The National Floriculture Forum recently returned from a tour of the Netherlands greenhouse industry followed by a visit to the international trade fair for plants (IPM ESSEN) in Essen, Germany. The trade fair exhibition featured nearly 1600 vendors from more than 48 countries covering 1.1 million square feet of space with a focus on technology, plant material, nursery stock, floristry, garden center goods, and much, much more. Some of the noted floriculture trends include miniature plants and containers, succulents, and living walls. Here are just a few examples of the magnificent plant material, displays and ideas encountered in Essen!
Author: Beth Scheckelhoff
2016 NW Ohio Greenhouse Winter Conference
Please join OSU Extension, Maumee Valley Growers Association, and USDA-ARS for the 2016 Greenhouse Winter Conference in NW Ohio! Located in Delta, OH, the program includes a tour of Schmidlin Greenhouse and their new tomato growing operation and solar array, 1 hour of private CORE re-certification, 1 hour private Category 5 re-certification, lessons from a Kentucky food hub, and catered lunch. Please see the attached flyer for registration details and the RSVP deadline.
Program
- 8:15 Registration and coffee
- 8:30 Tour of Schmidlin Greenhouse – Don Schmidlin
- 9:00 Schmidlin Solar Project and USDA-REAP Funding – Mike Litman, Sunlit Solar
- 9:30 Pesticide Applicator and WPS Updates – Beth Scheckelhoff, OSUE (1 h private CORE)
- 10:30 Research updates for greenhouse application – Jennifer Boldt , USDA-ARS (1 h private Category 5)
- 11:30 Lessons Learned from a Food Hub – Lilian Brislen of Food Connection
- 12:30 Lunch and depart
For additional information, please click here: 2016 Winter Conference Flyer
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2015 Greenhouse Growers Expo features sessions on diverse topics
The 2015 Michigan Greenhouse Growers Expo, in coordination with the Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market Expo, will feature numerous sessions for greenhouse floriculture and vegetable growers. The Greenhouse Growers Expo will be held Dec. 8-9, 2015, at the DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Highlights of this year’s conference will include information on production practices, how to become more profitable and reduce inputs, and how to grow niche crops.
- Grower experiences with insect biocontrol for spring crops – a panel presentation
- Greenhouse disease control update
- Greenhouse insect control update and the latest neonicotinoid research results
- Growing leafy greens and herbs in hydroponic systems
- Keys to successful containerized herb production
Owners or general managers of greenhouse businesses will be interested in sessions on how to boost their profits, cut their input costs and learn how to manage their businesses. Owners or managers will be interested in:
- How I grew my business: Recent adaptations we’ve made to stay competitive and profitable – a panel presentation
- Conventional lamps or LEDs? Factors you should consider
- Boomers or bust? Drawing GenX and GenY to the garden center
- Marketing strategies for novices, intermediates and experts
- Best performing annuals from the 2015 Michigan Garden Plant Tour
- How to reduce your fertilizer use
- MSU floriculture research update
- Transitioning your business
- Are using good bugs a cost-effective strategy for controlling insect pests of spring crops?
- Labor sessions: Review of seasonal labor supply for Michigan specialty crops, H2A and MIOSHA consultation
- Family business workshop: The Top Ten Mistakes that Break up a Family Business (Dec. 10)
In addition to the two talks on containerized herbs and leafy greens, greenhouse vegetable growers will be interested in the following sessions in the vegetable and general interests track:
- Prepare now, sweat less later: Key elements of greenhouse sanitation
- Cucumber production
- Pollination in the greenhouse
- Leafy greens production
- Food safety: FSMA final rules, environmental sampling in packhouses, sanitizer options for dunk tanks
- Food safety workshop (three-hour, hands-on workshop on Dec. 10, additional $25)
For an overview of the educational sessions at the Michigan Greenhouse Growers Expo, visit the 2015 Greenhouse Growers Expo website. Visit the Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market Expo website for additional information, including the large trade show and how to register.
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Michigan Greenhouse Expo to offer basics of floriculture production in Spanish
By Tom Dudek
Senior Extension Horticulture/ Marketing Educator
MSU Extension-Ottawa County
Telephone: 616-994-4542
Email: dudek@anr.msu.edu
A new training opportunity will be available to entry-level, Spanish-speaking greenhouse workers employed in floriculture operations in Michigan in December. According to Michigan State University Extension, The Basics of Floriculture Crop Production will be offered in Spanish at the Michigan Greenhouse Growers Expo at the Devos Place downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015.
This two-hour educational session will be taught by Roberto Lopez, floriculture extension specialist at Purdue University’s Horticulture and Landscape Architecture Department. Lopez has designed this entry-level presentation for workers that need the fundamentals of greenhouse crop production. Topics will include watering, fertility, substrate pH and EC, plant growth regulators and management of light and temperature. The importance of each parameter and effects on overall crop quality will be shared in this session.
I encourage all greenhouse growers send any Spanish-speaking workers to this program that they want to help improve or enhance their skills.. Registration details and the full program is available at Michigan Greenhouse Growers Expo website.
The same program will be offered Tuesday, Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. in English by Lopez.
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Take the Greenhouse Bioproducts Survey Today!
The Ohio State University would like to invite you to participate in a survey on bioproducts used in the greenhouse production of ornamental and vegetable plants at http://go.osu.edu/ghbioproducts. This survey will provide valuable feedback to set research priorities and assist in the development of educational materials on bioproducts for the industry. The survey will involve approximately 10 minutes of your time. If you would like additional information, have specific comments or questions, please contact Beth Scheckelhoff, OSU Extension Educator for Greenhouse Systems at 419-592-0806 or at Scheckelhoff.11@osu.edu.