y^f

JtlE FAX BOOM

Z3 Should You Join It?

February/March 1991

if

Rhododendron PJM
(Hybridized in 1 940)

■ Rhododendron PJM (1940)'

U Rhododendron Henrv's Red (1958)'

■ Rhododendron Shnmp Pink Hybnds (1958)'
U Rhododendron Agio (1 964)'

■ Rhododendron Olga Mez\n(1964)'

■ Rhododendron Weston's Pink Diamond (1 964)'

■ Rhododendron Molly Fordham f J 966j*

■ Rhododendron Milestone f J 972j*

■ Rhododendron Apnl Snow (1 97gj*

'A WESTON NURSERIES
INTRODUCTION'

A phrase which stands for the very best that fifty
years of horticultural innovation and testing can
produce. Weston Nurseries is proud to have
developed and introduced these outstanding
plants for the benefit of the American Nursery
Industrv-

■ Azalea Jane Abbott (1942)'
m Azalea Vykmq (1958)'

U Azalea Pink and Sweei (1963)'
U Azalea Parade (1963)'

■ Azalea Golden Showers ^1963)*

■ Azalea Pink Clusters (1972)'

'YEAR HYBRIDIZED

FOR THE FINEST "NEW ENGLAND-GROWN" PLANTS,
VISIT OUR WHOLESALE SALES YARD OR CALL AND ASK

FOR TOM WILHELM, DAVE WALKER OR TOM WILLIAMS.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO HELPING YOU.

Since 1923

Weston I^rsenes 1 Inc.

of Hopkinton

Growing New England's largest variety of landscape-size plants, stirubs, trees and perennials

E. Main St. (Rte. 135), P.O. Box 186, Hopkinton, MA 01748, Tel. (508) 435-3414
From Boston 235-3431, Toll free in MA, 1-800-322-2002 FAX 508-435-3274

LINDA

February

7-9 NH Farm & Forest Exposition,
The Center of New Hampshire
Holiday Inn and Convertion Center. - i
For information: call Donna or Zib
at (603)271-3552.

11-14 The 46th Annual Pennsylva-
nia Nurserymen and Allied Indus-
tries Conference. Hershey Lodge
and Convention Center, Hershey,
PA. For information: Denise R.
Calabrese at (717) 238-1673.

15-16 The 5th Annual National
Landscape Architecture and Design
Symposium on the Environment.
Holiday Inn, Bethesda, MD; 8:30
a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. For
information on exhibitor booths and
registration: Sandra Lerner at (301)
652-1212.

16-18 Conference on Insect and
Disease Management on Ornamen-
tals. Stouffer Concourse Hotel,
Denver, Colo. For information:
Nancy Lawler, Society of American
Florists; (800) 336-4743.

19 Second Annual Greenhouse Cut
Flower Workshop. Lori Student
Center, Colorado Stat« University,
Fort Collins, Colo. For infonnation:
K. L. Goldsberry; (303) 491-7019; fax
(303)491-4895.

28 Vermont Plantsmen's Association
Annual Meeting. Woodstock, VT.
For information: Charlie Prout at

(802)425-2877.

March

6-10 Granite State Garden and
Flower Show, National Guard
Armory, Canal Street, Manchester,
NH. For information: Ginny Grand
Pre' at (603) 446-7866.

9-16 The Boston Flower Show.
Bayside Exposition Center, Boston.

14-15 New England Landscape
Exposition, The Center of New
Hampshire Holiday Inn and
Convention Center, Manchester,
NH. For further information call
Guy Hodgdon at (207)439-5189.

15-17 Fifth Annual Seacoast Area
Flower and Landscape Show,
National Guard Armory, Ports-
mouth, NH. For information:
Brenda Schure at( 603) 436-0815.

April

5-6 University of New Hampshire
Greenhouse Open House. Plant
Biology and Thompson School
Greenhouses, Durham, NH. For
information: (603) 862-3205.

June

14-16 WF&FSA (Wholesale
Florists and Florist Suppliers of
America) Trade Show. Orange
County Convention/Civic Center,
Orlando, Florida. For information:
(703)241-1100

August

22 Griffin Greenhouse Supply
Open House. Tewksbury, Mass.
For information: (508) 851-4346.

Credits

Design: Jom Doherty Design Studio
Cover drawing by Mark Crispi

INSIDE

FROM THE BOARD

3

TILLANDSIAS

A Plant Collection

That Won't Interfere with Profits

Peter Corey

4&5

NEW HAMPSHIRE NEWS

10 & 11

ELSEWHERE IN THE NEWS

Tips from the Griffin Guru

Minutes

Classifieds

14

The Fax Boom of the 90's
Margaret J. Pratt

18

PROFILE
Newton Greenhouses:

The Beauty
of Practical Solutions

23

The Hemlock Wooly Adelgid:

Attracting Attention

South of Our Border

Robert D. Childs

25

Bedding Plant Season:

It's Just Around the Corner

Tina Saivtelle

27

Growing Media & Water pH:

It Is Often Not

What You Think It Is

Paul A. King & Robert Eikhof

The Planlsman is published in early
February, April, June, September, Oc-
tober, and December with copy dead-
lines being the 5th ofeach prior month.
While camera-ready is preferred, as
set-up assistance is available at a
nominal fee. Free classifiesd advertis-
ing is offered as a member service We
will carry a short message (no artwork
or logos) for one or two issues of The
Planlsman.

AD SIZE 6x Ix

3 3/8" w a: 2 3/81i $120 $30

3 3/8" w X 4 7/8"h $160 $40

7" w I 2 3/8"h $160 $40

7" w a: 4 7/8"h $250 $50

7" w .r 10 "h $400 $100

For further information, please con-
tact the editor: Robert Parker at the
UNH Research Greenhouses, Durham,
NH 03824, (603)862-2061 ; or PO Box 5,
Newfields, NH 03856, (603)778-8353.

Fkbruary/March 1991 1

FE

TH

Writing About Plants...

Alan Eves

^ r ntin;

...Way back

in March 1990,

I decided that every

effort would be

made to maximize

every bit of business

that came into our

garden center.

riting about plants is the farthest
thing from my mind right now. I'm
tired and worn from a lo-oong, strenu-
ous season of retailing, landscaping,
dealing with customers and employ-
ees. Oh yes — and growing thousands
of poinsettias, mums, geraniums,
annuals. ..and selling multitudes of
very.. .heavy. ..nursery stock.

For me, January and February is a
time to sink back and do other things
else besides work my buns off. Things
1 ike skiing, making improvements on
■"This Old Farm House," drawing, and
pla>n'ng my trumpet. And it's kind of
fun to see if I can actually keep up
with the cleaning and organizing. I
also like to spend time with friends
and relatives and my dog, and my
friend's relatives, and my friend's
relatives' dog.

This January is particularly welcome
after last season. Whv?

■Well. ..way back in March, 1990, I
decided that every effort would be
made to maximize every bit of busi-
ness that came into our garden cen-
ter.

As a result, it was the best year we
ever had. In the face of a recession,
that's an accomplishment! It is a tre-
mendous amount of work to do your
job the way it should be done, at all
times, without fail: i.e. — answering
the mountain of customer calls day -in
and day-out, working out employee
problems, growing crops, selling
nursery stock, planting nursery
stock — all. ..season. ..long.

Prefinished crops and happy , healthy
employees is the way to go. You're
crui si n' when you can turn over bench
space multitudes of times and keep
the same help ft-om one year to the
next — and stay the heck out of their
way.

Well, I'm sure some of you are quite
busy this time of year growing gera-
niums, Easter lilies, roses, etc. With
that in mind, I will sign off and con-
tinue my search for that perfect bump
run on the slopes.

(P.S. Thanks for growing top quality
crops and doing your best possible
job.)

Alan Eves is the owner of Garden of
Eves Greenhouses, 192 Breakfast
Hill Road, Greenland, NH 03840.
Telephone: (603) 436-3581. •'*•

THE Plants MAN

Alan Eves

Like most greenhouse owners I'm in
the business because I have a gen-
uine Hking for plants. And like most
plant lovers, I like to have a collection
of plants that I can call my own. Un-
fortunately, I have to remind myself
that I'm in the business to make mon-
ey and thus cannot sacrifice green-
house space for my own private con-
sen'atory. As such, I feel that I have
arrived at a compromise by putting
together a personal collection of
Tillandsias which I keep on display
in my retail greenhouse.

Tillandsias are a genus of the
Bromeliacae, or pineapple family.
The cuTTent edition of Exotica lists
no fewer than 88 different species
and two hybrids. Although the name
may seem strange, most people are
familar with at least one Tillandsia,
T. usneoides. Its common name is
Spanish Moss and it can be seen
hanging from the trees throughout
most of the Southeastern United
States. Additionally, Tillandsias
have been appearing in gift shops in
recent years where they are sold as
small air plants attached to shells
and pieces of driftwood.

Tillandsias range from the South-
eastern United States through the
Caribbean Islands and into Central
and South America. Most species are
epiphytic, growing on tree limbs,
rocks, and even telephone lines. Their
size ranges from the nearly micro-
scopic T. usneoides to the large and
impressive T. grandis, which is
known to reach 12 feet tall when in
blossom. Tillandsias take on many
forms but most consist of a whorl of
strap-like leaves which arise from a
basal stem. Tillandsia setacea has
thin straight leaves that make it look
like nothing more than a twig of pine
needles. T. bulbosa has a bulbous
stem from which arise thin tubular
leaves that undulate in numerous
directions as if they were the arms of
an octopus. And T. xerographica, my
favorite, has long leaves that whorl
about the central stem giving it the
appearance of a whirlpool's vortex,
ready to suck in any customer that
ventures too close.

Since most Tillandsia are epiphytic,
their leaves have evolved special
structures to capture moisture and

Tillandsias

Plant Collection

That Won't Interfere

with Profits

Peter Corey

nutrients from the air around them.
These structures look like scales and
are called scurf. These scales give the
plant a greyish-green hue. In some
instance the scales are so pronounced
that the plant appears to be covered
with white hairs, such as T. tector-
um. AW Tillandsias have roots as well .
but these serve largely as anchors.

Most Tillandsias bloom once a year
with regularity. Their inflorescence
can be quite large or almost
nonexistant. It is the foliage that gen-
erally puts on a better show at blos-
som time as it turns from grey-
green to varing shades of red and
orange. After blossoming the plant
usually dies but not before sprouting
one or more new shoots (or pups) to
take its place.

I was introduced to the world of Bro-
meliads and Tillandsias while a stu-
dent at UNH. The conservatory
there holds an impressive display of
Bromeliads. I became intrigued with
their form, diversity, and growth
habits.

My current collection contains 30
spedes, all of which are epiphytic. I
mount them individually on pieces of
cedar bark which are about eight
inches long and two inches thick. Us-
ing clear fishing line, I afix a ball of
unmilled sphagnum moss to the ce-
dar. I then set the base of the plant on
top of the moss and loosely tie the
plant to the cedar bark. Eventually
the plant's own roots vrill anchor it to
the moss and the fishing line can be
removed. The moss helps to maintain
moisture and humidity around the
plant

My collection enjoys a southern ex-
posure but I provide them with arti-
ficial shade during the summer
months. Tillandsia care is very easy.
I mist them whenever the moss ap-
pears dry, usually every two to three
days, and occasionally I use a dilute
solution of Peters 15-16-17 Peat Lite
Special. I also insure that they re-
ceive good air circulation which is
very important.

My entire collection occupies only
veritcal space on a 6 x 8 piece of lat-
tice work that hides one of the fur-
naces in the gr-eenhouse. Since no
benchspace is lost. I have no problem
justifying the presence of the collec-
tion. My customers are intrigued by
them and love to ask questions about
them. And, oh yes, I will sell them if
the price is right.

I obtain all my Tillandsias from
Cornelison Bromeliads, 225 San
Bernardino Street, North Fort
Myers, Florida 33903. Frank
Cornelison is retired from the Army
and raises Bromeliads as a hobby.
He has a wide selection of Tilland-
sias, as well as other Bromeliads. His
price list is free for the asking and
although it's nothing fancy, his
plants are of good quality and the
price can't be beat.

If the idea of a Tillandsia collection
interests you, find yourself a source
and indulge yourself with a plant
collection that won't interfer with
your profits.

Peter Corey is co-owner of Village
Green Florist & Greenhouses.
17 Cottage Street, Littleton, NH
03561. For further information, call
Peter at (603) 444-2201. -^

F E H R U A R V / M A R C H 1991 3

REARS

SOLO

HYPRO

HANNAY

AGTECH

Orchard Equipment and Supply Company

RO. Box 540. Conway, MA 01341 (413) 369-4335

Manufacturing and Distributing Specialized Equipment lor Agriculture

SPRAY GUNS

FORKLIFTS

MOWERS

SAFTEY EQUIPMENT

Call us at: 1 800 634 5557

to request our new catalog
and for all your spraying needs.

35 Portt^d St., East Rochester, NH 03867 • (603) 332-7388 • 332-0127 • 332-5?^

B & B CONTAINER AND BARE ROOT GROWN: TREES • EVERGREENS • SHRUBS ■
SMALL FRUITS ■ FRUIT TREES ■ ROSES • AZALEAS - RHODODENDRONS

ANNUALS • PERENNIALS • GERANIUMS • 10" FALL MUMS
NURSERY CARTS • TRACKING TRAILERS

CALL OR WRPTE FOR CATALOG • DELIVERY SERVICE OR FARM PICK-UPS WELCOME • HARDY NH GROWN
PU\NT MATERIAL

NORTHERN NURSERIES

WHOLESALE HORTICULTURAL DISTRIBUTION CENTERS

U.S. Route 5 • White River Junction, VT 05001
16 Pinkham Road West • Harrington, NH 03825

SERVING THE PROFESSIONAL

WITH ABOVE GROUND PLANT MATERIAL

Distributors in the following lines:

• Lofts Seeds • Birchmeier Sprayers

• DeWitt Weed Barrier • Lebanon Turf Fertilizers

• Corona Hand Tools • Mulch & Grow Hydroseeding Fiber

• Earthway Spreaders • Nursery & Landscape Supplies

Contact: ^"^'^^-^

Jim Babb, Mgr. • White River Junction, VT • (802) 295-2117
Bruce Fuller, Mgr. • Barrington, NH • (603) 868-7172

GOOD SERVICE • DEPENDABLE QUALITY • CONVENIENT LOCATION

4 THK Plants MAN

SPIDER WEB
GARDENS

Established in 1938

Route 109 A
Center Tuftonboro,NH 038 16

Quality-Grown Annuals,
Perenni2ds and Nursery Stock

A few of our specialties include:

Lilacs, Canadian Hemlock, Peonies,

Daylilies, Hosta, Forced Bulbs,

and Partridge Berry Wreaths

Open Year-round
Daily 8 a.m.- 5 p.m.
(603)569-5056

TREES • EVERGREENS • SHRUBS

COLORADO SPRUCES
3* to 10'... QUANTITY PRICES AVAILABLE

O'Donal's
Nurseries

HOURS:
Mon. - Sat.
7:00 - 5:30
Sunday
9:00 - 5:00
(except July &
August)
Sat. & Sun.
by appt

Lncaled at lunilion of routes 22 & 114

Gorham, Maine 04038
Phone (207) 839-4262 or 839 6364

We specialize in growing specimen plant materials

PAUL CAVICCHIO GREENHOUSES INC.

Wholesale Growers

ANNUALS

PERENNIALS

GROUND COVERS

HARDY MUMS ^^...^^^^

110 Codjer Lane
Sudbury, MA 01776
(508) 443-7177

F i: IJ R U A R Y / M A K C H 1991 5

A

urn

New Representative

Skidelsky, the plant brokerage firm,
is pleased to announce that Brace
Holmes will be the new servicing rep-
resentative for its accounts in Ver-
mont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
Bruce, formerly the manager of The
Greenery in Ossipee, lives in Center
Tuftonboro, New Hampshire and
maybe reachedat(603)569-2127. We
wish Bruce the best of luck in his new
career.

Oblong Container
Fills a Niche

Reprinted from the January 1991,
Greenhouse Ma nager.

A rectangular-shaped container
filled with foliage plants and annuals
may be a hit with interiorscapers,
who often have trouble finding pots
that will slip into odd-sized decora-
tive containers.

The PleasurePak from Pleasant
View Farms in Pittsfield, NH, is a
5"xl0" container filled with mums,
annuals, or foliage plants. Another
twist: a 4" poinsettia slipped into
the center of the container and sur-
rounded with ivy.

"A lot of interiorscapers tell us they
can't find anything to put into the
oblong-shaped decorative containers
their clients like," says Pamela Cor-
nell of Pleasant View, "and this fills
the need."

The poinsettia PleasurePak whole-
saled for $7.50.

Show Time, Cont'd

The theme of the New Hampshire
Farm & Forest Exposition (Febru-
ary 7-9 at the Center for New Hamp-
shire Holiday Inn and Convention
Center in Manchester) is "Experi-
ence Rural New Hampshire."
Along with the usual three days of
displays, a seminar — "Handling the
Headlines— Farmer PR"— focusing
on media relations will be held on
Friday, February 8. Keynote speaker
is Dr. Catherine Donnelly of the
Uni versify ofVermont. She will speak
on 'The Perception and Realities of

6 THE Pi. ANTSMAN

Food Production in the 90s." Three
local farmers will relate their experi-
ences with the media, and media
representatives will outline strate-
gies for enhancing public relations
with their industry. The seminar will
be held from 1 to 4 pm at the Center
of NH and is free and open to the
public. Sponsored by the UNH Coop-
erative Extension and the NH Farm
Bureau Federation and supported
by Granite State Dairy Promotion
and the NH Farm and Forest Expo-
sition, this seminar should help all
agricultural producers deal positive-
ly with both the media and the gen-
eral public.

There will also be an auction of New
Hampshire products (on display in
the lobby during the show) on Satur-
day at 11:30 am.

The First Annual New England
Landscape Exposition, sponsored by
the NH Landscape Association, will
be held March 14-15 at the Man-
chester Convention Center.
Registration for one day is $20; for
both days, $35. Recertification cred-
its valid in four states— ME, NH, VT,
MA — can be earned.
A variety of people will be giving
talks. The keynote speaker will be
Michael Lawn, Superintendent of
the White House Grounds. Other
speakers include Peter Messlaar
("Flowering Bulbs"), Patrick Chasse
("Japanese Gardens in Maine"), and
Elaine Laurenzi ("Perennial Plants
as Problem Solvers").
There will be a trade show of "60
booths or better."

For information, contact Guy Hodg-
don; (207)439-5189.

The Granite State Garden and Flow-
er Show will be held March 6-10 at
the National Guard Armory in
Manchester. A lot of the state's voca-
tional schools will have displays this
year and the theme is "Through the
Garden Gate."

Along with the displays, there will be
fioral arrangements, a flower auc-
tion, booths, talks. Tickets are $5.00.
Paul Godbout, NHPGA Representa-

tive on the show's board, says
"everything's on track" although
"there's lots to do and too few people."
For further information, call Paul
at Jacques' Flower Shop; (603) 625-
5155.

The Fifth Annual Seacoast Area
Flower and Landscape Show will be
held in the Portsmouth National
Guard Armory on March 15-17. This
year's theme is "Celebration of
Spring." Brenda Schure, the show's
chairperson, says that "there are
twice as many exhibits this year as
there were last." (Three spaces were
still unfilled as of January first.)
Eight retailers of horticultural prod-
ucts (dried flowers, herbs, honey)
are exhibiting this year as well.

Over forty flower airangements in
three categories — professional flor-
ist; garden club; and Ikebana/Ikeno-
bo, a Japanese style of design — will
be on display.

There will be speakers throughout
the three days — one every hour on
the half hour during the entire time
the show is open. Topic range from
"Recycling" to "Bats and Bat Houses"
and "Worms and How to Use Them."
As Brenda says, "There's something
here for everyone."
For further information, call Brenda
at (603) 436-0815.

The UNH College of Life Science An-
nual Greenhouse Open House will
take place on April 5-6 at the gi-een-
house complex on Mast Road in
Durham. Dr. George Estes, Chair-
man of this year's Open House Com-
mittee, says there will be plants for
sale and talks and displays and 'lots
of hands-on demonstrations." For
further information, call the Plant
Biologv Department at (603) 862-
3205.

New Hampshire
Interpreted....

New Hampshire is one of four New
England states being interpreted by
Boston-area garden clubs at the Bos-
ton Flower Show this year. The

Chestnut Hill Garden club has de-
signed a 19 X 12 planting it hopes
reflects the character of the granite
(yes, they're using lots of rocks) state .
A pine needle-covered granite walk-
way divides the space into an area of
native plants growing at the edge of
the woods and a garden of perennials
and shrubs. All plants used must be
within a "six-week window" and the
window chosen is late spring. Ferns
will be there, but at the fiddlehead
stage, and dogwood will be used only
for the color of its bark. Some plants
on each side will compliment each
other. For example, the species
aruncus idioicus) will be growing in
the woods while Aruncus athusifoUa
will be blooming in the garden.
Frank Wolf, of Lake Str-eet Garden
Center in Salem, NH, is one of sever-
al gi-owers (Weston Nurseries is an-
other) forcing plant material for the
project. Along with the Goatsbeard,
such natives as Jack-in-the-pulpit
(Arisaema triphyllum), Bloodroot
iSanguinaria canadensis), and
Bunchberry {Cornus canadensis)
are blossoming in Frank's green-
houses.

Frank is forcing material — flowering
cherry, perennials, birches — for a
display of his own as well. He will be
exhibiting at the Granite State
Flower and Garden Show at Man-
chester in March. The design is still
evolving, but he does see "a lot of
things in flower — and probably a
garden gate."

...and Recreated

Also at the Boston Flower Show will
be a recreation of Celia Thaxter's
garden on Appledore Island in the
Isles of Shoals. Created by Virginia
Purviance, a landscape designer

from Middleton, RI, and Doyle Rob-
erts, Head Gardener at Clover Patch ,
Newport, with assistance from a vari-
ety of groups in the Newport area, it
will show only a 15x25 portion of the
garden, but it will be against a back-
drop of the cove painted by scenery
designers from the Boston Ballet.
And poppies, foxglove, hollyhocks —
even hop vines — are all thriving in
the greenhouses (and coolers) of the
Newport Preservation Society.

Thaxter's tum-of-the-century garden
(seen in the paintings of Childe
Hassam) has disappeared, but in re-
cent years, a group of seacoast gar-
dening enthusiasts has fought
muskrats and poison ivy to bring it
back to life. The Rhode Island group
will have its own set of problems
(heat generated by the crowds, lack
of light), but right now everything's
going well.

The Boston Flower Show is held
March 9- 16 at the Bayside Exposition
Center, Boston.

Two NHPGA Scholar-
ships Awarded

Scholarships of $500.00 were award-
ed to University of New Hampshire
students Sandra Edwards and Rob-
ert B. Baron by the NH Plant Glow-
ers'Association. There were eight ap-
plicants for the Thompson School
scholarship and five for the scholar-
ship for a four-year school student.
Sandy, a second-year student at the
Thompson School of Applied Sci-
ence, said in her application that "I
am convinced gr-eenhouse manage-
ment is what I want to do because I
had the opportunity to work at the T-
School greenhouse facilities over the
summer. I performed various tasks
and Hked them all." Future plans in-

WELCOME TO OUR
NEW MEMBERS:

Robert Towle
Black Forest Nursery

6 Forest Lane

Boscawen, NH 03303

m

Ledge View Farm

180A Bumfagen Road

Loudon, NH 03301

Bruce Holmes

Skidelsky

695 Grand Avenue

Ridgefield, NJ 07657

elude transferring to the four -year
vocational education department at
UNH next fall. "I want to pass on my
excitement to other kids who are
looking for a fun, rewarding career,
and at the same time still be a grow-
er working with plants."

Bob, a junior in Plant Biology De-
partment at UNH, has a major in
pi ant science with a minor in resource
economics. During the summer, Bob
is "self-employed in a landscaping
business which services over eighty
customers. The business is a family-
owned operation which employs my
three younger brothers, my father
and myself I have gained valuable
experience and responsibility from
the business which I feel will aid me
in employment after graduation." Al-
though he eams some of the money
needed for his education during the
summer, it is not enough: "Any assis-
tance contribu ted.. .will be greatly ap-
preciated. You can be assured that I
will make the best of your generosity
in pursuing my goals and career
plans."

The scholarships wei'e presented at
the Winter Meeting.

HARRY STOLLER & CO., Inc.

109-113 Essex St., Haverhill, Mass. 01830, (508) 373-6838, (800) 322-0332
We cater to the small and medium size nursery in any quantity desired:

1. New heavy grade domestic burlap sqs.
untreated & no-rot-treated

2. Open burlap bags

3. New windbreak burlap

4. Balling bags

5. Wire baskets

6. Flat-folded burlap basket liners

7. Truck covers

8. Sisal twine & poly twine

9. Woven polypropylene sqs.

F K I! R U A K Y / M A K C H 1991

r\ u .^ i

1

/~l Itnh&vutK

Find out more Write lor a Catalog or Conact
^^ Sales Rep Doug Lentz at (617) 933-6184

^^3c NURSERIES

PO BOX 120. 90 SALMON BROOK STREET, GRANBY. CT 06035

(203) 65^4541

KRAUSU\ND FARM, ROUTE 90. QUINCY. FLORIDA 32351

(904) 627-7501

a division of Culbro Corporation

PO BOX 1288. SANDY. OR 97055
(503) 668-8032

Wholesale Nursery Stock that looks good and sells well .
Container and B & B Shrubs

Garden Center Inc.

Cal Laughlon, Florist

NURSERY STOCK • ANNUALS

PERENNIALS
FERTILIZERS • INSECTICIDES

CHARLES LAUGHTON PRESIDENT
JAMES SIMPSON ■ NURSERY SALES

LAUGHTONS

Distributors of Sentinel Foam Overwinter Blankets

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL NURSERY

Tel. 1-800-633-0159

155-165 Princeton Blvd.

No. Chelmsford, MA 01863

r^B

GRIFFIN CONSTRUCTION DEPARTMENT

The only supplier in the Northeast with an entire department
dedicated to getting the job done right.

WE TAKE THE PROFESSIONAL APPROACH

GREENHOUSE FRAMES • COVERINGS • ENVIRONMENT CONTROL
• BENCHING • IRRIGATION SYSTEMS . . . AND MORE

NEXUS • NATIONAL • X. S. SMITH • WADSWORTH
ACME • MODINE • SIEBRING • CYRO • POLYGAL

Construction Department location:

Griffin Greenhouse & Nursery Supplies

1619 Main Street, Rt. 38, Tewksbury, MA 01876-0036

Piione 508-851-4346 • Fax 508-851-7559

8 THE Pi, ANTSMAN

Let

Rough Brothers'

expertise

turn your

greenhouse into

a powerhouse

— for profits.

Call the experts at Rough Brothers

for information and technical

assistance on these quality products.

Manufacturers of:

■ WhiteHouse
•Tfie International

• Harvest House

• The "21 00" gutter-connected house

• Free-standing poly arch houses

■ Techlite glazing

• Ro-Flo benches

• Ebb & Flo benches

Distributors of:

• Alcoa Aluminum Fin Heating

• Heating and ventilating equipment

• Maintenance supplies, glass, parts
... and more.

Regional Sales Manager

Mike Foley P.O. Box 355

Reading, MA 01 867 ■ 61 7/942-1 246

rrm

ROUGH

BROTHERS

Cincinnati, Ohio- 1-8CD/543-7351

l^RCH/VlONr

IRRIGATION / SNOWMAKING

in
Manchester, NH

Providing all your Irrigation needs.
Design services also available.

180 Zachary Rd.
Unit #3 ••..•. ^

Manchester, NH 03101
(603) 622-8825
1-800-558-9888 in NH only

[t]

WHOLESALE RETAIL

KATHAN GARDENS

GREENHOUSES i GARDEN CENTER

NEWPORT, NEW HAMPSHIRE

TELEPHONE 603-863-1089

OPEN ALL YEAR AROUND

71 Burlington, Street, Woburn, MA 01801

(617) 933-9815
Woburn, MA

f^,^^^^ foliage ■ holidays ■ hanging plants
bedding plants ■ hardy mums

/ y^-M

%

m

Irurorporsted

,5 EAST 26" STREET

NCW YOWK, N. r. lOOlO

212 461-0920

72 HAWKSTEAD

HOLLOW

NASHUA. NH

03063

RICHARD C

ZOERB

603 886 8665

Feuruary/March 1991 9

ELBEWMEIRE IN THE NEW

New Network for
Buyers and Sellers

Nursery Industry Locators of Amer-
ica, Inc., of Smartt, Tennessee, has
announced the creation of "the NILA
System" — a computer linked net-
work that matches buyers and sellers
at a fraction of the usual time and
cost.

Each month, sellers list their prod-
ucts for a nominal fee. Then buyers
contact the NILA system when
they're in search of a certain item.
There is a $5.00 charge per item
sought. Buyers will then receive a
list of the ten closest (according to zip
code) sellers of this item. At the end
of thirty days, the seller will receive
a computer printout of all buyers
who inquired about his products.
"NILA is a company designed to meet
the needs of the nursery industry.
This system was created by nursery
industry experts for the nursery
industry and was launched on
October 1, 1990."

For more information, call NILA at
1-800-32-LOCATE.

$88,685 Million
for Trees

Reprinted from the November 12
AAN Update.

Congress passed President Bush's
"America the Beautiful" initiative on
October 25 as part of the 1990 Farm
Bill. The president's initiative to
plant one billion trees per year re-
ceived strong funding despite con-
cerns about the federal deficit. The
National Tree Trust Foundation re-
ceived $20 million as a one-time in-
fusion of funds to be used to solicit
additional support from the private
sector. An urban & community for-
estry component received $21,185
million, while a rural component re-
ceived $32.5 million. How this pro-
gram is to be implemented has not yet
been announced.

Congress also approved a second tree
planting program — this one under
the Small Business Administration.
Funded at $15 million, this program
allows the SBA to give grants to state
andlocal governments which, in turn.

From the Griffin Guru

Transport of Hazardous Materials

New Department of Transportation regulations, effective January 1,

1991, will affect us all. Because D.O.T. has implemented even tighter

controls you, the customer, must now comply. U.P.S. has implemented

new fees to enable them to comply with these restrictions.

When you visit your supplier to pick up some products like Methyl

Bromide (poison), Osmocote (oxidizer) or Glass Cleaning Crystals

(corrosive), you'll see what I mean.

If your suppliers will bring it to your door why not let them.

will contract vnth small businesses to
plant trees on state and municipal
lands. The bill also provides for the
maintenance of the newly-planted
trees for at least three years.
(Kirk Weyant is the NHPGA repre-
sentative on the state's "America
the Beautiful" Council. For further
information, call Kirk at (603) 738-
4716.)

Perennials of the Year

Reprinted from December 1990,
GrowerTalks.

The Perennial Plant Association, Co-
lumbus, Ohio, has chosen Heuchera
micantha Palace Purple as 1991
Plant of the Year and Coreopsis
verticillata Moonbeam as 1992
Plant of the Year. Promotional mate-
rial will soon be available to PPA
members. For more information:
(614)771-8431.

Margosan-O
Available in 1991

The first order for commercial use of
Margosan-O, a botanical insect con-
centrate extracted from the seeds of
the neem tree, was sent to Florida on
November 5, according to Grace-
Sierra Horticultural Products Com-
pany. Margosan-O is registered for
use in Florida, where it's being mar-
keted, and Grace-Sierra hopes to ex-
pand availability to Ohio, Michigan,
Pennsylvania, New York, New Jer-
sey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia,
Kentucky, and the New England
states in 1991.

Margosan-O controls greenhouse
and sweet potato whiteflies, thrips,
mealybugs,leafminersandotherpests
on most greenhouse and nursery
crops. It can be sprayed on poinset-
tias in full-bract color. The active in-
gredient,azadirachtin,makessprayed
foliage unpalatable to pests. It also
deters egg-laving and has insectical
activity. No insect resistance has
been observed, nor is it expected, ac-
cording to Grace-Sierra.

10 THE PLANTSMAN

Margosan-0 is biodegradable and
non-toxic to humans, according to
Grace-Sierra. Greenhouse workers
can safely re-enter the greenhouse
immediately after the plant foliage
dries.

To be placed on a mailing list for
periodic updates and notification
when the product will be available in
this area, write to Grace-Sierra, P.O.
Box 789, Fogelsville, PA 18051-0789.

EPA Registers IBA...

Reprinted from November 12
AAN Update.

The US Environmental Protection
Agency issued conditional registra-
tion on technical grade Indole-3-Bu-
t\aic Acid in late October. "Condi-
tionar means some data are still be-
ing prepared, but no major complica-
tions are foreseen. Plant propagators
should not see any IBA product
shortages. Though technical grade
IBA will not be labeled for direct
nursery use, most registered, formu-
lated products will remain available.
Significant cost increases are not
expected.

...and Approves

Disease-controlling

Fungus

Reprinted from January. 1991,
Greenhouse Manager.

The EPA has approved the use of a
naturally occurring beneficial fun-
gus as a biological control for two
plant diseases. It is the first biocon-
tiol fungus approved to control plant
disease in the United States.

A strain of Gliodadnim virens was
approved as a greenhouse biological
control for Rhizoctonia colani and
Pythium ultimum, two diseases that
cost growers more than $1 billion a
year, reported W. R. Grace & Co.,
exclusive licensee for the fungus. The
company said it may seek approval
for the outdoor use of the biocontrol
fungus as well.

The USDA's Agricultural Research
Service invented and patented the
technologv for formulating Glio-
ladium into pellets. Grace, working
in cooperation with ARS scientists,
further developed the technology
and hopes to have the product on the
market in two years.

December 5, 1990

The meeting began at 7: 15 in the classroom off the Thompson School greenhouses
in Durham. Jennifer, Chris, Tom. and Richard were there. Last month's minutes
and the financial report were read and accepted.

Because this year's expenses were more than the revenues, finances were again
a major topic. Although strict economy and the hiring of a new designer cut $300
from The Plantsman production costs (the October/November issue was $1730;
the December/January issue was $1440), more revenue is needed to maintain the
present format. After some discussion, the board decided to double the ad rates
(even these new rates are quite a bit lower than those of most publications). This
takes effect in January. The board reahzed that there might be fewer — or
smaller — ads, but hoped that the overall income would be larger.
Winter meeting plans were finalized.

Applications for this year's NHPGA scholarships from eight UNH Thompson
School and five Department of Plant Biology students were carefully read and
thought over by the board members. Sandra Edwards and Robert Baron were
chosen to receive the awards.

There was some discussion about how to improve the application forms and give

board members enough time to check applicants more thoroughly if they chose to

do so. Some of the suggestions will be tried next year.

The board decided to meet in Laconia on January 17 just after the NHPGA Winter

Meeting and to invite the hosts of the NHPGA Summer Meeting to the board

meeting on February 6 to begin making plans for that event.

The meeting adjourned at 9:15.

Resembling granular fertilizer, the
pellets are made of dormant fungal
spores, wheat bran, and alginate — a
natural gel -like material that binds
the particles together. When the pel-
lets are moistened, the spores germi-
nate and the fungus multiplies and
controls the two fungi which cause
dampening-off diseases.

Publications

Reprinted from December 1990,
GrowerTalks.

The first issue of The Herbal Con-
nection, a bimonthly publication of
the Herb Growing and Marketing
Network, 3343 Nolt Road, Lancas-
ter, Pennsylvania 17601. 1 telephone:
717-898-3017) was printed in
October 1990.

The second edition of 'Tips on Grow-
ing Poinsettias" was issued by the
Ohio State University, Ohio Coop-
erative Extension Service, and Ohio
Florists Association Ser\ices Inc.
The guide was compiled by 20 flori-
culture academia and industry mem-
bers, and features 124 photographs
and 36 informational tables. Other
publications available include "Tips
on Growing Easter Lilies" and the
second edition of "Tips on Growing
Zonal Geraniums." For information,
call (614) 267-1117.

Successful Genetic
Modification

Reprinted from December 1990,
GrowerTalks.

Florigene B.V., Aalsmer, Holland,
succeeded in modifying the flower
color of a chrysanthemum through
genetic modification techniques. By
introducing the chalcone synthase
gene, one of the genes responsible for
pigment production in petals, the
flower color of the chrysanthemum
variety Moneymaker was changed to
white.

L A

I F I 1 D

GROWER/DESIGNER

looking for winter work at a living
wage. Full time/part time. Seacoast
area, years of professional experience
in all aspects of raising annuals, veg-
etables, perennials & herbs in green-
house/garden. Design experience; small
perennial gardens a speciality, floral
arrangements, dried flower wreaths.
Mature, hard worker, good organizer/
manager, common sense. Especially
interested in growing organically. Call
778-0692 any day after 5:30. Ask for
Kathie.

MILLIONS OF SEEDLINGS

High Quality, Reasonable Prices. Over
100 Selections for Christmas Trees,
Ornamentals, Windbreaks. Timber,
Soil Conservation, Wildlife Cover. Free
Catalog. Carino Nurseries, Box 538,
Dept. CC, Indiana, Pennsylvania
15701.

February/March 1991

-^J^^ OF OSSIPEE ^S^

YOUR FULL SERVICE WHOLESALE
and RETAIL GARDEN CENTER

Coil or visit our convenient location to
sec our compCcte stocky of these fine products:

Annuals, Perennials and Nursery Stock ]
Scotts' Lawn Pro Authorized Dealer
Ortho • Ames Tools
Country Pride Compost Products J

Featuring Seasonal and Holiday
Plants and Accessories

Roula 16, Osslpee. N.H. 03864
603-539-5995

Hours e - 5 7 Da^s

Featuring 'NK Gold' Forsythia

The best of the new, hardy forsythias

developed here by Paul Joly.

Several siz:s available.

Rooted Cuttings -- Potted Liners

of other hard-to-find shrubs and trees.
Send for a catalog.

Perennials & Nursery Stock

Wholesale and retail.

Landscape Consulting

M

WINDSOR ROAD
NURSERY

Rt. 2 - Box 884 - Cornish, NH 03'''i'
Call for an appointment
Telephone 603-543-3239

WHOLESALE
NURSERY

TREES • EVERGREENS • SHRUBS

150 acres of quality plants
Write (or catalog

Member MNA. \EM^ A^\'

Millers Falls Road. Turners Falls. MA 01376
Telephone 413- 863-2510

S

tewart^

NURSERY. Inc

a

mS^

SOD FARMS 6 V.'HOLESALE NURSERY. INC. ^^

CANTERBURY, NEW HAMPSHIRE 03224

EXIT 18, 1-93, 1/2 MILE
^ TELEPHONE 1-800-642-1661

. NURSE = Y STOCK

. GARDEN SUPPLIES

• CHRISTMAS TREES
• SOD

12 THE P L .\ N T S M .A, N

.TT *.

Hardy Northern-Grown Planting Stock

A Partial Listing

BARE-ROOT STOCK

CONTAINER-CROWN STOCK

Uirimurr,

OfOer $K0 ana TOO Of one ioe ana

vanety

100-

250-

500

2-6

8 TRAYS

SPECIES
Austrian Pine

ACE

2-1

SIZE 2/19

PINES

S-10- ^oo

499

.70

&UP
.50

SPECIES ACE SIZE TRAYS

& UP

f'?;

PINES

Eastern White Pine

2-2

6-12- 1.16

.81

.58

Austrian Pine P2 2-5- .55

.35

M)

6-9- J8

.20

Jap. Black Pine P2 3-6" .55

.35

Mugho Pine Pumilio

2-2
J-0
2-0

J-6- ^20
S-5- .34
2-4- J8

1

.60

Mugho Pine Pumilio P2 1-3" .55

SPRUCES
Black HilK spruce P2 5-7" .55

.35
.35

SPRUCES

Norway Spruce P2 5-10" J5

.35

2-2

6-12- UO

.84

.60

OTHKCONiraS

2-2

6-T2- UO

.84

.60

Canadian Hemlock n 4«- 37

S7

.12

mese ontaner grown seetanss come in oaK of 67 cavnes eacn and «e 9v

ravs mere

2-0

6-12- Tn

.17

.12

r J^^^-^'^rr"^ 'xl^ i^^'Sa^xofmea^S^^"" * "*

cofxanerj

White Spruce

2-2

9-18 1.16

.81

.58

3-0

9-1S- .32

.16

2-0 6-9- ja

OTHER CONIFERS

.17

.12

^^ESTERN

American Arborvitae

2-2
2-0

6-12- ^10
4-8- .24

.77

.55

^nk AINE NURSERIES^

2-2

6-12- 1.50

i^r^^*

European Larch

2-0

6-12- 30

.21
.21

-15
.15

^^^•3Sfi>»

:•,= =.=-:===•. :- .e • po box 250

All Hugo Pines

are too oi

■unea Al seeoiings are ro.

Morunec

HO P«.S M.V 8. -S^.rrnr.X^^O.^^^'^bJS^ -^ "^

V.£;:--7-a7C5 • FAX 1-207-935-2043

Deep-rooted quality since 1923.

1028 Horseneck Road

Westport, MA 02790

508-636-5615

SPECIALIZING IX

HeatJi . . .Heather. . . Bearberr>'.

Herbs... Seashore Plants...

also, a full line ofqaaliiy nursenj stock

m.no

FOR QUALITY SOD AND SERVICE

WmmWf

Route 3A

Utchfield, NH

427-7000

Hubbard Road

Berwick, ME

1-800-848-7550

Mmi

Big Rolls with Roll-out Service
Convenient Farm Pick-up
Prompt Delivery Service

Feb RL AR Y /M .\RC H 1991 13

the

FAX
BOOM

of the

Margaret J. Pratt

Fax machines have almost become a
way of Hfe in the '90s. At one time it
was something special to ask a person
"What's you fax number?" Even more
suprising was to have them give it to
youl Today, if you don't have a fax
number, you are considered behind
the times.

Just what does a fax do? A facsimile
machine will transmit an exact copy
ofyour document (anythingon paper)
to anyone else in any part of the coun-
try or world who also has a fax. It does
this by "scanning" each page that's
fed into the unit, and then sending
that information over an ordinary
telephone line to the desired recipi-
ent. The recipient's fax machine
receives the transmission from your
machine, and automatically prints
out an exact duplicate of the trans-
mitted pages. Typically it takes about
20 seconds to send each page.

A fax machine looks outwardly like a
copier or a copier crossed with a tele-
phone. To have fax capabilities all
you need is a fax machine, a phone
line and an electrical outlet.

Why might you want to purchase a
fax machine? There's no doubt that
owning a fax is a bit faddish. Industry
experts estimate that more than
1,500,000 fax machines were sold in
1990, and over one million entered
homes and offices in 1989. But the
major reason that a business ac-
quires a fax is that it can't afford
not to. Fax machines allow for instant
communication; this can streamline
operations and help save on costs.

For example, sales personnel who are
on the road can fax in orders as soon
as they are obtained. This order form
is filled out in the field, faxed back to
the office, and the order can be pro-
cessed the same day, rather than at
a later date when the salesperson re-
turns to the office or when the order
arrives by mail. The result is a faster
turnaround on orders.

Or, you can send an overdue bill, and
then call a few minutes later. This
avoids all the excuses about late or
lost mail. Or you can fax an ad into
the newspaper. Or use it to smooth
out the working of a document with-
out running up a big phone bill. One
of the nicest features of a fax ma-
chine is its ability to send signatures
over the telephone line. This is not to
say that the courts will accept a fax
as legal evidence, but sometimes it's

14 THE PLANTSMAN

reassuring to know that the proper
signature was obtained.

Over the long haul , a fabc machine can
save you money since all you pay for
is the initial cost of the fax ($500-
$800 for a mid -priced model), and the
cost of a phone call (usually compa-
rable to the cost of postage). This is
particularly true if you fax when
phone rates are low, or if you cur-
rently tend to use express or over-
night mail services.

Fax machines aimed at small busi-
nesses and the home office are the
fastest growing segment of the in-
dustry. Fax machines come in three
sizes: portable, home office and com-
mercial models. Because of the stiff
competition among manufacturers,
prices for all three have come down
dramatically in the last few years.
In fact, Paul Allan of Sharp's Per-
sonal Home Office Electronics Divi-
sion predicts that a bare bones fax
machine will be available at Sears for
$300 in less than three years. For
most businesses a home office fax
machine is perfectly adequate. Prices
will vary considerably, depending on
model features. Only large corpora-
tions with a high volume need to
consider a commercial machine. Por-
tables make sense only if you travel
a lot and need to transmit documents
to your office.

Here are a few things you need to
know as you enter the fax market-
place. There are more than 30
brands and probably more than 400
models on the market. Frequently,
companies don't manufacture their
own machines, but buy them from
other manufacturers, put their own
label on them, and then sell the
equipment under their name. Not
only is it difficult to determine who
really manufactured the produce,
but it's also confusing to try and fig-
ure out just how much you should
pay for it. For the great majority of
the fax brands, the list price is prac-
tically meaningless. It's the discount
or "street" price of a particular unit
that you reallly want to know about.
Machines are commonly available at
30% to 50% -I- off

Where do you find these super dis-
counts? Fax machines are typically
purchased from four types of outlets:
direct sales, traditional office equip-
ment dealers, consumer electronic
store retailers, and discount/mail or-
der outlets. The largest discounts

can be found at the last two. The
consumer electronics retailer sells
smaller electronic products for the
home such as calculators, VCRs,
home-office products and similar
items. These stores normally stock
the low-end faxes, and often discount
up to 40%, and sometimes even more.

Discount/mail order firms are usual-
ly located in major cities. They obtain
huge quantities of stock, and sell at
rock-bottom prices. Here you'll find
discounts of 50% or even more. Most
of these firms get their business by
advertising in office equipment and
computer magazines, and in national
newspapers. It's fortunate that fax
machines have a good maintenance
and service record since you won't
get personal attention ft-om this kind
of outlet.

In addition, you can find fax ma-
chines more and more at popular out-
lets like department and discount
stores.

Before you decide to buy the cheap-
est available fax consider the added
conveniences on a mid-priced ma-
chine. The features on these ma-
chines make sending and receiving
more convenient.

Telephone handset. With an at-
tached phone you can talk to the
sender or recipient of a fax to make
sure it got where it was supposed to
go. You can also use the phone be-
tween transmi ssions. Answeri ng ma-
chines,intercoms and speakerphones
have been tacked onto many models
as well.

Document feeder. This automati-
cally sends multiple-page docu-
ments. Racks hold your outgoing
pages on one side and catch them on
the other side after they have been
sent. Skip this feature, and you'll re-
gret it every time you have to stand
by the machine to feed in sheets.

Automatic paper cutter. Most fax
machines use thermal paper that
comes in rolls, so the automatic paper
cutter is neater and faster than scis-
sors. Cutters slice after the con-
firmation sheet (which tells you who
is sending to whom) and between
sheets.

Automatic dialing and redialing.

The former is the familiar one or two-
diget code you can punch into your
phone to save having to dial the
whole number. Redialing lets you try

and try again to reach a fax machine
— useful when you don't have the
time to stand around waiting to get
through.

Fax/tel switch. With such a feature
your machine will automatically rec-
ognize whether an incoming call is
from another person or a fax ma-
chine. If the call is from a fax, the
machine goes into action; if it's from
an ordinary human being, it lets your
phone ring.

Delayed send. This handy feature
allows you to place a document in
the fax machine, but program it to
sent the document later. The logic
behind this is that you can cut down
on phone costs by sending at night
when the rates are low.

Two resources useful for comparing
brands,modelsfeaturesandcostsare:

1. The Fax Guide, put out by What to
Buy for Business, 350 Theodore
Fremd Avenue, Rye, NY, 10580-
9982 (May 1990)

2. Home and Office Fax Buyer's
Guide, put out in magazine form in
1990 by Harris Publication, Inc.,
1115 Broadway, New Your, NY,
10010.

The former I found in a public li-
brary, the latter on a newsstand.

One last point: once you have your
fax number, guard it carefully. If you
don't, you will be subject to lots of
junk fax. Don't put your fax number
on your stationary or business cards,
and don't give your number to one of
the gi'owing number of fax director-
ies which list thousands of compa-
nies. If you do, you will be the victim
of public relations firms, ad cam-
paigns and restaurants advertising
take-out menus. And every time your
fax answers, you pay for the paper to
take the call.

Margaret J. Pratt is Extension
Educator, Agriculture, for
Hillsborough County Extension.
For further information, call
Margaret at (603) 673-2510. »

February/March 1991 15

S-A- = C = C S==.\3S.CT, 06076

•. . H . •/ 1 L I K _

BITLER

508-3SS-1512

-jucci _ -e.'e.'.

A qualir\-y ..-.v.: ;ro\%Ter of shrubs.

trees, and e\-eip-;::5 r J; :h-:5:ez N.H. Call for

our free cat-i.:; Sfe ^ oO 3 435-6660.

^1

milDcan

GREENHOUSE PLANTS

CHRVSANTHEMOIS

NURSERY STOCK

POLNSETTL\S

BULBS ULIES

GERANIUMS

PEIRENNLALS

CVCLWIEN

SEEDUNGS

AZ-ALE.\S

PLUGS

SEEDS

D.A. POSOCCO

Greenhouse Plant- Nur^erj Stock

Joseph Giannino

14 Si20ume> Street

Revere. NLA. 02 151

61--2S6-6541iHome(

Pax 61"-2S^ -6541

GREENHOUSE PLWTS

CHRYSANTHEMUMS

NURSERY STOCK

POINSETTL\S

BULBS ULIES

GERANIUMS

PERENNLALS

CYCLAMEN

SEEDLINGS

AZALE.AS

PLUGS

SEEDS

D.A. POSOCCO

Greenhouse Plants - Nurserj Stock

Steve Calautti

RO. Box 2092

Middletown. CT 0645'

203-346-7980

Fax 203-346-5235

SUPPORT:

MICHAUD -f

\ur series & Greenhouses, Inc. |gngi

. 533)772-3698 "'^ ""^^' ^^^%
Wholesale & Retail Fiursery IjESWJ

16 THE P L A N T S M A :

WTNDLNG BROOK TURF FARM, LXC

Quality- Bluegrass Sod

Connecticut's Largest • est. 1959

D^wenes Made DaSy throughout MA,

Cr. Rl. Eastern NY, Southern NH and

ME

100% of Deliveries made with Sod

Handler

PaHetized Sod - 504 sq. fL

Big FWls - 200 or 250 sq. ft.

Bluegrass Blends

Penncross Bent Avaiabie

Maine Division
Farrr. Location: Intersection Rtes.
Kennebunk
If^ Corporate Office: 240 GriswoW Road
irf-l WethersfieJd, CT 06109

ff'i^^^ (203) 52&^869 T

All Ordering: 800-243-0232

NEW-SKY
GREENHOUSES

Custom-Grcn\-n Specialty Crops For
Landscapers And Retail Greenhouses

WHOLESALE OXn

GROUTRS OF THE \^RY BEST:

Perennials - Flowering Annuals
Vegetable Plants

\\T DELTVTERl

SHAROX XEW'SKY
(603) 659-3288

DAME RO.'XD
DLT^RAM XH 03824

Jolly Farmer Products

ELast Lcmpsxer. New Hampshire ''j}^*):

WHOLESALE SUPPUERS ■ WHOLESALE GROWERS

Bark Mulch - ne~roCf. i .v,j>.
Bagged Mulch - Cedars Pine
Landscape Ties
Cut & Split Firewood

'•','e are here iofulfdl your r^eds..-
Call Toll Free today!

New Hampshire: 1-603-863-3311
New Enoland: 1-800-537-0031

Annual & Perennial Plugs

Rooted Cuttings

Tuberous Begonias . '"^^^

Bedding Plants -r"?^^ -^

Potted Annuals >-s<]^^

Hanging Baskets

Cyclamen -

Liners. Frefinished, Finisnec

Poinsettlas -
Cuttings. Prefmished, Finished

Nationwide: 1-800-695-8300
Local; 603-863-3370

"Integrity, qualiry and reliable senice since 1967

F E B R L A R Y ' M .\ R C H 1991 1^

Newton Greenhouses

The Beauty of Practical Solutions

A

carved wooden sign showing a basket
of impatiens against a blue sky is set
into a rock -edged bed of yews beside
the road, but the first thing you no-
tice is the silo oil tank and the two-

J Propagation
in the retail house

story work area/office space beside
it. Practical solutions dominate at
Tom and Nora McElroy's Newton
Greenhouse complex in Newton,
New Hampshire.

You park alongside the 28 x 120
Poly gal -covered house used for the
retail business (25% of the total ) and
enter through an end door. The dis-
play area is bright with cyclamen
and foliage plants, but at the far end,
cuttings of impatiens and fuchsia in
oasis cubes and geranium cuttings
stuck directly in pots are growing on
a dozen benches — some turned into
sweat-boxes with sheets of plastic—

bottom-heated with fin-pipe. ("We
don't use the whole house just for
retail," Tom says.)

There are seven houses. In all, small
fans fastened to crossbeams at fifty
foot intervals move air down one side
and up the other. All have a polypro-
pylene ground cover under the
benches to keep down the weeds.
("Water and air can get through;
light can't. It works well.") Six of the
houses are joined onto a central
passageway, like ribs onto a spine.

The main — middle — house is a 50 x
300 steel-frame glass house built by
American Moninger, a company (no
longer in business) out of Brooklyn,
New York. Tom and Nora bought it in
1969 for $1500.It was already stand-
ing and ready to use — in Wakefield,
Mass. It was their first house. They
disassembled it — all 2000 panes of
it— and had it up and ready for pro-
duction on their newly-purchased
22 acres in Newton in the fall of '71.

Today Exolite panels have replaced
the roof glass and Cyroflex panels
insulate the sides. There are no roof
vents; exhaust fans along the length
of the west wall ("in '72, electricity
was one-fifth the cost now") face
vents on the east. Sheets of plastic
divide the interior into three areas
for temperature control.

Cyclamen, gardenias ("I'm going to
stop growing those; they never do
well in people's homes"), and kalan-
choes ("for Valentine Day"), and stock
geraniums were in the two compart-
ments kept at 65 degrees nights.
Fleurettes, the miniature spray
mum recently introduced by Yoder,
are being grown seven to an 8" pan to
create a full centerpiece-like plant.
Hanging baskets of impatiens, bego-
nias, lantana, and fuchsia are al-
ready potted up. 'They're early," Tom
says, "but if I start them now, I may

18 THE PlANTSMAN

be able to save money by letting them
grow longer at a lower temperature."
Both sections have rolling benches —
galvanized mesh on aluminum
frames ('They increased our growing
area 33%").

The third compartment (kept at 60
degrees nights) is used for cut flower
production. There are two benches
of alstroemaria — an experiment that
isn't working out ("They may like it
cooler") — and a bench of iris, but the
rest of the house is filled with single-
stem snapdragons. Tom feels that
cut flowers is something he could
grow more of ("potted plants have
peaked.") and snaps is the cut flower
he can grow best. "Snaps can't be
shipped readily," Tom says. "Because
of their geotropic response. You lay a
cut snap down flat and in 30 minutes,
it will begin to curve upward." Tom
has a steady year-round market for
all the snaps he can grow.

Productionis set up seasonally. There
are four groups and each group has
varieties that grow best in i ts season.
(One growing in November was 'Ap-
ple Blossom,' a tall spike of pink-
throated white florets.) When a
bench has been harvested, compost is
added to the soil, the soil steamed,
and the new crop planted.

The benches are rolling benches
made of pressure-treated lumber.
Each bench has a 4 x 20 growing
area. They're on pipes laid on cross-
pieces fastened to concrete blocks
and are moved by turning an old
vent crank that fastens to a coupling
on the end of the 1 1/4" galvanized
pipe. They've held up well. After six
years, there's no sign of deteriora-
tion. Theonly mistake was using all
2x lumber — the benches are heavy
and it's awkward to move more than
four at a time. On newer benches,
Tom used 2x on ends and sides and Ix
for the base. They're lighter.

Light is a major factor. As the days
get shorter, the plants grow more
slowly and the stem length gets long-
er. Some snaps in winter are over six
feet high. Flowering that takes six
weeks in July takes ten in January.
So Tom invested $1200 in 36 fflD
lights to use over his snaps. He feels
the investment was worthwhile —
the lights have cut a month off his
winter production time. But they've
changed the seasonal pattern and
have "totally negated any recommen-

dations I've been given." As far as he
can tell, no research is being done.
So he's learning as he goes.

While he's learning, he's increasing
the crop. A seventh house — a double-
poly separate from the rest of the
complex — was built a year ago spe-
cifically for snaps. The rolling
benches in this 30 x 96 house are 4 x
40, set up in two rows of three on
either side of a central aisle. The fur-
nace is designed so that the hot air
blows out the bottom (rather than
the top, which is usual) and flows
under the benches "where it does the
most good." Supplemental carbon di-
oxide is used during the winter
months.

Will he build more snap houses?
"Probably not — but not because the
market isn't there, but because I've
about reached the limits of my
water and power supplies."

The water is good here — it comes
from a 640-foot artesian well at
twelve gallons a minute. This is
stored at the end of the snaps in the
middle house in a 5000-gallon steel
tank once used for water storage at
a golf course in Stoneham, Mass.
(Its mate is outside, used to store oil. )
The water tank has its advantages —
"it gives us a good start in the morn-

J Snapdragons and iris
in the cut flower house

February/March 1991 19

p

Xrod

-roduction is set up seasonally.
There are four groups and each group has varieties that

grow best in its own season

a

ingwithtemperedwater. Waterfrom
an artesian well can be pretty cold."
The tank fills through the top and
empties from the bottom, pressure
forcing the water into the watering
lines. Bromide is injected for algae
control.

All watering is automatic. In the
snaps, there's plastic tubing with
evenly-spaced 360-degree dram noz-
zles running down the center of
each bed. Computer-run booms are
in three houses. Chapin systems
take care of the rest.

Tom has storage for 46,000 gallons
of oil ("I buy once a year, whenever
the price is right"). Two under-
gi-ound tanks hold 13000 gallons and
two above-ground tanks and the silo
hold 33,000. The silo is surrounded
by a cement berm large enough to
contain any spill. In 1980-86, Tom
heated with coal and the berm is a
coal bin that has turned out to be just
the right size for its cuiTent use.
("Things work out.") It cost $6000 to
build the silo; it would have cost
$18,000 if it had been under-
ground— in order to conform to regu-
lations, the tank would have to have
been a double layer of steel. The
environment is a concern — Tom con-
forms to the state's regulations, but
withsomeexasperation:"NewHamp-
shireenactsstrictprotectionlawsand
doesn't have the manpower to enforce
them."

he stops production around Thanks-
giving, then starts up again in the
spring in time to have a crop flower-
ing for Easter.

But there are other crops. 7000 poin-
settias. 5000 trays (eight packs to a
tray) of bedding plants. Pot mums
(Tom has room for 5000 and grows
them on a year-round basis.) Shoots
of this yeai-'s Easter lily crop (3000
pots) were well above soil line in
late December.

Down the spine, the 30 x 148 house
to the left (lilies, ivy geraniums) is
covered with Tedlar, a cellophane-
like polyvinyl fluoride covering put
outbyDupont. Itseems fragile, butis
stronger than it looks. Tom likes it—
"It's easy to handle and lets in lots of
light,"— but he likes Exolite the best
of all the coverings he uses: "It's ex-
pensive, but it lasts longer."

To the right is a 28 x 76 double poly
"cool house" (50 degi-ee temperature
on the ground). Bulbs are here in
spring. In January, it's filled with
cyclamen and primroses. He buys
primroses in cell-packs, repots them
into 4 l/2s and grows them to flower
in January. They sell well— they're
small, yet give some color in mid-
winter.' He grew 2000 last year; this
year he's growing 4000. ("The secret
inthisbusinessisto growsomething
when the other guy isn't.")

Tom is the licensed propagator for
Mikkelsen's Sunshine line of New
Guinea impatiens. "More is grown;
more growers are in it," Tom says,
"and it has become very competi-
tive." Tom hopes to get a license
from Ecke, distributor for the
Kientzler line of impatiens, but until
that happens, the impatiens side of
his business may slow down. He sold
100,000 cuttings two years ago;
last year, 70,000.

He used to grow gloxinias year
round, but because of lack of light,

20 THE Plantsman

Opposite the retail house, on the
other side of the spine, is a 40 x 60
"work, tool, soil, and storage" area.
There's a 16 x 16 x 6 soil bin. Tom
uses a mix of field soil, peat, perlite,
vermiculite, and compost— heavily
laced with manure— bought from an
old dairy farm. He steams the full bin
(five steam lines go into it) for ten
hours; a bin-full should last the
winter.

A small Gleason flat-filling machine
stands nearby.

There is also a 8 x 22 cooler (full of
hyacinths in December). Its cooling
system is designed to draw in outside

air whenever the outside tempera-
ture reaches 40 degrees and mix it
with inside air to maintain a tem-
perature of 35-40. This was put in to
save money, but "it hasn't done it."
What the air exchange does do, how-
ever, is keep the stored material
fresher longer by preventing the
buildup of ethylene.

Off the work area is a small (22 x 30)
Polygal house containing 6000 Afri-
can violets. (Tom buys unrooted
plantlets from California; he can get
1500 shipped for $50 freight costs).
The violets are all in 4 1/2" pots in
three tiers under 75% shade cloth.
Florescent lights are on twelve hours
a day. The plants are watered using
capillary matting and are fed a
lOOppm nnk every other watering.
Alternate waterings are plain water
to prevent salt buildup.

Seeds are started here as well. Tom
uses 288 plug trays CTou can leave
them longer and get sturdier seed-
lings"). Except for gloxinias— they're
planted in 20-row seed trays ("the
seed is too small for plugs"). It's a full
house — an efficient house — "a house
that can really generate the cash."
Upstairsintheworkareaareoffices—
one for Tom, one for Nora. Nora does
the books there. The offices seem al-
most luxurious, with plum carpeting
and sliding doors that open onto a
narrow walkway that overlooks
whatever's going on below. 'The
builder did a good job," Tom said.
"I'm not up here that much, but
sometimes it's nice to have a quiet
place to work or see customers. Or to
just get away and think."
The offices are beautiful, with well-
chosen colors and clean-lined furni-
ture, but the real beauty of Newton
Greenhouse seems outside these
rooms, in the efficient intertwining
of twenty years of practical solutions.
(B.P.)

For further information: Tom and
Nora McElroy, Newton Greenhouse,
32 Amesbiiry Road, Newton, NH
03865. Phone:603-382-5289.) «^-

Newton Greenhouse

32 Anicsbury Road, Newton, NH 03858
603-382-5289

Quality Plants
green and flowering

from 2 1/2" to 10" pots

Holiday, bedding plants, and dish gardens

year-round snap, pot mums.

Gloxinias, and AiVican violets

Licensed propagator
of New Guinea Impatienls

DHAGON

PRODUCTS COMPANY

AGRICULTURAL LIMESTONE
'The s,dencc of sweeter soil"

PQ Box 191, Thomaston, Maine 04061

(800) 541-9127

WE'VE
GOT IT
ALL,

From nursery

stock to dry soods, Sharon Sales has it
all. We represent the finest growers' and
manufacturers' of lawn and garden supplies
in the country. Whether it's Lee Lime or
Premier Brands, Massarelli's Lawn Ornaments,
plain and fancy planters or just about any
kind of nursery stock, our merchandise is
available to you.

Call your nearest Sharon Sales rep today,
and see how

working with us
can help your
business really
blossom!

QUALITY • QUANTITY • SERVICE

HerbWeiner

275 Turnpike St

Canton, Mass 02021

(617)821-6440

Ross L Tamblmgso-
11 Indian Hill Rd,
New Fairfield, Conn
(203)746-7398

David OConneli
60 Long wood Rd.
Quincy, Mass 02169
(617)773-8824

Linda Oakes
200 South St
Concord. NH 03301
(603)226-0242

Judith Mattson

131 Hoilister St.

Manchester, Conn. 06040

(203)643-8363

February/March 1991 21

SeeV

^fiVtvg,

For twelve years. Pleasant
View Gardens has built a reputation
for quality, service and reliability. Our aops
are healthy and hearty because they're grown in
an optimum environment, and our newly expanded green
house area of 4 aaes enables us to provide greater
availability and more varieties. Contact us today about:

foliage aops

4" annuals and paks

hanging baskets

plugs

cuttings

herbs

leosant^eui
Qcnndens

New England s fastest growing wholesaler'

I

holiday aops \

foLage for interior design

flowenng plants

large foliage plants

and trees

all your planting needs

RFD 3. Box )701. Pittsfield, NH 0326}
Tel # (603) 435-8361 • Fax # (603) 435 7603
q Copyright Pleasant View Gardens 19S8

€9

VISA

,Ypii^g ^^^^ To Q

^O

to

GREENHOUSE SUPPLIES & EQUIPMENT

Hemlock Rd. - Langdon
Mailing Address: P.O. Box O

•pre-filled flats & pots Charlestown, New Hampshire 03603

•restricted pesticides

•fertilizers

•distributors for Plasti Form & Plasti Vac

•distributors for Hyde Park & Sunshine Soils

•Kord products

•JMM greenhouse

603-835-6930

22 THE P I. A N T S M A N

The Hemlock Wooly Adelgid:

Attracting Attention South of Our Border
Robert D. Childs

The Hemlock Wool-
ly Adelgid, Adelges
tsugae, is an aphid-
like insect, most
probably from Asia,
that was acciden-
tally introduced into
the USA in 1924, where it began
feeding on Western Hemlock in Or-
egon. Damage to this host is usually
very insignificant; but this pest has
since invaded Pennsylvannia (in the
1960's) and southern Connecticut (in
1985) where it now feeds on Eastern
Hemlock, T<;uga canadensis. Infesta-
tions on this host usually result in
death of the tree within two years;
even on healthy specimens in good
growing sites. Thousands of trees
have already been killed in Connec-
ticut. It is not yet known if the pierc-
ing-sucking damage alone causes
tiee mortality or if a toxin in their
salvia aids in the rapid decline of the
host.

The presence of the Hemlock Wooly
Adelgid (HWA) can be easily recog-
nized by the white, cottony, spherical
eggmasses that are lined up along
the twigs at the base of the needles.
The HWA is atypical of most insects
by being active during very cold pe-
riods of the year and mostly inactive
throughout much of the summer.
Therefore, the best time to find new
eggmasses is in January and Febru-
ary. Eggs hatch over a staggered pe-
riod between February and June in
Connecticut. These will mature and
produce eggs which quickly hatch;

and by July the new immatures will
settle down on the twigs, at the base
of the needles, and become inactive
until (approximately) mid-October.
There immatures can only be seen
with a good hand lens but the rem-
nants of their cottony eggmasses
will still remain. Activity resumes in
mid to late October and new
eggmasses start appearing by Janu-
ary. Research has shown that even
on extremely cold days in winter they
are still developing. This ability to
thrive in cold temperatures suggests
that the HWA has the potential to
move northward through all of New
England.

The HWA was first reported in Mas-
sachusetts in 1988 in a residential
area of Springfield, as well as the
adjacent wooded town property
known as Forest Park. Another re-
port that same year came from
Waltham (just outside of Boston) on
Carolina Hemlock.

The reason for these two apparently
unrelated, yet coincidental, infesta-
tions in Massachusetts is due to sev-
eral factors. The HWA is primarily
moved from one geographic region to
another (and tree to tree) by:

Wind. This is how it invaded Con-
necticut; by being carried northward
on prevailing storm winds.

Migrating birds. It is strongly rec-
ommended that bird feeders not be
placed in hemlocks. Visiting birds
will pick up the eggs and/or insects

in their feathers and transport them
to new locations.

Humans, Transport of contaminat-
ed hemlock logs or equipment, such
as chippers, can introduce this pest
quickly into new areas.

Given these methods of transmission
it is important to note that one the
HWA has invaded an area (and
hopefully has been controlled) one
must always be on the alert for new
reinfestations.

Virtualy all of the research done on
the HWA in New England has been
carried out by Dr. Mark McClure of
the Connecticut Agricultural Sta-
tion. Along with deciphering the
very complex life cycle and methods
of dispersal, he has also experiment-
ed with controls. These experimental
controls include insecticidal soaps,
dormant oils, various chemical in-
secticidal sprays, and insecticidal
tree injections. Most of the com-
pounds used as sprays work very
well, but the key to control is com-
plete coverage of the entire ti'ee.
Trees only sprayed on one side still
suffered unacceptable damage. The
preferred treament is a dormant oil
spray when possible. Currently, this
is the only labeled control for this
pest in Massachusetts.

Dr. Robert D. Childs is a member of
the University of Massachusetts at
Am herst Department of Entomology,
Fernold Hall, Amherst, MA 01003.
For further information, call Bob at
(413) 54.5-2283. '*

Caring Nurseries

Lining Out Stock

Million of Seedlings
High Quality Reasonable Prices

Over 100 selections for Christmas trees, ornamentals, windbreaks, limber, soil conservation, wildlife cover.
Free Catalog: Carino Nurseries Box 538, Depl. CC, Indiana, Pensylvania 15701

PHONE: 412-463-3350 or 463-7480

Fkhkuaky/March 1991 23

Season long availability for perennials & groundcovers

VAN BERKUM NURSERY

^
9

VAIS

BERKUP1

nURSERY

wholesale nursery specializing in the landscape trade.
• Wide range of perennials and groundcovers
for sun or shade.

I Well established plants; season long availability.
• Pachysandra: 1 00/tray for $1 5.00.
Vinca: Special (in heavy quarts),
100 or over, $1.25

Peter & Leslie van Berkum, 4 James Road, Deerfield, NH 03037 (603) 463-7663

;i

fherry Sffill

\^ nurseries inc.

Cherry Hill Street
West Newbury, Massachusetts 01985

We Welcome Your Visit!

WHOLESALE ONLY

Growlers of Quality Hardy Plants
Trees - Shrubs - Evergreens
B&B and Container Grown

508-462-6688

A growing tradition since 1S3Z

24 T H H P L A N T S M A N

Bedding Plant Season — ^It's Just Around the Corner

Tina Sawtelle

Wi th al 1 th e concern about our economy ,
what will happen with bedding plant
sales? Bedding plants moved well in the
Depression or so they tell mel In those
tough times, people stayed home, they
gardened, they did flower gardening
around the home, and they did things to
improve their own environment. Pre-
dictions in the early eighties were that
in ten years the days of desiring large
materialistic things, the big boat, the
fifth snowmobile, all these things, was
going to change. It would be a simple
decision of afTordability. They said
people in future generations would be
satisfied with less. This is where you fit
in. You have a product to sell to fill the
customers' needs for exercise, enter-
tainment, beauty, quality of life, and
moderation in spending. Well, here we
are! You be the judge of your market.
So, let's examine just a few bedding
plant sales pointers in preparation for
your 1991 season.

There is no doubt that your location will
have an impact on what type of bedding
plants you sell and how much you can
sell. Consider large developments in
your market area. Do they lend to sun-
loving or shade-loving plants? Also
consider the current economical level of
your customers. Are you in a low-to-
medium income area with customers
that are looking for inexpen si ve types of
bed- ding plants or are you in a medium-
to-high income area where people can

afTord more exotic items? Keep records
on what moves. What do you have to
reorder? What did people ask for that
you didn't have? What's left sitting
around at the endof the season? WntejY
down! Make next year's planning
easier.

You can't beat quality! You want your
customers' confidence and loyal ity. If
your customers feel you are providing
them with a top quality bedding plant
you will have their confidence and loy-
alty. They will comeback time and time
again. Dispose of the bad stuff. Get it
out of there! Continue to fill in. Either
bring in more merchandise or consoli-
date what you have. Consolidating
keeps your customers from running
all around and your display looking
fuller. Fuller sells more!
Be willing to invest in the future!
Customer conveniences and services
will still be of utmost importance to
your success. Friendly service, help,
and advice sets you, the professional,
apart from department and grocery
chains offering plants at low prices.
How easy is it for your customers to
get the product and take it home?
Does she have to scrounge around on
the ground or does she just lift it right
off the bench? Provide something for
the customer to take the merchandise
out of the shopping areas. Wagons are
great! They free up hands to handle
more products. And the bigger the wa-

gon, the more they can carry out. Car-
ry out trays are good too. Give your
customer a small tray and they will fill
it up and be satisfied. Give them a
large tray and they almost alway fill it
up! (In our era of conservation, if they
don't fill the big box you can always
transfer to something smaller at the
checkout area. ) You may want to offer a
one dollar discount on the next pur-
chase to anyone bringing back their
box in good shape. This conserves boxes
and brings your customer back.

Can your customers easily reach your
hanging baskets? Are all your plants
labeled properly, preferably with pic-
ture labels? Do you provide informa-
tive and suggestive signs to aid your
customers' decision making? Do you
provide a variey of pot sizes?

All these considerations are important
in your winter planning for bedding
plant sales. Take the time now to de-
cide and plan your marketing strategy.
Planning now, coupled with follow-
through in the spring, is a sure formula
toward successful sales.
Wishing you success in 1991!
Tino Sawtelle, principal nf Sawtelle
Marketing Associates, consults with
Agricultural Direct Retail Businesses
on marketing and merchandising. In
addition, she tenches Agricultural
Bu.'^iness Management techniques at
the Thompson School at UNH. For
more information, call (603) 659-8106.

EASTERN
WHITE PINE

6-10' Height

Beautiful, heavy,

Vermont, Connecticut Valley

nursery grown.

Growing 500 Acres at New England's Finest Trees & Shrubs

•«•.'."■ ■^'^"

r^--'

604 Main Street

Cromwell, Connecticut 06416

Phone (203) 635-5500

Fax (203) 635-3685

S^illane 95ur^eries,%c.

FkBRU ARY/M ARCH 1991 25

New England's Leading Full Line Seed House

• Packet Seeds

• Lawn Seed

• Fertilizer

• Grounds Maintenance Ctiemicals

1 (800) 326-HART
FAST, COURTEOUS SERVICE

The Chas. C. Hart Seed Co.

P.O. 60x9169
WETHERSFIELD, CT 06129-0169

1 (800) 326-HART

BAG&BURUPI

::»k SemngyouL

jUll Nu[:sery_Suppl^

Hartford, Connecticut
(203) 653-8191 • FAX (203) 653-8221

We Are Major

Manufacturers

and Distributors!

order direct from the manufac-
-m« turer of quality plain
I arxJ treated
'No-Rot' burlap
- , squares arxJ rolls,
, I bags.shadeclotti,
„"i diggingsupplies.
' j jute erosion control
, rj I nett1r\g and many
accessory products.

'„ j( Sirxre 1910, we have
- ' worked to aid tt-ie
I^M growerarTd nurseryman
with quality products. In stock
arid ready for immediate
shipment.

You Deserve the Best You II get it at Dayton Bag & Burlap!

1-800-543-3400

J. B. CARPENTER & SON, INC.

— Olde English Greenhouses

220 South Main Street — Newmarket, NH 03857 — (603) 659-3391

*T/ic Geranium Specialists''

Wholesale Growers

2'/2" Geraniums (year-round; Lilies/Bulbs

4" pre-finished Geraniums Azaleas

2V" Ivy Geraniums & Fuchsia Cyclamen

/'-'.artha Washington Geraniums Poinsettias

Spring Hanging Baskets Foliage
Hydrangeas

JOHN B. CARPENTER, President — ROBERT J. CARPENTER, General Manager

26 T H K P I, A N T S M A N

Growing Media & Water pH

OFTEN NOT WHAT YOU

Paul A. King & Robert Eikhof

Reprinted from the Ohio State
Flower Grower's Hotline, March
1990.

Measuring and adjusting the pH in
growing media and irrigation water
is much more comphcated than many
people realize. The results are highly
depedent upon how the mix sample is
handled during analysis and where
the water sample is taken. For ex-
ample, pH values of the same sample
can vary from 0.5 to 1.5 units. We
have observed a number of growers
with problems directly caused by
these differences.

Our laboratory normally measures
the pH of a growing medium by plac-
ing the probe directly into the satu-
rated growing medium paste. We be-
lieve this provides an accurate pic-
ture of what plant roots experience.
Other laboratories vacuum filter the
sample before measuing pH. The
table below lists pH's, measured in
the paste, after filtration by gravity,
or filtration by vacuum.

Table 1

Differences in water pH analyses
as affected by fUtration

sample in

number paste

grravity vacuum
fUtered filtered

1 - 4.95 5.30

2 - 4.85 5.65

3 4.90 4.95 5.65

4 5.05 5.00 5.60

5 5.15 4.98 5.50

We have often observed, with samp-
les analyzed at other laboratories, as
much as one full unit increase in pH
caused by filtration. To prove that
vacuum filtration causes an increase
in pH, we measured the pH in the
saturated paste and at various times
during vacuum filtration. The pH
progressively increased from 5.65 to
6.8 during a 25-minute period of
vacuum filtration.

An equally dramatic change occurs
with inigation water samples. The
pH at the hose has one pH value,
while the same water collected fi-om a
mist nozzle will have a significantly
higher value. Table 2 contains mea-

surement of water acidified to vari-
ous initial pH levels with both phos-
phoric and sulfuric acids. We would
expect nitric acid to give the same
results as sulfuric acid.

Table 2

Difference in pH of water treated with
sulfuric or phosphoric acid from hose
end and mist line

sulfuric i

acid

sample

from

from niunber

number

hose end

mist nozzle**

pH

pH

1

3.20

3.20

2

5.70

7.05

3

5.80

7.30

4

6.20

7.55

5

6.40

7.65

6

6.30

7.25

7

6.20

7.50

8*

7.40

7.80

* water

without acidification, alkalinity

- 150 mg/1 CaCO.l

** 'Fogg It" nozzle, 0.9 gallon per minute

phosphoric acid

from hose end from mist nozzle
pH pH

5.20 5.70

5.80 6.40

6.25 6.75

These phenomena are easily ex-
plained. The system is almost exactly
analogous to the buffer system of our
blood. The body conti'ols the pH of
blood by controlling the amount of
dissolved carbon dioxide in it. As our
blood becomes acidic, more carbon
dioxide (C02) escapes through the
lungs and the pH rises. The peritnent
equation is:

C02 + H20 ^ H-H -H HC03-

Another example is the behavior of
seltzer or plain carbonated water. Ev-
eryone has seen what happens if you
shake a warm bottle of seltzer; the
excess dissolved carbon dioxide es-
capes. In fact 60% of the total acidity
(caused by the carbonic acid) is lost by
shaking.

When the water is vacuum filtered for
five minutes, like a growing mix
sample, the pH rises and the water
looses up to 99.3% of its acidity.

The escape of C02 during vacuum
filtration and the misting process is
also what cause the increase in pH.
"Normal" water and growing media
contain hundreds of times more bi-
carbonate (HC03) than is in equilib-
rium with the C02 in the air. There-
fore, when we acidify water, we shift
the equilibrium in the equation, i.e.
we make C02 out of bicarbonate and
it escapes from the mist droplets into
the air. The acids from sphagnum
peat moss and fertilizer dissolve the
lime in growing media and produce
bicarbonate which produces C02
which is then removed by the vacuum
filtration step.

We have proven that the increase in
pHisduetolossofbicarbonate(C02),
measured by ion exchange chroma-
tography, after vacuum filtering.
This investigation will be continued.
For example, we will determine the
buffering capacity of water from the
mist nozzle.

Ifyou believe the pHofyour mix is too
high, make certain you know how it
was measured before making
changes. Vacuum filtration causes a
false reading since it changes the
chemistry of the system.

If you believe your plug mix is too
high in pH and you want to lower it,
check the pH of the mist water. You
may find that you are not misting
with what you thought you were. It
may be necessary to use more acid.

Editor's Note: A pH of 7.0 is 10 times
more alkaline than a pH of 6.0. A pH of
9.0 is 1,000 times more alkaline than a
pHofe.O.

Paul King and Robert Eikhof are
members of the research staff of Fisons
Horticulture, Inc. For more information,
call them at Fisons Analytical Laborato-
ries, Warwick, NY; (914) 986-6667.
(Gary Rota tori is this area's Fisons
representative. For information about
Fisons products, contact Gary at P.O.
Box 285, U5 Jackson Street. Jefferson,
MA 01522; 508-829-9726.) ^

February/March 1991 27

Supplying

One Stop Shopping

For AH Your

Needs

• Delivery Service Throughout New England

• Fine Nursery Stock

• Rhode Island Grown Sod delivered direct

or picked up • Grade "A" used railroad ties

• Pressure treated landscape ties

• Bark mulch & screened loam • Wholesale

Christmas trees, wreaths & supplies

• Masonry supplies • Professional chemicals:

Roundup, Surflan, Treflan, Balan & Team

Distributors of: Permaloc aluminum edging. Edge King Poly edging,

Lebanon fertilizer, Blunks weed mat, Elanco chemical and other

professional specialty products.

ir^py Northeast Nursery, Inc.

^^^SS^f^^^ Suppling Fine Plant Material &. Landscape Supplies

234 Newbury Street, Rt. 1 South

Peabody, MA 01960

(508)535-6550 FAX: (508)535-5247

THK PlaNTSMAN

The Mitsubishi Fuso

4WDFG.

Built to work where

others can't.

There's always been a need for a
four-wheel drive, cab-over light-duty
truck that can conquer sand, snow,
steep hills, and off-road conditions.

A real truck.

The 127 HP, 11,600 Ib./GVW,
intercooled, turbocharged diesel,
MITSUBISm FUSO 4WD FG, is
exactly that truck.

A cab-forward design with
exceptional front and side visibility
lets drivers see over, and around,
snowplows. Up, and down, hilly
terrain. And threatening conditions
that conventional designs hide.

Wheelbase options help maintain
the original design integrity that's
often sacrificed by unnecessary
adaptions.

A durable, reliable chassis, frame,
and suspension system not only
makes the ride smooth. But also
protects the truck, the load, and your
investment And, accepts a variety of
body and box options.

It is a truck that has survived over
5,000 miles of tfireatening condi-
tions in the Australian outback to
finish the 1988 Wynn's Safari Rally
Race when 50% of the entrants
didn't.

MITSUBISHI FUSO 4WD FG
will work on those jobs that destroy
ordinary, conventional trucks.

^

INTERNATIONAL

LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL

1400 South Willow Street

Manchester, NH 03103

Parts: 669-8524 623-8873

NH WATS: 1-800-562-3814

A

MITSUBISHI
FUSO

THE NHPGA 1991 WINTER MEETING— A BRIEF REPORT

The annual Winter Meeting was held on January 17 at the Margate in
Laconia.

Kirk Weyant brought a brief business meeting to order at 8:15. Joe
Longacre presented the slate of this year's officers. (There are still
vacancies on the Board, but the new members are excellent choices and
should broaden the range of the organization.) The slate was approved
by the membership. Chris Robarge gave the treasurer's report ("we're
still in the black, but should spend more cautiously...and find new
sources of income."); Alan Eves told us that the NHPGA exhibit at the
Granite State Flowers show "would be as nice as ever;" Bruce Holmes
reported on the location of the summer meeting ("Pleasant View, with
side trips to D.S. Cole and Millican"); a report on The Plantsman was
given, ("this year's changes should allow it to be more useful next.")
Richard Zoerb, the Gloekner's representative, began the program by
showing some of the new bedding plant introductions for 1991: impa-
tiens, geraniums (both standards and zonals), regal begonias, and
mums. There was lots of solid information on market trends and a
display of new products and catalogs.

Tom March followed with "Prolonging the Life of Your Small Engine."
Slides illustrated his points clearly as he discussed such aspects as oil
viscosity indexes, air filter types, and winter storage: a usefiil and
interesting presentation.

Tom Durkis, stateentomologist, then discussed insect population trends
noted during the last year. Although most greenhouse pests seem to be
down (sweet potato white fly is increasing), there are several new
pests— euonymus caterpillar, potato leaf-hoppei^H;hat nurserymen
should look out for.

Donna Singer, the featured speaker, began her presentation on
"Understanding Differences: Making a Better Workplace." There was a
reshuffling of chairs, a lot of transparencies and charts, and plenty of
audience involvement — a nice way to build an appetite for lunch.
At lunch, UNH plant Biology Chairman Curt Given and NH Com-
missioner of Agriculture Steve Taylor were introduced; both spoke
briefly. Tom Price presented scholarships to Bob Baron and Sandy
Edwards (see page 5) and gave awards to Richard Emerson, who will
be leaving the Board this year (however, he vrill continue to be the
NHPGA representative to the NE Greenhouse Conference) and to
Charlie Williams and Kathy Gamester for their long and devoted
work on The Plantsman. (The Plantsman began as a mimeographed
sheet coming out of Charlie's office.) Although the award ceremonies
were necessarily brief, the appreciation is genuine.
Donna continued her presentation in the afternoon. But at four the
sesssion ended, the Winter Meeting came to a close, and the partici-
pants, all more aware of themselves and others, departed for home.

1991

NEW HAMPSHIRE

PLANT GROWERS' ASSSOCLVN

OFFICERS

President

Tom Price

Meredith Gardens

RED 1, Box 233

Center Harbor, NH 03226

284-7709

Secretary/Treasurer

Christopher Robarge

UNH/TSAS

Horticultural Facilities Manager

Durham, NH 03820

862-1074

Directors

Bob Demers, Jr.

Demers Nursery & Garden Center

656 South Mammoth Road

Manchester, NH 03103

625-8298

Alan Eves

Garden of Eves Greenhouse

192 Breakfast Hill Road

Greenland, NH 03840

436-3581

Paul Godbout
Jacques' Flower Shop

111 Front Street

Manchester, NH 03102

625-5155

Jennifer Gould

Philips Exeter Academy

Exeter, NH 03833

778-0224

Bruce Holmes

Center Tuftonboro, NH 03816

569-2127

New Hampshire Plant Growers Association
The Plantsman Editor
UNH Research Greenhouses
Durham, NH 03824

NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION

US POSTAGE

PAID
PERMIT NO. 43