The Italian Delegation to China 6/15 April 2002 in occasion of the Hortiflorexpo at Pechino has been cancelled due to lack of participation. Initial enthusiam was seriously dampened by the date when small to medium sized Nurseries can not afford to release senior members of staff during this peak production and sales period. Other Chinese exhibitions covering ornamental horticulture tend to be held at the end of September to early October, another difficult period full of important exhibitions in Europe. This problem suggests that Italian Nurseries and companies could better choose individual tailor-made programs of meetings and visits at different times of the year (possibly touching one of the trade exhibitions) according to their specific interests, ranging from market studies to visits. Contact AGS/Edward Bent E-mail: hortcom@tin.it