Register now for 2017 Greenhouse Production, Plant Health and Marketing Conference

Sessions at the conference on the MSU campus Sept. 13, 2017, will focus on increasing plant quality, safety and sales.

The multistate Electronic Grower Resources Online (e-GRO), Michigan State University Extension floriculture team and MSU Diagnostics Services will be hosting a Greenhouse Production, Plant Health and Marketing Conference Sept. 13, 2017, at the Diagnostic Center for Population and Animal Health Room 101 near the MSU campus (4125 Beaumont Rd, Lansing, MI 48910). Leading floriculture researchers, diagnosticians, Extension specialists and educators will present information on topics including insects, diseases, foliar nematodes, environmental and cultural management practices, food safety, plant nutrition and production, and retail and marketing topics.

This grower and garden center retailer conference will offer 10 educational sessions as well as four research updates by graduate students and educators from MSU, North Carolina State University and Virginia Tech University. The sessions focus on increasing plant quality, safety and sales:

  • Production Cues that Catch the Consumers’ Eye
  • Enhancing Retail Shelf Life of Bedding & Potted Plants
  • Using Social Media to Sell
  • All About Thielaviopsis
  • Foliar Nematodes
  • Insect Management
  • PGR Update on Herbaceous Perennials
  • Benefits of Young Plant Supplemental Lighting and Root-zone Heating
  • Building Blocks of Plant Nutrition
  • Implementing Produce Safety Practices
  • Calculating, Measuring & Mixing Small Amounts of Pesticides
  • Research reports

The speakers of these sessions are well-known experts, including Brian Whipker of North Carolina State University, Joyce Latimer of Virginia Tech, Bridget Behe and Fred Warner of MSU, Nora Catlin from Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County and many more. To learn more about the conference talks and speakers, check out the conference flier.

Catlin will have an interactive session, “How to Deal with Diagnosis,” that will both quiz and teach attendees about the process of diagnosing plant problems, with a focus on plant diseases. Participants will be led through the process of plant diagnosis and will learn what to look for, what questions to ask, and how and where to seek help.

Latimer will present the basics behind selecting the right plant growth regulators for perennials, selecting the appropriate timing for the application and getting the most efficacy from those plant growth regulators applications.

One of the research updates from NSCU will include “Reproductive Stage Phosphorus Deficiency on the Upper Foliage of Ornamentals.” Researchers will discuss how a low phosphorus fertilization strategy is an excellent method to control excessive growth, but will also address that limiting phosphorus can result in lower leaf purpling or olive green discoloration and leaf loss.

The cost for the one-day conference (including lunch and handouts) is $59 before Aug. 15 and $99 after Aug. 15. Register for the 2017 e-GRO and MSU Greenhouse Production, Plant Health, and Marketing Conference today! Registration is limited to the first 75 participants.

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