Fourth Intake of Agricultural Stewardship Initiative Cost-Share Funding Program Opens July 8, 2026

This post was originally published on ONgreenhousevegetables.ca on  by Averie Mastronardi

The governments of Ontario and Canada are investing an additional $12 million through the Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (ASI) to help farmers adopt practical improvements that increase efficiency, reduce costs and build long-term resilience.

This initiative delivers on the government’s plan to protect Ontario’s farmers and agri-food sector by making strategic investments in cutting-edge solutions needed to support modern farming and help the sector remain resilient and competitive in the global marketplace.

Read on for program details and key dates.

Continue reading “Fourth Intake of Agricultural Stewardship Initiative Cost-Share Funding Program Opens July 8, 2026” →

Effective Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 2: Colour, Placement and Duration

Yellow or blue – that is the question. Photo by A. Summerfield.

Part 1 last week covered WHY to trap and WHEN to it’s best to put up your cards. This post goes over trap colour and placement to optimize thrips catches while reducing effects on natural enemies.

Although I’ve talked about this in older posts, I’ve put this data in context of what we know now, in terms of the various thrips species that invade Niagara greenhouses. I’ll also be sharing some data on card duration.

If that isn’t exciting enough for you, next week’s Part 3 will discuss whether or not using lures is worth it to increase thrips catches.

Continue reading “Effective Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 2: Colour, Placement and Duration” →

Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 1: Why Trap and When to Start (Answer: This Week!)

Sometimes your thrips biocontrol program is working great. Other times, it seems to get completely overwhelmed.  Thrips can get out of control in Summer, when fall crop production is ramping up. This is where mass trapping can really help.

This post will cover where thrips come from, which species we find on cards, and when the best time is to add mass trapping to your thrips IPM program.

And stay tuned for Part 2, which will cover ways to optimize your mass trapping!

Continue reading “Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 1: Why Trap and When to Start (Answer: This Week!)” →

Save on Energy’s Expanded Energy Management Program – EMIS Updates for Greenhouse Operators

This post was originally published on the ongreenhousevegetables.ca blog on  by Averie Mastronardi

Save on Energy logo

Energy management information systems (EMIS) can reduce energy consumption and GHG emissions, lower utility costs, improve operational performance, and strengthen decision‑making. Receive funding of up to $50,000 or $250,000, depending on your annual energy consumption, for the installation of an EMIS through Save On Energy’s Expanded Energy Management program. The EMIS funding ends March 31, 2027, and incentive payments must be made by this date. To ensure your incentive is available, we recommend that organizations aim to complete approved projects by the end of 2026. 

Continue reading “Save on Energy’s Expanded Energy Management Program – EMIS Updates for Greenhouse Operators” →

Growing Roses? Export Rules to the U.S. Have Changed.

In the efforts to prevent a quarantinable strain of Ralstonia from entering the United States, USDA-APHIS has changed importation rules for rose material for planting. This includes rose material coming from Canada.

Under the new federal order, roses (Rosa spp.) grown in Canada must now have been grown entirely within Canada or the U.S.. This includes root stock and graft material.

This is to reduce a potential pathway for Ralstonia solanacearum Race 3 biovar 2 (Rs R3bv2) into the U.S., which can devastate solanaceous crops such as potato and tomato, as well as geraniums.

Read on for more details about RS R3bv2 and the new export regulations.

Continue reading “Growing Roses? Export Rules to the U.S. Have Changed.” →

April, 2026 DLI Report

(Originally published on ONgreenhousevegetables.ca on May 12, 2026 by Fadi Al-Daoud)

Welcome to the Vineland DLI report for April, 2026!

So far, April is finally looking sunnier in Niagara, with the average DLI in Vineland climbing.

Read on for the detailed data report and more information about our DLI data collection project.

Continue reading “April, 2026 DLI Report” →

Your Yearly Reminder of Japanese Beetle Requirements: Get Those Treatments on Before May 15!

Anyone following this blog for the last few years knows I like to remind y’all to make sure you treat your plants for Japanese beetle before May 15! This is because NO pesticides are allowed when Japanese beetle (JB) pupae are present (generally, May 15-June 15 in Ontario),which has gotten some growers into a pickle during spring shipping in the past.

Note that if you’re a nursery crop grower also treating for boxtree moth, you may surpass the maximum allowed applications or rate of Acelepryn per year if you also need to treat for JB. In that case, it might be better to time your treatments for JB in order to use intercept (imidacloprid) instead. So make sure to check out the pesticide timing chart in the JB Infographic in the full post.

This year, I’ve updated the JB Decision Tree and Infographic to include shipping requirements to different areas in the United States. So, if you or your staff need more clarification on any of these points, make sure download the latest PDF.

Continue reading “Your Yearly Reminder of Japanese Beetle Requirements: Get Those Treatments on Before May 15!” →

March, 2026 DLI Report

An overcast day in Niagara Falls, Canada. Photo by A Glimpse of Canada.

(Originally published on ONgreenhousevegetables.ca on  by Fadi Al-Daoud)

Welcome to the Vineland DLI report for March, 2026!

So far, March looks like it’s off to a bit of a dreary start in Niagara, with the average DLI in Vineland only a smidge above February.

Read on for the detailed data report and more information about our DLI data collection project.

Continue reading “March, 2026 DLI Report” →

A Grower’s Guide to On-Farm Trials

An on-farm trial comparing different brands, types and colours of sticky traps done by OMAFA.

This is a guest post written by Jessie deHaan (M.Sc.; Research Technician, Biological Crop Protection at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre).

Now that it’s halfway through spring bedding plant season, you may be considering changing some of your current IPM or production practices for next year that just aren’t working as well as they could. Conducting on-farm trials is an easy way to evaluate how well a new product, process or technology will work in your operation.

Before making any large-scale changes, it is important to test things on a small scale first. Read on to learn how you would go implementing a small on-farm trial to get you results that are meaningful.

Continue reading “A Grower’s Guide to On-Farm Trials” →

Upcoming Greenhouse, Nursery & Floriculture Biosecurity Workshop in March

OSCIA is offering a free two-part webinar will explore practical steps growers can take to strengthen biosecurity in greenhouse and plant production operations.

A technical expert will highlight key practices that help reduce risk and protect plant health.

Participants will also learn about potential cost-share opportunities and will receive a Greenhouse Biosecurity workbook to help develop a biosecurity plan.

Workshop details

Tuesday, March 24, 2026 – 7:00 to 9:00 PM
Tuesday, March 31, 2026 – 7:00 to 9:00 PM

Participation in both sessions is required.

Growers can register here:
https://workshops.osciaportal.org/workshop/registration/48?workshopEventId=2225

To help with planning, we encourage participants to register by March 17.

Questions can be directed to Jenn Nash, East Central Region Field Representative. You can reach her at 705-991-3909 or jnash@ontariosoilcrop.org