Garden Mums – 2021 Production and Protection Tips

This post was contributed to by Drs. Sarah Jandricic, Andrew C. Wylie and Chevonne Dayboll.

Summer is getting underway, and so too are garden mums! Although generally an easy crop, there several tweaks you can make to help save headaches AND money.

This post has updated information to help you optimize your irrigation, fertilizer and pest management programs in garden mums.

New Resources for Mum Production

Hit your exact ship size on your ship date using Graphical Tracking

Track and even out the growth of your mums using a graphical tracking tool with a few easy steps:

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Nutrient Solution Analysis Projects for Greenhouses and Vertical Farms in Ontario (Flowers, Vegetables and Cannabis)

This post was written by Fadi Al-Daoud and Cara McCreary, greenhouse vegetable specialists with OMAFRA, and originally appeared on the ONgreenhousevegetables blog.

Subirrigation in a dutch tray of gerbera plants

The quality of water and nutrient solution used in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) production systems, such as greenhouses and vertical farms, is one of the most important factors that affect plant health and yield. Growers monitor water and nutrient solution quality by sending samples for analysis to determine the levels of nutrients and salts. They also use sensors to monitor pH and electrical conductivity (EC) regularly to determine necessary adjustments for the nutrient solution. Growers may also analyze the microbiome, the genetic material of all the bacteria, fungi, and viruses that live in their water and nutrient solution, to evaluate levels of harmful pathogens, such as Pythium and Phytophthora species that cause root rot.

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Resources and Strategies for Taking Care of Your Mental Health in Times of Crisis

As we advance towards May, the uncertainty around social restrictions, major changes in business operations, lost sales and contracts have left many of us feeling frustrated and anxious. Stress is nothing new to farmers and other horticultural business owners, but in times of crisis, stress can build to new heights causing even the most resilient business owners to struggle.

Having good mental health and emotional resilience can help to ensure that we are able to both enjoy life and deal with the challenges we are facing. This balancing act can be difficult; sometimes you need to find outside resources that work for you to help keep you going. Continue reading “Resources and Strategies for Taking Care of Your Mental Health in Times of Crisis” →

Water Sanitation Series Part 1: Identifying potential problems before they start

Spring is just around the corner, and this is historically the time of year where we get more calls about disease pressure and problems in the crop. This year, we’ve decided to run a series of blog posts about water sanitation to get you reflecting on your own irrigation system before you are faced with a problem. Posts over the next few weeks will focus on identifying problems in the greenhouse, interpreting lab test results, on-farm methods for disease monitoring, water treatment technology options and more. These will be good refresher resources, so make sure to bookmark them for future reference.

Ever wonder how water related disease issues just seem to pop up out of nowhere? You’ve never had a problem before, but suddenly things just aren’t looking right. The truth is that problems often go unnoticed while pathogen levels are low. Knowing potential innoculum sources and practicing good preventative measures can help to reduce the risk of a bigger problem. Continue reading “Water Sanitation Series Part 1: Identifying potential problems before they start” →

Choose the right soil analysis for in-ground cut flowers

This post was contributed to by Lauren Vanderlingen, OMAFRA Summer Student and Christoph Kessel, OMAFRA Soil Fertility Specialist – Horticulture.

If you are using Saturated Paste Extract (SPE) to assess soil nutrients for in-ground grown cut flowers, you may be underestimating plant available nutrients and applying fertilizers that aren’t needed.

Many greenhouse growers use SPE analysis when testing growing media in the greenhouse for nutrient levels. Typically, SPE tests are used in soilless or peat-based growing substrates, the kind we usually see used in potted plant production. However, if you are growing cut flowers in a mineral soil, either in the greenhouse or outdoors, SPE is not giving you a complete report on nutrients available to your crop.

Both greenhouse and outdoor soils that produce cut flowers should be tested on a regular basis.

Continue reading “Choose the right soil analysis for in-ground cut flowers” →

Garden Mums – 2019 Production and Protection Tips

This post was contributed to by Drs. Sarah Jandricic and Chevonne Dayboll.

Summer is in full swing, and so too are garden mums. As you get ready for the next few months, here are a few tips to keep your crop on track.

Drip line irrigation can be a more efficient way of delivering water and nutrients to outdoor crops.

Irrigation method matters!

There are plenty of options for irrigation in potted outdoor crops, but not all are created equal if you are trying to maximize your water efficiency. Overhead irrigation by boom, or sprinkler is not efficient if your pots are not spaced tightly. Canopy sizes in the later months of production may make this impossible, especially if you choose to go with final spacing when pots first move outside. These methods of irrigation can also lead to pots that are too dry (not watered) or too wet (over watered). Plants can only use water that makes it into the pot, so low volume drip line or tape is a more effective way to delivering usable water to your outdoor crops.

Continue reading “Garden Mums – 2019 Production and Protection Tips” →

Poinsettia Prep Refresher

JF14 Now that poinsettias are safely tucked into their prop trays and the threat of Erwinia (Pectobacterium) is almost over, it’s time to think about other Poinsettia issues.

Root rots, nutritional issues, environmental stress and PGR mistakes can all be costly in this high-value crop. Read on for common pitfalls and how to avoid them.

Continue reading “Poinsettia Prep Refresher” →

Tips and Tricks for Outdoor Mum and Hydrangea Production this Summer

This post was co-authored by Dr. Jeanine West, Flowers Canada Ontario’s Environment Specialist

outdoor 6 Do you grow hardy mums and hydrangeas outdoors? If so, this blog post is for you! Flowers Canada Ontario, the Soil Resource Group and OMAFRA have collected data about fertilizer and water management in outdoor greenhouse crops over the last few summers, and have some updated production information for growers to think about over this year’s season.

The goal of the study was to look at ways to improve fertilizer and irrigation efficiency outside of the greenhouse. Continue reading “Tips and Tricks for Outdoor Mum and Hydrangea Production this Summer” →

Oh dear! It’s Oedema.

Oedema on the young leaves in this begonia basket.

Oedema, that physiological disorder that appears during periods of low light and high humidity. There’s been quite a bit of it reported in Ontario greenhouses this spring, and unfortunately it’s related to the long rainy (or snowy!) spring we’ve been having. If you’ve noticed salt-like crystals, odd tumour-like growths or water-soaked spots on either side of your plant leaves this disorder might be the culprit.

The disorder affects a wide variety of greenhouse ornamentals. It’s usually noticed in spring crops like sweet potato vine (ipomea), geranium, begonia and/or petunia. Continue reading “Oh dear! It’s Oedema.” →

Considerations for fine-tuning your fertilizer program

How do you typically fertilize floriculture crops in your greenhouse? Based on how the plant performs? Maybe based on recommendations from your consultant or supplier? Do you do it the way it’s always been done? Do you know why it was always done that way? Continue reading “Considerations for fine-tuning your fertilizer program” →