TECH ON DEMAND brought to you by GrowerTalks Bill Calkins

IT’S TIME TO FALL FOR MUMS
FROM THE AUGUST 2020 ISSUE OF GROWERTALKS MAGAZINE
WRITTEN BY NANCY RECHCIGL
NARRATED BY BILL CALKINS
 
EXCERPT: While every greenhouse and nursery operation are different, one consistent factor common to all is that preparation is key to success. Growing mums for fall sales means having to deal with the challenges summer production can bring. By planning ahead with an agronomic program, growers are prepared when the expected and unexpected arise.
 
Read the digital edition of GrowerTalks Magazine—August 2020: https://www.ballpublishing.com/magazine/gt_20_08/index.aspx

PART 3 OF 3 (discussion starts at 1:35): Best by color; most unusual; what each guest wishes was in their assortment but is not; what’s an old variety you wish would come back; the most challenging poinsettia requests from growers and retailers; BEST POINSETTIA OF ALL TIME.
 
For this 3-part episode of the Tech On Demand Podcast, host Bill Calkins turns the golden TOD mic over to Chris Beytes, editor-in-chief of GrowerTalks magazine. Let’s all welcome “Bossman Beytes” to his first-ever podcast!
 
Chris asked three poinsettia experts—Gary Vollmer of Selecta One, Rebecca Siemonsma of Express Seed and Steve Rinehart of Rinehart Poinsettias—to share what they think are the BEST poinsettias for a wide range of grower and retailer needs.
 
Chris asks about just about every use—early- to late-season, small to large pots, best core and novelty colors, best varieties for regions from Fairbanks to Miami—and he asks them to pick regardless of breeder! He even asks which variety they wish was in their catalog, which variety they wish had never been bred, and which variety is the best poinsettia of all time.
 
Gary, Rebecca and Steve have more than 100 years of poinsettia experience between them and know almost every variety introduced since St. Louis Red!
 

PART 2 OF 3 (discussion starts at 1:35): Best for poinsettia “trees”; best for large containers; best traditional straight-ups; best poinsettias as cut flowers; best for independent garden centers; best florist type; best for fundraisers; poinsettias for landscape (?); energy-efficient varieties for cool growing; best for natural, compact finishing; varieties less-prone to whitefly (?); variety with longest shelf life, sturdiest varieties.
 
For this 3-part episode of the Tech On Demand Podcast, host Bill Calkins turns the golden TOD mic over to Chris Beytes, editor-in-chief of GrowerTalks magazine. Let’s all welcome “Bossman Beytes” to his first-ever podcast!
 
Chris asked three poinsettia experts—Gary Vollmer of Selecta One, Rebecca Siemonsma of Express Seed and Steve Rinehart of Rinehart Poinsettias—to share what they think are the BEST poinsettias for a wide range of grower and retailer needs.
 
Chris asks about just about every use—early- to late-season, small to large pots, best core and novelty colors, best varieties for regions from Fairbanks to Miami—and he asks them to pick regardless of breeder! He even asks which variety they wish was in their catalog, which variety they wish had never been bred, and which variety is the best poinsettia of all time.
 
Gary, Rebecca and Steve have more than 100 years of poinsettia experience between them and know almost every variety introduced since St. Louis Red!

PART 1 OF 3: Guest introductions and experience; best early season varieties; best for autumn; best for big box promos/ad flyers; best for late season; best core red by region; best mini.
 
For this 3-part episode of the Tech On Demand Podcast, host Bill Calkins turns the golden TOD mic over to Chris Beytes, editor-in-chief of GrowerTalks magazine. Let’s all welcome “Bossman Beytes” to his first-ever podcast!
 
Chris asked three poinsettia experts—Gary Vollmer of Selecta One, Rebecca Siemonsma of Express Seed and Steve Rinehart of Rinehart Poinsettias—to share what they think are the BEST poinsettias for a wide range of grower and retailer needs.
 
Chris asks about just about every use—early- to late-season, small to large pots, best core and novelty colors, best varieties for regions from Fairbanks to Miami—and he asks them to pick regardless of breeder! He even asks which variety they wish was in their catalog, which variety they wish had never been bred, and which variety is the best poinsettia of all time.
 
Gary, Rebecca and Steve have more than 100 years of poinsettia experience between them and know almost every variety introduced since St. Louis Red!

Our guest today is Jason Twaddell. Jason joins host Bill Calkins to tackle an important topic for all growers. In this STEM Rewind, he digs into the Why, What and When of trialing in an effort to highlight the importance of this critical piece of the growing puzzle. With margins getting narrower and the tolerance for inefficiency and shrink dropping to near zero, trialing and testing new genetics before replacing existing varieties is more important than ever.
Some of the topics he covers include trialing to solve problems and not just to evaluate what’s new; improving labor–intensive processes and the importance of an internal champion to maximize resources. Jason details the steps to take when implementing an effective trial strategy and also how to plan and prioritize to achieve the goals you set. This episode is appropriate for many roles in your greenhouse operation from management to section growers. Getting your team aligned when putting trials in place is critical to the whole process.

RESISTANCE MANAGEMENT
FROM THE APRIL 2024 ISSUE OF GROWERTALKS MAGAZINE
WRITTEN BY DR. RAYMOND A CLOYD
NARRATED BY BILL CALKINS
 
EXCERPT: Resistance develops when pesticides with similar modes of action are continually applied to manage insect and/or mite pest populations below plant-damaging levels. It’s important to understand that pesticides don’t cause resistance; instead, pesticides select for naturally occurring resistance traits in insect and/or mite pest populations by removing susceptible individuals from the population.
Two strategies that may delay the onset of resistance developing in insect and/or mite pest populations are pesticide rotations (alternations/cycling) and pesticide mixtures (combinations).
 
Read the digital edition of GrowerTalks Magazine—April 2024: https://www.ballpublishing.com/magazine/gt_24_04/index.aspx