Efficient Lighting Strategies for Perennials

By Dr. Marc van Iersel and Claudia Elkins, University of GeorgiaPerennials are often grown in winter to get them ready for Spring sales. And that means that supplemental lighting is often required to produce high-quality plants in a timely manner. The electricity costs associated with supplemental lighting can be high. So, it’s important that supplemental light is provided in the most efficient way possible. For a long time, lighting recommendations have been based on the daily light integral (DLI.) DLI is the total amount of light received by a crop over a day. DLI is calculated from photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD). By integrating these instantaneous measurements of the intensity of photosynthetic light, the DLI can be calculated. But basing…

To LED or Not to LED

By Erik RunkleLight-emitting diodes (LEDs) have captured the interest of a lot of greenhouse growers as well as academics. One of the best ways to exploit this lighting technology is to grow young plants indoors. Here, we have full control of the growing environment. While LEDs have rapidly advanced, especially in the last five years, we still have more questions than answers. With support from American Floral Endowment, we have expanded our understanding of how different light wavebands (or colors) regulate growth. This includes plant architecture, leaf color, and flowering time across a range of floriculture species.Growing Indoor PlantsEarlier this year, we wrote a five-part series in GrowerTalks magazine, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Florida. In the…

Indoor Lighting for the Production of Floriculture Transplants

Erik Runkle, Michigan State UniversityAn exciting new way to produce floriculture crop seedlings and rooted cuttings (transplants) is indoors, where the environment can be controlled to produce uniform plants on demand. This growing technique enables control of the light spectrum using light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to produce plants with desired attributes such as compact growth and early or late flowering, whichever is desired. We are currently in the second year of our project supported by the American Floral Endowment.Our team of students and research technicians is performing experiments in the Controlled Environment Lighting Laboratory (CELL). We are pleased to share our results to date through a five-part series of articles in GrowerTalks magazine. Below is a list of the article topics,…

AFE and e-Gro Partner on Webinars

We have partnered with e-Gro to present webinars focusing on new findings from AFE-funded research projects. The webinars are free. They aim to better communicate the results to growers and to share how to best implement the findings. They also allow for a greater number of managers and staff to hear this information first-hand.The new AFE/e-Gro webinars will be one hour in length with time for participants to ask specific questions of the researchers. They will complement the successful webinars that e-Gro is already conducting and provide greater resources for growers.The first webinar, “New Daily Light Integral Maps and Advances in Supplemental Lighting for Ornamentals” is slated for November 2nd from Noon – 1:00 p.m. Eastern.Presenters Jim Faust, Clemson University…

AFE-Funded Researchers Go Face to Face with Thrips

Sound scientific research has guided many of the flower crop production and postharvest handling practices used by growers, wholesalers, supermarkets and retail outlets today. AFE realizes that research you support must have direct value to each of you and to your companies.Assuring that research is relevant to flower production begins with making sure that researchers are familiar and see first-hand the conditions upon which their results will be used. During the first week of October, three accomplished thrips researchers accompanied me to Medellin, Colombia to visit flower farms. These researchers included JC Chong of Clemson University and Margaret Skinner and Bruce Parker of the University of Vermont.In late 2016, we also took AFE-funded Botrytis researchers to flower farms. The following…

Daily Light Integral Maps for the U.S.

Daily Light Integral (DLI) maps display the ambient light delivered daily during each month across the entire U.S. These maps were researched and developed by James Faust of Clemson University and Joanne Logan of The University of Tennessee. They are unique because DLI is a measurement of light that is particularly valuable for estimating plant growth. Other solar radiation maps created for photovoltaic purposes, i.e., installing solar panels, are not directly applicable to horticultural applications. According to Faust, the project leader, the DLI maps are valuable because they allow growers to better manage the light environment of their plants. “For example, one can estimate the number of days per year that supplemental lighting may be necessary to achieve the desired…

Botrytis, Meet Calcium

By: JC Chong, Clemson UniversityWe pack our carts with the best crop of bedding plants ever, or our boxes with the best cut roses, only to receive a call from our customers rejecting the shipment because of gray mold. Botrytis meltdown is a huge problem during shipment because high humidity in sealed shipping carts or containers is just what Botrytis needs to cause an outbreak.With funding from AFE, Jim Faust and his graduate student Kathie Bennett (Clemson University) studied the potential of reducing Botrytis meltdown on petunia flowers with pre-shipment sprays of calcium chloride. Kathie sprayed four concentrations of calcium chloride (at 0, 400, 800 and 1,200 ppm) over two weeks before the expected shipping date. She infected the flowers…

All About Thrips IPM Programs

By: Rose BuitenhuisThe Vineland Research and Innovation Centre has a six-part series published in Greenhouse Canada magazine with practical information for thrips integrated pest management (IPM) programs.Written by Biocontrol Specialists Rose Buitenhuis, Michael Brownbridge and Graeme Murphy, the articles offer application tips and tricks, information on new technologies, and are supplemented by short videos demonstrating techniques or principles.Part 1, Designing Your Greenhouse IPM Program, introduces the systems approach to IPM and goes through the different elements of thrips IPM from start to finish, setting the stage for the rest of the series. The video explains the importance of choosing the right plant, the right environment and the right control agents for a complete IPM strategy. Part 2, IPM: Prevention and Early…

Preventing Downy Mildew on Coleus, Roses and Spotted Deadnettle

The floriculture industry faces complex issues that research funded by AFE helps address and solve.Mary Hausbeck Michigan State UniversityThe Endowment has funded research from Dr. Mary Hausbeck, Professor and Extension Specialist at Michigan State University, on the disease downy mildew.In an article published in Greenhouse Grower magazine, Dr. Hausbeck discusses how downy mildew diseases are potentially devastating to ornamental crops and can cause unsightly damage, as well. She provides details about the latest research and recommendations for preventing the disease.The article, which was featured in the August 2016 issue of Greenhouse Grower, can be viewed here. 

Prevent the Spread of Disease in Irrigation Water

Dr. Mary HausbeckAFE-funded research helps address a variety of issues that the floriculture industry faces.The Endowment is currently funding a research study from Dr. Mary Hausbeck, Professor and Extension Specialist at Michigan State University, entitled: Managing Pythium Species in Floriculture Irrigation Water.In an article published in Greenhouse Grower magazine, Dr. Hausbeck, along with fellow researcher Dr. Wei Zhang, discuss how water-mold pathogens can cause significant crop losses and reduce floriculture crop quality. They also provide ways to prevent the spread of diseases like Phytophthora and Pythium in irrigation water.The article, which was featured in the March 2016 issue of Greenhouse Grower, can be viewed here.

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