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May 20th, 2013 by Cheryl Boyer
In 2011 a new nursery production conference was held on the campus of Kansas State University. NurseryWorks is now an award-winning educational meeting and presentations from the inaugural event are archived and available for free at www.ksu.edu/nurseryworks. Feel free to peruse the site while we periodically post the archived presentations here.
Managing Roots in the Nursery for Optimal Production and Landscape Performance
Ed Gilman, Professor of Urban Trees & Landscape Plants, University of Florida, Gainesville
Dr. Gillman showed us how to produce a strong root system in the nursery using the correct liner trays, containers, and field techniques using examples from across the continent. There are brand new methods to eliminate root defects in containers and proven field production strategies that ensure good roots. He demonstrated how to create a root flare at the surface instead of 8 inches below the surface and how to set up a test so you can show others. We will thoroughly dissect root systems and show you how they grow in nature compared to in the nursery and landscape. The differences will surprise you and are important to understand! You will come away knowing how to improve root systems on trees of any age. You may be surprised at the amount of new research on this topic, as well as the experience of some professionals treating defects.
Topics covered include: what root attributes lead to stable trees, how trees grow in nature, growing quality root systems in container and field nurseries, how roots grow in urban landscapes, recognizing root defects, prescribing treatments for root defects, root management at planting, improving health of established trees with root pruning, root regeneration capacity, increasing anchorage with root ball shaving, and more.
K-State Nursery Works Ed Gilman
Ed Gilman Handouts
(Another 4 handouts can be found here.)
Dr. Gilman, University of Florida, has a 50% research: 50% extension teaching assignment and teaches an arboriculture class. He works with arborists, consultants, landscape contractors, tree nursery operators, urban foresters, planners, landscape architects and others engaged in tree selection, growing, planting and management issues. Research includes irrigation, fertilization, roots, and other tree transplant and after-care techniques and a recent focus on tree response to pruning.
http://hort.ufl.edu/people/gillman.shtml
May 15th, 2013 by Cheryl Boyer
ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION led by Dr. Ted Bilderback
Building Local Alliances: Growers & Retail Garden Centers
It can be challenging to connect local growers with local garden centers. Dr. Bilderback shared how one association (Johnston County Nursery Marketing Association, North Carolina) has approached this issue and then lead a roundtable discussion to share ideas from participants.
Dr. Bilderback is a professor and Interim Arboretum director at North Carolina State University where he has been a member of the Horticultural Science Department since 1977. Ted’s research and extension programs have focused on environmentally conscious cultural practices for growing nursery stock. Extension, teaching, and research responsibilities for nursery crops include emphasis on cultural production techniques. Research emphasis includes plant water relations and nutrition of container nursery stock as related to manipulation of container substrates and irrigation practices.
http://www4.ncsu.edu/~tebilder/bilderback.html
May 14th, 2013 by Steven Frank
Check out the article Adam Dale and I wrote for Nursery Management on common spider mite species that damage nursery and landscape plants.
May 14th, 2013 by Steven Frank
If you receive the NCSU Pest News you already learned about ocellate gall midge. However, I found a new infestation this week that showed different developmental
 - Developing gall before red center and ring appear. Photo: S.D. Frank
stages so I though I would share the pictures. You can see light green circles on leaves in which the larvae is just developing, darker circles with red edges that have larvae inside. Then there are darker ones that have emergence holes int he bottom. The ocellate gall midge, Acericecis ocellaris causes an ocellate (single-spotted), pale green to yellow, often bright red-margined gall. Galls are 5 to 6 mm in diameter and occur primarily on foliage of red maples but also A. saccharinum,
 - Ocellate galls at different stages of development. Photo: S.D. Frank
A. spicatum, and A. pennsylvanicum. I found galls this week on trees in central Georgia so if you have not seen the here yet you will soon. Galls typically appear in May and contain a single, translucent midge larva. Larvae exit the gall and drop to the ground to overwinter as pupae. These are actually quite attractive critters that could even improve the appearance of trees. Just think, if someone bred a tree with yellow and red eye-shaped dots it would be all the rage. That said, these midges usually only occur a few at a time and will not harm tree health. Find out more about maple pests in a free e-book: http://ecoipm.com/extension/extension-resources/
May 13th, 2013 by Steven Frank
Check out a new article on ambrosia beetle biology and management in American Nurseryman by Steve Frank at North Carolina State University. You can see other recent industry articles on cankerworms, greenhouses, and other topics on his industry publication page.
May 10th, 2013 by Cheryl Boyer
Check out these videos from Dr. Ed Gillman (University of Florida) testing the effect of pruning on trees subjected to hurricane force winds. Cool research!
Effect of Hurricane-Force Winds on Landscape Trees–Crown Thinning
Effect of Hurricane-Force Winds on Landscape Trees–Crown Reduction Pruning
Effect of Hurricane-Force Winds on Landscape Trees–No Pruning
Dr. Gilman, University of Florida, has a 50% research: 50% extension teaching assignment and teaches an arboriculture class. He works with arborists, consultants, landscape contractors, tree nursery operators, urban foresters, planners, landscape architects and others engaged in tree selection, growing, planting and management issues. Research includes irrigation, fertilization, roots, and other tree transplant and after-care techniques and a recent focus on tree response to pruning.
http://hort.ufl.edu/people/gillman.shtml
May 9th, 2013 by Jean Williams-Woodward
It contains:
- April 2013 Plant Disease Clinic Report
- A look ahead for what you might expect to see based upon samples we diagnosed a year ago in May 2012
And, updates on:
- Pseudomonas syringae leaf spot on watermelons
- Fusarium wilt of watermelon
- What’s the orange goo growing on tree stumps?
- Rose Rosette Virus
- Impatiens downy mildew
- Wet, cool weather has importance for early-season disease management (row crops)
- Wheat Diseases: Loose Smut, Sooty Mold, and Head Scab
- Turfgrass Diseases: Large Patch, Dollar Spot, and Spring Dead Spot
May 6th, 2013 by Amy Fulcher
Extension publication, “W 278: Part I. Water Use in Nursery Production,” discussed the importance of and competition for water use in nursery production.
“W 279: Part II. Strategies to Increase Efficiency” covered techniques that growers can use to refine scheduling (volume and timing) and delivery of irrigation water. This final publication in the series discusses the significance and causes of nursery irrigation runoff and offers strategies to manage runoff.
As discussed in Part I of this series, irrigation can contribute to nursery runoff. While growers generally aim to apply 1 inch of water per day, field studies show that growers actually apply as little as 0.3 and as much as 1.3 inches per day. The greater the volume of water applied, the greater the potential for runoff. Runoff, or more precisely, surface runoff, is defined as water moving over the surface of saturated soil. Runoff can cause erosion and carry pathogens and pollutants, such as pesticides, petroleum products, soil, fecal contaminants and nutrients that may contaminate ground and surface water. Agricultural runoff and its link to eutrophication in surface waters led to legislative action affecting agriculture producers in recent years, including the Neuse River watershed in North Carolina and the Chesapeake Bay.
May 1st, 2013 by Amy Fulcher
Nursery irrigation management is a major concern for many nursery producers, especially container producers. Extension publication, “W 278: Part I. Water Use in Nursery Production,” discussed competition for water and gave a general overview of water use in nurseries. Part II discusses strategies to increase irrigation efficiency. Because irrigation is so critical to container production and most of the water associated with nursery production is applied to container plants, strategies are discussed largely in the context of container production.
Growers must make many irrigation management decisions on a daily basis, including when to irrigate, how much water to apply, which plants to irrigate and how to maximize efficiency. They also must plan for and manage water supplies in order to meet local and state water regulations (Figure 1). Increasingly, competition for water resources is affecting how these decisions are made.
April 26th, 2013 by Amy Fulcher
Water is essential to plant life and is a critical input to nursery crop production. For plants, water is used in temperature regulation, as a carrier for nutrients and plant hormones, and is the hydraulic force behind growth. Water is taken up by plant roots and is lost to the environment through the stomates and the leaf cuticle. A water deficit can negatively affect plant growth, plant health and the amount of time needed to grow a crop to a marketable size.
Irrigation can shorten the production period for field nursery crops and increase quality, which has a positive impact on nursery profitability. Because the nursery industry has shifted from primarily field-produced crops to container-produced crops, the need for irrigation is increasing. Over 75 percent of nursery crop value (gross farm gate) in 17 of the major nursery producing states is currently grown in containers (USDA 2009). Container nursery production is not possible without the use of irrigation.
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