Nursery Management Final - LO 1-3

FINAL (TEST 3) WILL BE WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 11 FROM 8:00–10:00 AM. Cumulative, one half Test 1 and 2 Learning Objectives and one half Test 3 Learning Objectives.

Be familiar with the history of the nursery industry in the US

• 1st nursery in US in 1737 in NY.

• 1700-1800 orchardists sold excess plants.

• 1870-1890 travel by horse to sell plants.

• 1912 quarantine and post bill pass.

• 50-60s steam replaces horse, hydraulic power, chemicals and fert, irrigation

Two occurrences that helped spur the nursery industry in the US in the 1900s

plant quarantine act caused by Chesnut blight and parcel post bill passes

different types of nurseries

1. retail

2. wholesale

3. mail order

4. linear

linear nursery

production of small nursery plants (cuttings, seedlings, division, etc.)

mail order nurseries

sell products via catalog and internet. product shipped by mail, ups or bus

wholesale nursery

large businesses that sell to middleman buyers

retail nursery

small nursery, sell directly to consumer

skills a nursery needs to be successful

1. patience

2. creativity

3. adaptability

4. organization

discuss planning that are important when starting a nursery

• have a well thought out, realistic plan

• work, save and learn, then go full time

importance of mission statement

• states the focus and goals of nursery.

• allows flexible reations to the market

• constant reminder for you, employees, consumer

when can problems arrise with the mission statement?

• focusing on too many directions

• sacraficing for fast cash

• drift aimleslly

• customer comments lead you astray

niche

specializing in a particular arena of an industry

explain techniques you could use to find your focus/ niche

• look for local adapted plants that aren’t for sale

• chat with botanists and collectors

sole propriotership

business solely owned by one person who is entirely responsible for debts, taxes and liabilities.

• least expensive

• no set up cost

partnership

where more than one person shares the skills, talents and responsibilities for running the nursery

• equal spil of finances and work

S corporation

gives limited liability protection

• taxes fall on owner

• need board of directors

LLC

corporation hybrid/ partnership

• prefrence for many nurseries

• pro: no board meetings

Explain the importance and thinking that goes into naming a nursery business.

• avoid naming after geographic area or your name

• upbeat, market your mission statement

discuss considerations that are important when starting a nursery

• salary starting out?

• money generated?

• hours?

considerations for identifying customers (with your nursery)

• accesability

• approachable

• pleasing to the eye

• welcoming

• will people want my product

wholesale

• customers- nurseries, landscapers, public gardens, garden centers

• focus on one (?)

• common choice bc dont deal w customers

• reduced # of cusomers

liner nursey

• customers- mainly nurseries

• limited # of customers

• small plant product

retail

• customers- gardeners

• location easy acess

• customer friendly environment

• hgih traffic

• staffing

mail orer

• less customers but higher prices than wholesale and liners

• understand order processing, shipping and markeing

• small plant sizes bc focus n rare, unique or new plant items

identify scope of customers

• distance to sell plant

• what plant focus

• minimum order volume

• what will set you apart

• what will hook the customer

Discuss considerations for selecting land for your nursery

• close to large customer base

• close to highway

• what size do you want it to be

• check zoning laws

consider future sales for your land

consider dollar value of plant material on property

• may not be able to buy land all at once

• ask neighbors for first of right when sold

• consider future development plans

site assesment for land

• microclimates

• water quality

• slopes and drainage

• flooding

• water source

what factors should you consider when evalutating species for your nursery?

• look for niches

• disease/ insect resistance

• adaptability

• [erformance

• produce suffienct volumen

• generate margin of profit

bread and butter plants

small number of plants that compose a large portion of the market and generate income due to their high demand, ex) holly

specialty plants

unique species/ cultivars that are marketed toward niche gardeners

explain why a nursery should have a trial garden

1. evaluate plant material before and during growing

2. allows customers to visualize plant growth habit and performance

3. maximum plant size

current trends in the nursery industry

• native

• small shrubs

• parklets

• outdoor spaces

• edibles and food forests

• green roofs and green infrastructure

• sustainable design

Be able to illustrate how interests and sales volume in plant species changes over time

plant sales like waves on a beach

what must be considered about today’s gardener when marketing plants?

• know your audience

• relate the product with how the customer indentifies themselves

brand (definition)

marketing and communication methods that distinguish a company and create a lasting impression

how to develop a brand

• mission statement

• good advertising and publicity

• brand labels

• good logo, name and image

factors to consdier about a brand label

clear, informative, permanent

Be able to explain how advertising off site and on site are effective in marketing, and be able to
give examples of each

advertising on site:

• customer want experience

• positively reinforce your brand

• make customers talk

• clean, neat, weed free

• have plants grouped together

advertising off site:

• running ads

• newspaper

• radio

• social media

• press releases

know the buildings/ locations a nursery needs to function and be able to think through organizing a nursery on sit

1. shipping/ recieving/ storage

2. admin offices

3. circulation and parking

4. propane

5. catchment ponds

6. windbreak

7. storage

8. employee facilitites

9. public areas

10. production areas

11. seedbeds

12. liner beds

13. field production

14. container production

when organizing a nursery, describe considerations for production areas

• space req. for production

• group plants that have similar requirements

factors that matter when building a nursery pad

• color of fabic cloth

• surface can be gravel or ground cloth

• white=hihg temp, black=lower temp

• fabric and plastic form an impervious bed liner that direct water runoff and eliminate ground water contamination with fertilziers and pesticides

how does spacing affect plant quality

space management is improtant for maximizing profits and maximizng quality

• clos3e space= high numbers, poor growth

• distant spacing= low numbers, good growth

rectangular spacing

containers are lined up directly behid each other with equal space between containers

• use 78% of space

• pro: cross sultivation easy , land is cheap and abundant

• con: crowding

diagnonal spacing

rows offset from each other and between row spacing is less than the spacing between plants within the row

• use 91% of space

• pro: less crowding

• con: cross cultivation harder , land expensive and small

massing

grouping a single species together

interplanting

multiple species grown together to maximize space usage

END OF TEST 1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES, TEST 2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES BELOW

END OF TEST 1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES, TEST 2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES BELOW

Differentiate between soil and substrate.

Soil (field) = thin, variable, unconsolidated layer of material on the earth surface

Substrate (containers) = artificial growth medium for greenhouse and nursery crops

What are the four things soil and substrate should supply for the plant.

support water air and nutrients

Benefits of container production

1. Small to Very Large Containers

2. Intact Root System

3. Harvest/Sell Year Round

How container production differs from field production.

1. Requires less land but more labor
2. greater return per acre but more management
3. More flexible sales but Container beds more expensive
4.Insect and disease control are more critical
5. Grown in artificial substrate

Define and describe physical characteristics of substrates and how these physical properties can be altered.

three parts

1. Solids (organic material)

2. Gases (oxygen & carbon dioxide)

3. Liquids (water)

Changing

1. Compressing substrate

2. Changing particle size

3. Changing irrigation frequency

4. Over mixing (fines)

5. Container height and shape

calculate air space, total porosity, and container capacity

• 1 mL = 1 cm3
  

• Total porosity = (volume water added / Total volume substrate) 100
  

• Air space = (volume drained / Total volume) *100
  

• Container capacity = Total porosity - Air space

Define cation exchange capacity and know its source in soils and growing substrates.

Negative charges on clay particles hold nutrients.
Cationic nutrients = K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, NH4+
Anionic nutrients = NO3-, PO4-, SO42-

How do ions bind to organic substrates.

Carboxylic and phenolic groups provide binding sites for nutrients in growing media

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Define buffering and discuss why buffering capacity matters for substrates.

Buffering is a soils ability to resist change in regards to pH.

Substrate with higher buffering WILL resist pH swings better!

What are the factors that influence substrate pH.

1. Substrate Buffering Capacity
   

2. Residual Limestone
   

3. Plant System
   

4. Water Alkalinity
   

5. Microbial Processes
   

6. Chemical Fertilizer Effect
   

7. Physiological Fertilizer Effect

Describe desirable characteristics of substrates.

1. Air

2. H2O

3. Nutrition

4. pH

5. organisms

6. Nitrification

7. Mycorrhizae

Discuss pre-plant fertilizers and pH amendments.

pH adjustments (lime, sulfur), micronutrients, and gypsum can be difficult to apply after planting

Describe different sources of micronutrients.

1. Salts
   

2. Clay granules
   

3. Liquid
   

4. Other fertilizers

5. compost
   

Know how the release rate of slow-release fertilizers are regulated.

Type coating
Size of the prill
Nutrient source
Water soluble
Slowly soluble
Microbial degradation

Know the role of top-dressing fertilizers.

Only option for carry over crops
Spillage can be an issue

Know how to increase the efficiency of fertilizers.

Nitrogen Source & Coating
Phosphorus Source & Coating
Fertilizer Placement (Top-dressed over incorporated)

How water moves through a container.

Down the sides
Into micro & macro-pores
Into the substrate

Discuss methods to determine the volume of irrigation for containers.

Leaching fraction = volume of H2O leached/irrigation volume applied

Discuss ways to make irrigation more efficient.

1. Sensors
   

2. Use drip or cyclic
   

3. Don't let substrate dry out too much
   

4. Don't irrigate when too wet
   

5. Water in the afternoon

differentiate between overhead and drip irrigation in a nursery

overhead

• 1-5 gallon pots

• inefficient

• high leaching

• square design most efficient

• limit space to maximize water

drip

• low volume

• low water use

• less leaching

• targeted water use

• damaged/ clogged emitter

• moving emitter

discuss methods to determine the volume of irrigation for containers

• gravimetric method

• leaching fraction method

• ETO calculations

be able to claculate leaching fraction and make inferences from your result

volume of leachate/ volume of irrigation applied

Characteristics of each of the substrate components, and typical blends for the nursery industry.

1. Wood
   

2. Peat
   

3. Rice hulls
   

4. Cotton waste
   

5. Sand
   

6. Perlite
   80% pine bark 10% peat 10% sand

Elaborate on considerations for substrate mixing.

Should be near propagation area
Near media and container storage area(s)
SUPPLIES: Storage pots, media, potting machines, benches, wagons
High elevation storage of substrates
Weed free
Concrete base → prevent soil pathogens

Explain the general characteristics of field production.

Large plants & few species
Lose roots when harvested → harvest when dormant
Weight → soil

How field production differs from container production.

Less dynamic and shorter season
Need fewer employees
Lower start-up
Water needs are different
Need more space
Limit soil loss
Access to each plant

what are the goals for field production

optimize plant growth, maximize plant quality, reduce soil loss

Explain how to manage space in nursery field production.

5 ft minimum, 3 ft for each 1 inch of caliper
Caliper: Measurement of trunk diameter 6inches above ground level
Between Row: 9-12 feet
2-3 ft weed free strip

The role of the weed free strip in nursery management.

Free of pests
Noxious weeds
Nematodes
Insects
Disease organisms

Explain how to amend and fertilize a field for field production before planting, during year one, and after year one.

Year 1’s needs

Incorporate 50 lbs N / acre

Surface apply 0.25 – 0.5 oz N per plants

Years 2 – 6 and on

Apply with irrigation

0.50 – 1.0 oz N/plant per year

Determine the appropriate size of the root ball based on caliper size.

1" = 18" root ball
1 .25 = 19"
1.5" = 20"
1.75" = 22"
2" = 24"

For every 0.25-inch increase in caliper size, the root ball size increases by approximately 1 to 2 inches

Qualities for field production soil quality.

• aeration

• moisture retention

• fertility

• biological diversity

Different methods of and any advantages/disadvantages of irrigation for field production.

1. Overhead Sprinkler

• Advantages

  • Cheaper

  • Most often used

• Disadvantages

  • High water requirement

  • High water evaporation

  • Erosion

2. Drip Irrigation

• Advantages

  • Low water use → water conservation

  • Focuses water near root ball → easier to dig → better survivability

  • Less weed seeds

describe the process of how to hand dig g a plant in field production (watch the video for step by step)

1. tie up branches

2. determine ANLA standard for rootball

3. dig around rootball line

4. after trench dug, burlap and pin

5. remove tree from holes (if 2 heavy, backfill and rotate to get it out)

describe the various methods of how nursery owners can manage soil loss from the fields

?

END OF TEST 2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES, TEST 3 LEARNING OBJECTIVES BELOW

END OF TEST 2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES, TEST 3 LEARNING OBJECTIVES BELOW

1. Describe the two components of a pot-in-pot nursery.

Combination of container and field production • Socket pots – set in ground, 3-6” above grade• • Insert pot – contains growing media and theplant

Advantages of pot and pot

• Advantages (like contatiner:

• Year-round harvest

• Shipping easier

• Less root loss

• INSULATION OF ROOTS

• Advantages: Like field production• Irrigation

• Plant in ground → stability

pot in pot advatages over both container and field

• Greater growth and less production time
  

• ground covering managment

Pot in pot disadvantages

• cost
  

• drainage
  

• root growth escape
  

• socket and insert stick together

• pot sags

• spacing flexibility

advantages of inground fabric containers

ADVANTAGES• Lower cost & less time than B&B• No skill or machinery
• 80% roots retained → harvest year-round• Trees can be held then above ground• Root-pruning

Disadvantages of in-ground fabric containers

DISADVANTAGES• Initial bag cost high
• Care when planting (tears → roots growout of bag
•Cultivating/fertilizing difficult
• Bag integrity
• Hard to remove bag when planting
• Species specificity (some struggle)
• Dug with shovels or backhoe
• Remove fabric before planting

Describe the two different types of liners and the two propagation methods of how they are generated.

Liners = small propagules

-Field liners

-container liners

-sexual- seeds

asexual-grafting,division and cutting

Know what a nursery owner must consider for propagation of plants via sexual or asexual methods.

Cost - seed is cheaper
• Ease - seed is easier
• Speed/time required - species specific
• Reliability / degree of success (speciesspecific)
• Time of the year (species specific)
• Skill required (cuttings and grafting more)• Best fit for business???
-quality

Know the three aspects of the propagation environment that must be modified for liner cultivation.

1. Moisture
2. Air and root zone temperature3. Air circulation

Describe how we prevent moisture loss and any pertinent aspects of those systems.

humidity tents, intermittent mist systems and fog systems

Mist system components

• timer

• frequency and application

• water control leaf

• mist nozzles (location)

Things to consider with intermittent mist systems

cost, disease and leaching

Things to consider with intermittent Fog systems

• Like mist... Consider money
• Disease: inc. moisture → inc. disease
• Leaching
• Clean water → clog nozzles
• Working environment → foggy

Describe how we modify the air and root zone temperature of the liner propagation environment.

• Air: 70-80F days and 60F nights
• Root zone: 70-75F
• Shading
• Bottom heat (winter)

Explain the importance of air circulation in liner production.

mixes air and reduces disease