Category: Root rots

Looking Ahead to 2023: Preparing for Spring Crops

This post was jointly written by Dr. Chevonne Dayboll and Dr. Sarah Jandricic

It’s hard to believe, but as the first snow hits the ground here in Niagara, that means its time to think about spring crops again!

This post gathers some of the most important things to plan and prep for in the greenhouse, including ordering inputs, preventative maintenance, and your pest management and PGR plans!

Think of this post as your “to-do” check list for the month of December, as the time to plan all this is NOW, before your spring production begins.

We’ve also linked to some helpful videos we’ve recorded from our GrowON webinar series that are relevant to spring crops. They’re worth a re-watch – or a first watch – if you haven’t seen them before!

Continue reading “Looking Ahead to 2023: Preparing for Spring Crops” →

Poinsettia Pest Management Pointers: Receipt Through Potting Up.

Poinsettias are almost here! Instead of covering the whole crop cycle, this year we’re breaking posts down into 4 key growing periods: Receipt/Propagation, Early Production, Late Production, and Finishing.

This post on propagation will cover things you can do now to treat pests and diseases in your cuttings to prevent BIG problems later. And make sure to check out Dr. Chevonne Dayboll’s post from last week, on ensuring cutting quality.

Continue reading “Poinsettia Pest Management Pointers: Receipt Through Potting Up.” →

Upcoming Webinar: Root Rots – What You Can’t See CAN Hurt you.

Its a busy time in the greenhouse, but our next topic is timely! Rot rots like Fusarium, Pythium and black root rot are often the bane of spring bedding crops. Dr. Mary Hausbeck, a Distinguished Professor from Michigan State University, is going to share her vast knowledge on this topic, including which fungicides work best. Check out the details below, and don’t forget to register!

Continue reading “Upcoming Webinar: Root Rots – What You Can’t See CAN Hurt you.” →

Which Pathogens Should You Worry About in Your Water?

This is the second blog post in a series about water sanitation. The goal of this series is 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, interpreting lab tests, on-farm disease monitoring, and water treatment options.  These will be good refresher resources, so make sure to bookmark them.

When it comes to talking about disease-related issues in greenhouse crops, one point of confusion is often oven WHICH pathogens CAN be transmitted by water.  Some are obvious – we all know Pythium is water-borne.  But what about other culprits, like Fusarium or Erwinia? Should you worry about these in your recirculating water?

Read more to find out when to suspect your irrigation water versus other factors when it comes to disease.

Continue reading “Which Pathogens Should You Worry About in Your Water?” →