In winter think spring: ornamental growers are prepping now

Whether you’re in cut flowers or pots, ornamental growers are on a schedule already.

For those who sell combination pots, foliage bowls or bedding plants, and all those massed ranks of cut flowers, there’s a lot to be getting on with.

When I was growing, it was mainly in soil and pots. Our focus in January was on getting ready for Easter. You know, suddenly there’s some light in the air and all the world’s gardeners seem to descend on the garden centers in one weekend.

For the cut flower growers, they’re on a tighter schedule still. It feels like the whole greenhouse has to be ready to ship for Mother’s Day.

So, while January and February may see some wine and vegetable growers finding time to do an annual cleanup, for the ornamental growers that change-over is often going to happen once those important spring deadlines are behind them.

So, what’s on growers’ minds this winter?

Less predictable winter

We’ve talked about this quite a bit in the Warmzones Grower's Blog, but the changing climate is an issue.

Now, here in the US, this is the cold end of the year. It’s not so much that people are experiencing warmer winter weather. If anything, the winter weather is just more unpredictable. It feels more variable and, in some cases, colder than normal. In North Carolina, we wouldn’t usually get below freezing, but it’s been in the 20's for a couple of weeks now.

Paul Arena visiting an ornamental grower to discuss greenhouse climate strategies 

Now, if you’re growing in a traditional gutter connect greenhouse or hoophouse and it turns cold, you’re probably looking at Modine Heaters or some other way of getting the temperature up.

And with these energy prices, you can bet that as soon as those heat cannons are firing, you’re thinking about your energy bill.

So in a coldframe you call in a team, grab some insulating plastic material of some kind, and you’re out to pull a layer around your walls. And that means you have to put that team back on to cut the insulation once spring is back.

It’s a lot of work and in warmer regions it has to be scheduled alongside the guessing game of when to paint on shade and the work that involves.

Adding a first screen

If you find you are dealing with a more volatile temperature curve, then it might be worth thinking about mechanizing that insulation process. Once you subtract labor costs, adding in some motors and some retractable energy screen can be worthwhile.

If your budget is tight, add a single energy screen first and stick with your existing whitewash routine to cope with summer radiation. It sure is nice to have the peace of mind that an energy screen will deploy ahead a cold snap. An added benefit is that with the insulation, you have less dramatic hot and dry zones directly around the heaters to manage.

I can attest that it really isn’t fun when the winter elements get the better of you. You can be transplanting plugs and instead of a root system you find you’ve got a couple of tiny hairs going into this larger pot.

You’re thinking good luck in there little buddy, but you kind of know that plant won’t make it.

Discover how we’ve helped ornamental growers optimize their greenhouse climate and improve efficiency with tailored Climate Solutions.

• Be movable not fixed says dynamic founder of the plant company as it doubles in size
• The right shade and light for extreme heat at little prince of oregon
• Ornamental aloe vera under Svensson’s Harmony screen
• Darwin Colombia optimizes the climate of its greenhouses for successful production of ornamental plant cuttings