Some markets are dull and growers have to harbor their perennial , sometimes for weeks .
by Chris Fifo
ProblemSome perennial , specially springiness boo-boo like Aquilegia and Iberis , only bloom for a geological period of time and are done . What is the best way to hold your recurrent crops that are not selling ? member of the Ball Technical Services Team have providedthese resources for Holding and Delaying Crops .
For this web log , I ’ll divvy up some of the strategy I ’ve followed in the past …
TemperatureDrop your night temperatures more often than not down into the 40s if potential . Keep days as nerveless as possible . There are always exceptions ! Watch for crop that do n’t wish it .
Provide high light and habituate raw photoperiod ( no farseeing daytime light )
boil down provender , but do n’t withhold feed100 - 150ppm N per workweek as needed . Use a conceptualization lower in phosphorous like 14 - 4 - 14 or 13 - 2 - 13 . Phosphorous can cause stretch and soft increment . If you are losing color you’re able to enforce a provender such as 17 - 5 - 17 @200ppm .
Move crops outside if you canMake sure plants are acclimate to coolheaded temperatures already . If temperatures are forecast to go below freezing there are several options :
Use PGRs to slow your craw , but not stop itBe aware that you are hop-skip a customer will be planting these plant is a affair of workweek and they have to readily maturate out of any PGR you apply .
Selectively garnish or veer back crops that will add up back into heyday , such as lavender and veronica . If using this coming , it may be good to cut down only part of the crop – unless the entire craw is looking unsaleable . Crops such as aquilegia , iberis and grovel phlox should not have heyday trimmed off .
At some point you may have to extenuate your losses and deck a crop if it is or will be bloomed out and will not re - flower this time of year . There may be metre to replant if you believe the market place will be there . perennial plant this time of year fall into blossom more quickly .
If you have 45 minutes to spare , take a listen to the panel discussion below from the Ball Technical Services Team , tone down by Bill Calkins . It features yours sincerely and my fellow worker Gary Vollmer of Selecta One and Jerry Gorchels of PanAmerican Seed . It ’s a well - lash out talk about the current situation growers incur themselves in as we depend to nurse crops for sale .
For more information : Darwin Perennials622 Town RoadWest Chicago , Illinois 60185 - 2698630 231-3600darwinperennials.com
