Location: Application Technology Research
Project Number: 5082-21000-018-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Oct 23, 2018
End Date: May 19, 2020
Objective:
The overall objective of this project is to conduct research that is relevant to the containerized nursery and greenhouse production (protected horticulture) industry, which will produce outcomes that enhance efficiency, improve economic return, and reduce environmental impact. The following objectives, which have been identified during the past project cycle; have been carefully selected by the Greenhouse Production Research Group to meet priority researchable needs of the industry. Staff and resources have been assembled to address these researchable objectives, and initial research has yielded a base of knowledge, appropriate research skills, and procedures to address this project. Over the five-year planned duration of this project, it is anticipated that there will be significant enhancement of floricultural and nursery productivity with optimization of water, nutrient, fertilizer, and crop protection inputs while minimizing agrochemical, labor, and environmental impacts.
Objective 1: Determine the role of silicon in management of abiotic stresses in
protected horticulture production systems. Sub-objective 1.1: Elucidate the mode of action of supplemental silicon on the alleviation of abiotic stress symptoms. Subobjective 1.2: Identify a strategy for supplying supplemental silicon in protected horticulture systems.
Objective 2: Determine the influence of environmental parameters on growth and
development of protected horticulture crops and incorporate the information into
user friendly decision support software such as Virtual Grower. Sub-objective
2.1: Quantify photosynthetic responses of protected horticulture crops to
environmental parameters. Sub-objective 2.2: Evaluate energy-efficient lighting and heating strategies for bedding plant production. Sub-objective 2.3: Expand the decision support model Virtual Grower to include additional production parameters and crops.
Objective 3: Develop management strategies for containerized crop production
systems that improve crop growth, reduce costs, and reduce loss of nutrients and
agrichemicals to the environment. Sub-objective 3.1: Quantify the chemical and
physical properties of novel materials that provide producers with substrates that are economical, sustainable, and effective. Sub-objective 3.2: Determine the
utility of biochar for supplying phosphate and potassium in peat and bark-based
substrates. Sub-objective 3.3: Through improved understanding of weed biology,develop methods for weed control in crops and sites where herbicides are not labeled.
Objective 4: Develop improved techniques for monitoring invasive ambrosia beetles
in nurseries based on new knowledge of behavior, movement, and flight activity
across different habitats.
Objective 5: Characterize the role of tree health on the host-selection and host
preference behavior of ambrosia beetles in ornamental nurseries.
Objective 6: Develop improved technology for applying or improving the efficacy of chemicals to effectively manage ambrosia beetles and evaluate alternatives to
conventional insecticides for managing ambrosia beetles in nurseries.
Approach:
A multi-disciplinary team will address the goal of enhancing containerized crop production in the context of protected horticulture by utilizing a three-fold approach to address production efficiency, economic return, and environmental
impact. Plant nutrition, including the role of silicon as mediated through soilless media composition, will be studied to determine how plant stress is impacted by nutrient supply in both floricultural and nursery crops. Environmental parameters, such as light, temperature, and carbon dioxide, will be evaluated for their influence on growth and development and results will be incorporated into our decision support software model, Virtual Grower. Management strategies will include chemical and physical quantification of substrate components, as well as
determination of the utility of novel components as sources of macronutrients in nutrient deficient soilless media, and the improved understanding of weed biology to improve control approaches for crops and sites which lack current herbicide alternatives.
