Featured Article Many Indiana vegetable crops begin life as transplants. If lack of nutrients, lack of light, disease, or other problems slow growth during this stage, it may reduce establishment success and/or growth and yield in the field or high tunnel. Good management of the following factors should lead to healthy transplants (Figure 1). Time[Read More…]
Transplant Production
I visited Kube-Pak (Allentown, NJ) during the North American Strawberry Growers Summer Tour. Kube-Pak wholesales bedding plants, plugs, potted plants and more. Our visit at Kube-Pak’s was at peak time of strawberry business. Mr. Rob Swanekamp showed us the steps of growing strawberry plugs, from tip production to shipping. The strawberry plugs’ shipping date starts[Read More…]
As we approach warmer days in May and June, it’s time to prepare for transplanting warm-season vegetable crops such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and squash. Growers preparing vegetable transplants should plan for the process of hardening or conditioning their transplants to outdoor temperatures, light, and soil moisture conditions. By now, you should have started your[Read More…]
In your propagation/seeding house, you are setting the stage for the remainder of your growing season, and there are a few key things I would like to remind you about to minimize pest issues at this crucial stage. Cleanliness is key! Make sure you start with clean trays for any transplants you may be generating.[Read More…]
We are getting close to the time of year when I begin to get phone calls about strange symptoms on tomato plants in greenhouses. Too often, the problem is ethylene damage. Read on to find out how to avoid this problem. Tomato plants with ethylene damage often have leaves that are curled down and stems[Read More…]
We know from published research that the health and quality of a vegetable transplant affects how it will establish, grow, and yield in the field. Our recent work comparing tomato and cucurbit seedling growth in different organic growing media and with and without added fertilizer has provided some good examples of this. See Vegetable Crop[Read More…]
Getting seedlings off to a good start begins with a good growing medium for transplants. Growing media for organic production must meet the guidelines set out by the National Organic Standards Board, including not containing any synthetic substances (unless they have been approved for that use) or any prohibited materials. A number of products meet[Read More…]
Almost every year, I have a greenhouse tomato grower or two call me about tomato plants that are distorted and don’t seem to be growing right. The problem often turns out to be ethylene damage. This year, I have decided to write an article about it before I get those calls. Tomato plants with ethylene damage[Read More…]