Fanshawe Greenhouse Weekend Duty

Elizabeth & Blayne

Friday April 15, 2016

It was a beautiful sunny day, the warmest we have seen this spring! The campus was busy with finals week energy and traffic. With the excitement of the changing season we set out to complete our assigned tasks. We started with the opening checklist, watering and walking the crop. We fertilized the established plants such as cacti, succulent, canna, and grasses with 20-20-20, while the newly potted cuttings received a root development specific 10-52-10 formulation. Then we finished fertilizing the hanging baskets and certain annuals with a slow release fertilizer. Specific baskets were pinched back at the same time. Many pots and labels needed to be faced and adjusted after a large number of new plants have been added in the past week by many different students.

The new germination chamber was delivered into the greenhouse. After recruiting some additional hands, we were then able to remove the pallet and maneuver it back. Watering was completed again as the warmer temps are causing the seedlings to dry up quickly on the heat mats. This time of year, the warmer days and tender seedlings need to be checked 3 times a day. 

The Priva greenhouse temperature graph could only be accessed Friday morning, there was a technical issue that prevented us from logging in the remainder of duty. The Friday morning log didn’t show any abnormal incidents. There were the usual graph peaks and declines relating to humidity, temperature and sunlight, however the automated sensors made necessary changes to keep temperature and humidity at the desired rate. We paid extra attention throughout the weekend since the reports were unavailable, however we did not encounter any problems.

After completing the closing checklist and cleaning duties, we were done for the day.

Saturday 

The opening checklist and watering was completed. Most of the day was spent working on cuttings, transplanting and planting seeds. We divided, cleaned up and transplanted Asphodeline tauric into cell packs and trays. Salvia, both Evolution Violet Blue and Farinacea Victoria Blue seeds were planted, watered, covered then placed on the heat mats. Cuttings were made of Plectranthus coleoides ‘Variegata’, Begonia ‘Irene Nuss’ and Fuchsia, then they were placed into the germination chamber. They will remain here until roots are established. We also filled baskets with media for future orders before completing 12 baskets with a variety of interesting annuals. The 2 inch peat pots of Nasturtium, squash, and cucumber were tucked in with media in the tray to prevent wicking of moisture. Hanging baskets for an order were fertilized and pinched back to promote fuller growth. We had some visitors stop by to enjoy the view from the inside and ask some questions. They were passing by and the beauty of the spring blooms drew them in for a moment.

A final walk through was completed and specific seedlings were spot watered before leaving for the day.

 

Sunday

After the opening checklist was completed, we started by watering and giving the greenhouse a thorough cleaning. This was completed early to allow the floor and excess moisture to dry.

Elizabeth watered and cleaned up the interior-scape plants of the President’s office inside of the college. Blayne took greenhouse inventory while noting which tags were missing. There were many pots missing tags since the printer was out of service a few days earlier in the week when the potting had been done. Blayne counted and printed tags for these pots after completing inventory. Two additional baskets were created for an order with various annuals that tolerate full sun. Two stock baskets were created from Solenostemon ‘Midnight Train’ and ‘Dipped in Wine’.

The compost was taken to the outdoor collection and waste potting soil was redistributed into garden beds. All of the pots, trays, measuring cups, etc were washed and put away. A major cleaning was performed since this is the last weekend for duty groups before the new summer student staff begins their work term. Drains in all three rooms were emptied of soil and debris. The garage bay cleaning included organizing shelves and placing items back where they belong. The pots were organized by clay, plastic, flat type, size and shape. The floors were swept and rinsed then we organized some items in the greenhouse compound area. Finally, we thoroughly cleaned the greenhouse potting room.

Emotions were running high from knowing this is the finale of our horticultural journey with Fanshawe, it was a bittersweet. It has been both exciting and challenging but overall a rewarding education. This weekend held hard work, a lot of laughs, and some teary eyes at the end. It may be the last time walking this greenhouse in our program gear, but we will always be grateful for the great memories and stories we will take away! 

 

 

Greenhouse Blog April 8-10

Yujing Ma & James Duncan

Friday April 8, 2016

It has been a little cold this weekend as it seems to have often been this ever changing spring. That said, the daily temperature and humidity reading aspect of our greenhouse assignment seems to be particularly important.

In the morning of our first day, James walked the crop and examined the PRIVA data in the morning, an essential tool to monitor the temperature conditions. Meanwhile at the A.M. Cuddy Gardens, I was struggling with my CLT hands-on exams. When I arrived back at the greenhouse, he had already completed several items on our list of what needed doing that day. I am so glad that I have such a dedicated and reliable partner.

Once I returned, we filled ten hanging baskets with the Pro-mix media in to be sent to the Cuddy Gardens later this week. These hanging baskets are made with a very dense cardboard material which is strong enough to hold more than 20 kilograms and has the added bonus of being completely biodegradable. Later in the afternoon, I went to check the seedling flats. Friday, despite being a very cold day, there were no clouds in the sky; the bright sun would quickly dry out the exposed and shallow seedling flats. If the seedlings dry out, the tiny plants will almost certainly die.

In the greenhouse it is crucial to pay attention to watering time. Generally, it is best to water in the morning. If the plants in the greenhouse stay wet into the evening and overnight, rates of disease inevitably increase. Last but not the least, greenhouse staff should avoid by all means watering in humid or rainy weather condition, as the increased humidity will prevent water from evaporating off of leaf surfaces and again put the plants at risk.

Saturday April 9, 2016

We arrived at the greenhouse before eight o’clock and checked the temperature in the morning. The temperature was a little bit lower than on Friday morning, and at noon, it began to snow. We used the entire morning doing indoor plant maintenance. The registrar center, where several of the indoor plants we were working with that day, was only open between 9:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. so we had to be very efficient to make sure we finished everything before they closed.

We first went to H building to return a couple plants we would be working with. We discovered they were infested with scale, a common pest which produces a sticky sap like substance called honeydew. Scale can be very difficult to treat, because the insect makes a protective shell around its body. We attempted to treat them using insecticidal soap, this can be a useful and environmentally friendly application which is often used to eliminate the soft bodied insects. It works by contacting the insects and suffocating them, however; after the treatment it is crucial to wash the plant foliage to remove the product, as it can do the same thing to the plants. Insecticidal soap must also not be applied on a hot or sunny day outdoors, as insecticidal soap will burn the plant foliage.

We went to residence building three to clean up and transplant several indoor tropical plants. The plants we moved look much better in their new places, and seem much more natural and beautiful.

 In the afternoon, we moved and washed the heating mat to the last bench for our new seeding flats. Sanitation is always the most important element to preventing disease. James and I calculated how many flats would fit in the limited space provided on the heating mat. For the labelling part, we disagreed over the common name. He insisted that the Salvia farinacea is most commonly known just as salvia. I checked google, which said it was called mealy cup sage. I trusted my partner, so I gave my right for him. No matter what the common name is, as a nearly graduated Horticulture Technician student I highly recommend this plant to horticulture fans. It is a mainly pest-free, low -maintenance, deep blue flowered plant and it is hardy to USDA zone seven. The shining bright flowers will last from the summer to fall. I can imagine how lovely they will be after these seeds grow up. We prepared 60 flats of growing media for transplanting our seedlings into, but still have 45 flats to be done Sunday.

Sunday April 10, 2016

      In the morning, we continued the seeding and preparing the flats for transplanting. We also cleaned and sterilized the dirty pots around sink carefully organized them in the equipment room. James walked the crop and then watered using different watering attachments.

      After we finished our lunch, we started to do some cuttings for our client orders. The list included Dichondra, Fuchsia, Plectranthus, Alternanthera, Senecio, Abutilon, and Breynia nivosa. They are all excellent annual potting plants for the whole summer season, and can be kept over winter indoors.

      As we approach the end of our two-year tenure as students, many may be worried about leaving their campus lives, but most of us probably feel concerned for the coming week of tests, particularly those students who still have their weekend duties! We are pressed for time, but personally speaking, I quite enjoy this feeling. It is a good chance to challenge oneself to be the best you can be!

Weekend Duty Blog!

Todd Neerhof & Eric Patterson

Friday, April 1, 2016

 The first day of Eric and Todd’s weekend duty did not quite go as planned. Not only did they not show up to the greenhouse on time, when they finally arrived (shortly after noon) what they found was horrific! The greenhouse doors had been smashed in by a burglar and the entire crop that was growing in the greenhouse was decimated. Jeff Rowley was nowhere to be found and neither Eric nor Todd had the slightest clue of what to do. Both Eric and Todd were stricken with grief when they thought of all of the exciting learning opportunities they were missing out on. They needed to fill hanging baskets with Promix so they could transplant the plugs that had just been shipped to the greenhouse. They would have filled 700 4” pots in preparation for the shipment of annual plugs that are coming to the greenhouse in a few weeks. Finally, Eric and Todd were planning on potting up a flat of Elephant Ear plugs that came in earlier that day. They also wanted to spend time cleaning the greenhouse to make it look good for the open house that Fanshawe was hosting tomorrow. If they had gotten to do what they wanted and the greenhouse wasn’t completely destroyed, it would have looked something like the pictures below. Ultimately it was an extremely stressful day for the two young men. If only it wasn’t April Fools!

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Saturday was the day of Fanshawe’s open house. With the greenhouse so immaculately cleaned from the day prior; Eric and Todd finished their morning duties quickly, while maintaining a high standard of work.  In the morning they both worked on potting up the Pennisetum into 1 gallon square pots until the volunteer crew showed up to prepare for the open house. When the volunteer group arrived they switched their focus to representing the school and program well. This took up most of Eric and Todd’s day. They were helping the volunteers talk to people who are interested in the horticulture program at Fanshawe. When Eric and Todd finished with helping out in the open house they started potting up the Geraniums into 1 gallon square pots. This took them until the end of the day, when they started their closing checklist and closed the cash register. Both Eric and Todd really enjoyed the experience at the open house. Highlight day of their weekend duty.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

On Sunday when Eric and Todd got to work, they started with finishing off the Geraniums that still needed to be potted up from Saturday. After they finished with that, they cleaned up the Dichondra that had some dead stems inside of them. They also moved some of the Dichondra into the correct size of 4 cell trays and put them underneath the cheese cloth.  Eric was sure to use a misting head for the Dichondra to create an environment underneath the cheesecloth that is very humid. They potted up the Peperomia into the orange pots that are used for succulents. While potting up the Peperomia, they realized that there were no labels in them. Wanting to do the job correctly, Todd searched online to find the common and Latin names of the different kinds of Peperomia. As the day was coming to a close they organized the benches a bit to keep all of the same sized pots together and to have the same Genus of plants together. This makes it much easier for people in the future when they need to find a certain plant. In the end they both had an excellent weekend and learned a lot of very use full information.