Nursery Management

3.01 – Understand nursery structures,

growing environments and maintenance.
Nursery Structures and Growing
Environments
 Consider climate, soil and topography,
available water source, type of plant
material, and production method when
selecting a nursery structure or growing
environment.
Shade Houses
Shade Houses-Advantages
 Constructed of wood, PVC or galvanized
steel
 No artificial head source, heated by solar
radiation
 Used for hardening off plants and hot
weather holding
 Protects plants from adverse weather
conditions
Shade Houses-Advantages
 Cover with plastic during the winter to
reduce overwintering injury to woody
ornamentals as well as reduce
temperature fluctuations during the
overwintering period
 A variety of plant material can be grown
 Good air circulation
 Good filtered light; shade cloth
 Inexpensive growing structure
Shade Houses-Disadvantages
 Some plants cannot be grown year round
 No heat source other than sun
 No heat or cooling
Hotbeds
Hotbeds-Advantages
 Constructed of wood or galvanized steel,
glass and/or plastic
 Solar heated, electric cables, steam or
heated by natural materials such as hay or
manure
 Used for starting plants earlier than in a
cold frame
 Inexpensive
Hotbeds- Disadvantages
 Can be expensive to heat
 Hay or manure needs to be replaced when
the temperature in the hotbed drops
below 50 degrees
Container
Container-Advantages
 Plants are easy to move and transport
 Grown to sellable size in the container
 Less shock to plants
 Retailers can keep plants longer before
selling
 Uniform soilless media
 Insects, diseases, fertility and pH are
easier to control
 Monitoring of water intake easily
controlled
Containers-Disadvantages
 Requires more water
 More labor intensive
 May become pot bound
 May require winter protection
 May have a higher start-up cost (pots,
media)
 Plants may have to be moved to larger
containers
 May be expensive to ship
 Others: blow over
Pot-In-Pot (PNP)
Pot-in-Pot
 Uses a slightly larger pot (socket pots)
that are buried in rows in the ground and
the potted plants (production pots) are
placed inside
 Mix between Container production and
Field production
PNP- Advantages
 No staking
 No blown over containers
 Cooler roots in the summer
 Well insulated roots in the winter
 Easy to move and transport
 Becoming a more viable option to the
traditional field grown
 Combines the benefits of field production
with the marketing flexibility of container
production
PNP- Disadvantages
 Startup cost is expensive
 Field prep and purchasing 2 containers for
each plant opposed to 1. 15-25 gallon pots are
commonly used
 Labor costs
Field Grown (Traditional)
Field Grown-Advantages
 Plants are grown directly in native soil
 Bare root plants are easy to handle and
plant
Field Grown-Disadvantages
 Requires equipment to be harvested
 Plants may go into shock when moved or
transplanted
 Harder to control insects, diseases,
fertility and pH
 Soil must be well drained
 Limited time to harvest
 Supply cost: liners, supplies, burlap, wire
baskets, twine, and pinning nails
 Expensive to ship
Maintenance of Structures
Shade houses (cold frames)
 Need painting or replacing over time
 Plastic covering will need to be replaced
on a regular basis
 Replacement of gravel and weed block
 Debris removal
Hotbeds
 Change out heat source (straw, hay,
manure)
 Pest control
 Cover replacement
 Debris removal
Container
 Pest control
 Replace weed block
 Replace gravel on roads and under
containers
PNP
 Replacement of damaged pots
 Pest control
 Replace gravel on roads
Field Grown
 Erosion control
 Pest control
 Replace Gravel on roads
Maintenance of Plants
Maintenance of Plants
 Fertilizer-needs to be replaced regularly in
order for the plants to continue to grown
and remain strong
 Irrigation-sprinkler or drip is determined
by crop requirement and container
arrangement
 Shading-on newly established plants or
plants that will grow in shady areas
Pruning
 Shape plant materials
 Make plants more compact
 Train growth to form into a mature plant
(central leader or many stems)
 Removed dead or diseased parts
 Espalier-a plant that is trained to grow flat
against a wall, railing or trellis
Pest Control Methods/Program
 IPM- process used to solve pest problems while
minimizing risks to people and the
environment
 Chemical control-uses chemicals to eliminate
plant pests
 Biological control-uses living organisms such as
predators, parasites and pathogens to control
the populations of pests
 Mechanical-manages pests by physical means
such as barriers, screens, row covers,
trapping, weeding or removal of the pest by
hand
Pest Problems
 Insects
 ID insect-aphids, spider mites, whitefly, scale,
etc.
 Determine type of control-chemical, biological
or mechanical
 Treat based on method recommendations
 Weeds
 ID weeds-henbit, chickweed, grasses, etc.
 Dig or pull weeds
 Treat based on method recommendations
Pest Problems
 Disease
 ID disease-blights, fungi, rusts, etc.
 Treat based on method recommendations
 Rodents
 ID the rodent- voles, moles, mice squirrels, etc
 Trap or treat based on method
recommendations
 Mollusks
 ID mollusks-snails, slugs, etc.
 Treat based on method recommendations
Winter Protection
Winter Protection
 Frost Blanket
 Traps and collects heat during the day and
releases it at night to keep your plants warm
and growing.
 In the spring it gives you a jump-start on
plants and wards off pests.
 In fall, use it to extend your growing season.
 Float or drape the lightweight fabric over your
plants.
Winter Protection
 Water (bud protection)
 Spray water on buds before a freeze
 Often used on fruit trees and strawberries
Winter Protection
 White plastic
 Reduce overwintering injury to woody
ornamentals
 Protects young plants in early spring