINA that landscape members would enhance our organization. A drive was put on and many Landscape Maintenance and Landscape Construction Members joined. Also, about this time, the potato farms were going out of business and many farmers started growing sod on the potato farms. They soon became members. Arborists also were welcomed in. Also, many members were Greenhouse growers and they in turn joined. In the 1980's, Irrigation contractors also joined. At the present time, we represent the whole "green Industry" in Rhode Island.

We are closely allied with the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Rhode Island. Many of our members are graduates of the University. One of our greatest single accomplishments was the donation of a garden to the URI Cooperative Extension Center. This was about a $100,000 donation and was part of URI's 100th birthday.

The object of this organization shall be to promote the nursery industry in the Sate of Rhode Island and to cooperate with similar organizations in other states. In 1966, it consisted of 111 active members and 35 associate members. At the present time, we have 269 active members, 104 associate members, 12 honorary members and 25 Professional Affiliates.

For the last twenty years or so, we have conducted a two-day educational meeting in the winter with a trade show, and it has been successfully held in Goat Island, Newport, RI. We have a one-day summer meeting, which used to be a "good-time" meeting, with plenty of food and liquid refreshment. Recently, we have refocused and are conducting demonstrations and other learning experiences, which have provided to be very beneficial to our members.

We honor past members of RINLA who have passed away with a tree planting ceremony at the University of RI, usually held on Arbor Day. This is a great way to remember a past member, and the University takes care of the trees and it adds to the Arboretum at the University.

We are constantly striving to provide more benefits for our members. We had a Blue Cross membership program in place that gave our members the best price on Blue Cross of anyone in RI.

Our treasury is made up of dues. We have no fundraisers to swell our treasury, so we constantly never have enough money to do things that we want to do. We have a Scholarship program where we give four scholarships a year for a total value of approximately $3200. We also give to URI Plant Science Department various amounts of money through our Research Fund. We have pledged $50,000 to ANLA's Horticultural Research Institute, and our money is lumped with other private and state donations. The interest of this fund is used to benefit the Green Industry. One of the benefits of the HRI fund was that we were able to provide $10,000 and the NENA provided the other $10,000 to fund a Horticultural Industry Study for all of New England. The results of this study were that the Green Industry in Rhode Island was a $278 million business and the largest agricultural entity in the State of Rhode Island.