In early October, two days of online educational sessions and networking chats took the place of the annual Canadian Greenhouse Conference.

Two of the educational sessions centered around a topic that will only likely continue to grow in relevance: supplemental lighting.

As our 2020 Lighting Report grower survey uncovered recently here, more and more greenhouse operations are considering adding supplemental LEDs into the mix, as the technology has simultaneously become more affordable and better performing. More than two-thirds of respondents planned to upgrade supplemental lighting in the next three years, with the vast majority investing in LEDs.

“Compared to HPS fixtures, current LEDs are approaching 50% higher efficiency levels, they have much longer operating intervals, and many now offer the ability to dim the lights to adjust intensity, which is quite useful in Daily Light Integral control algorithms,” University of Guelph horticulture professor David Lewellyn told the virtual attendees. “This makes the LED fixture today a very powerful tool in the greenhouse.”

Twilight tips

Lwellyn addressed the conference on recent explorations he and his team at the University of Guelph have undertaken to understand the end-of-day lighting strategies in ornamental greenhouse production.

Commercial greenhouse growers increasingly are using what Lwellyn described as “targeted spectrum treatments using narrow band LEDs” to manipulate how plants sense and respond to different lighting environments.

“There is all sorts of spectral manipulation that can be done, especially at twilight and night time, using different spectral recipes, and you can even change lighting spectrums throughout the plant’s growth and vegetative cycles to cause specific effects,” the professor said.

Undertaking the research mostly in the university's controlled environment growth chambers — where the team could simulate and expertly dial in a wide range of environmental conditions — the trials focused on growing microgreens with different mixtures and spectrums of light.

“What we found is that, generally speaking, in microgreens blue light causes plants to stretch, and then if you mix blue and far red spectrums, they tend to stay more compact,” Lwellyn said. “In many cases you would see these same results in potted flowers and bedding plants.”

Focus on nighttime lighting strategies

Research undertaken in indoor fully controlled environments is useful for greenhouse operations to consider. But there will likely be varying results when applied to a commercial greenhouse environment, Lwellyn cautioned.

“Greenhouses offer much more variability in lighting conditions, both in (spectral) intensity and in quantity, and these variables will even vary throughout the day and with different weather conditions and seasons,” he said.

Shifting its focus to the greenhouse environment, the team predictably found that running supplemental LEDs during the day (on sunny days, specifically) in the greenhouse was impractical. The quantity and intensity of the sun’s natural rays is too intense for artificial lighting spectrums to overcome.

“What this means is, basically, to use different targeted spectrums in the greenhouse you need to focus your efforts on nighttime and twilight periods,” Lwellyn added.

Once the team had a grasp of this fact, they dug in even deeper, dividing each overnight lighting period into two separate halves, and applied different spectrum recipes over each half and measured plant response.

What Lwellyn’s team found is that nighttime spectrum treatments increased microgreen plant health substantially. Blue spectrums led to more compact plants than recipes using more far-red spectrum, but the blue spectrums appeared to have a greater positive impact on yield and overall plant quality.

“We think there are some commercial applications for using targeted spectral treatments to manipulate plant morphology, at least in vegetative plants,” the professor said. “But, what about flowering plants?”

“With chrysanthemum, which is a short-day period plant, the blue and plus red plus far-red spectrum recipe completely inhibited flowering in the greenhouse,” he added. “Under the majority blue treatment we did see flowering increase, which is a nice surprise. Calibrachoa, which is a long day period species, had better flowering growth under both nighttime spectral treatments that we applied [versus the control].”

Take home message

Lwellyn’s team concluded that the blue plus red plus far-red spectral recipe was the overall best choice for nighttime lighting in ornamental greenhouse production.

Effects of LEDs on insects

As more and more operations add in supplemental LEDs, researchers are hoping to learn what effects various spectrums of LED lighting have on biological control agents (BCAs), as well as unwanted pests.

Roselyne Labbe, a research scientist focused on greenhouse entomology studies within the Canadian government’s Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada agency, presented her latest findings on the topic during her aptly named “Like Moths to a Flame” presentation.

“We know artificial lights significantly improve crop production, but today there is little research into how these lights effect insects and flies and predatory mites,” Labbe stated. “We wanted to ask: How do light quality, quantity and DLI, affect insect populations and integrated pest management with BCAs?”

These trials, like the end-of-day lighting trials at the University of Guelph, were also undertaken in fully controlled environment research growth chambers. Conclusions have been made by the research team as to the application of what was learned to a commercial greenhouse environment.

“We learned that many, many insects do not have the photo receptor for red light spectrums, and we’re seeing that perhaps it is not necessarily the perception of light that is most important when it comes to insects, but rather the difference between this red spectrum and the others is the key,” she said.

On the topic of red spectrums, the team also found that plants receiving lots of red light also appeared to be beneficial to the organisms living on them. “We’re observing this possible interaction between the positive influence of red spectrum on the plant itself as well as the insect populations living on it,” she explained.

Blue light spectrums, conversely, showed some potential to harm some insect species by inducing diapause — which is a period of insect life cycle development where growth is inhibited by environmental factors. This effect, though, varied based on light intensity, according to Labbe.

“While we observed blue light having some negative impacts on our predator insects, shortening their lifespans, with lower intensity blue light there were some clear beneficial effects, but as we know, high intensity blue light can be toxic to all living things,” she said.

This led Labbe and her research team to query up yet another hypothesis: Does having too much artificial light in the greenhouse negatively effect BCA populations? You bet.

“Again, when applied at low intensity blue light can be beneficial, but longer duration and higher intensity can be bad [for insects],” she said. “There is mounting evidence that exposure to blue light spectrums can disrupt diapause and modulates a physical response in many arthropods.

“However,” she added in conclusion, “there remains much more research that is needed in commercial greenhouse environments for us to come to a clear conclusion on how BCAs and other insect populations are effected by artificial light.”

Enter the Best Horticulture Companies to Work For Awards

As the horticulture industry continues to evolve and rise to meet new challenges, there is perhaps no better time than now to recognize some of the best employers and organizations to work for.

That’s why Greenhouse Management and Garden Center magazines are excited to launch the 2021 Best Horticulture Companies to Work For Awards program. This survey and awards program will identify and recognize the best employers in the industry.

“The passion for people that you find in horticulture is unlike any other industry. Because of that, there are so many great places for employees, both new and veteran, to develop a career,” said Kate Spirgen, editor of Garden Center and Greenhouse Management magazines. “As the popularity of plants continues to rise and the market evolves, competition for employees continues to be a pain point for many companies. We look forward to showcasing companies that are creating healthy and productive working environments, and helping them attract the talent they need to grow.”

USDA to provide additional assistance to specialty crop growers impacted by COVID

President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue have announced up to an additional $14 billion dollars for agricultural producers who continue to face market disruptions and associated costs because of COVID-19. Signup for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP 2) will run through Dec. 11.

“America’s agriculture communities are resilient, but still face many challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Perdue said. “President Trump is once again demonstrating his commitment to ensure America’s farmers and ranchers remain in business to produce the food, fuel, and fiber America needs to thrive. We listened to feedback received from farmers, ranchers and agricultural organizations about the impact of the pandemic on our nations’ farms and ranches and we developed a program to better meet the needs of those impacted.”

September jobs report shows that job growth has slowed

Nonfarm payroll rose by a lower than expected 661,000 in September and the unemployment rate was 7.9%, the Labor Department said Oct. 2 in its final jobs report before the election.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting a payrolls gain of 800,000 and the unemployment rate to fall to 8.2% from 8.4% in August. The payrolls miss was due largely to a drop in government hiring as at-home schooling continued and Census jobs fell.

The decline in the unemployment rate came along with a 0.3 percentage point drop in the labor force participation rate to 61.4%, representing a decline of nearly 700,000.

Good help is hard to find — especially in the horticulture industry. And believe it or not, it’s an issue many in the publishing industry struggle with as well. We’re extremely lucky to have an amazing staff here at Greenhouse Management, thanks in part to the employee benefits we are able to offer and the collaborative work environment that’s encouraged.

In fact, in 2008, our parent company, GIE Media, was named the No. 1 Best Magazine Company to Work For by Publishing Executive magazine.

We’re hoping that recognition for the wonderful workplace you’ve cultivated can help your greenhouse attract top-quality talent as well. So, it is with great pleasure to announce the first annual Best Horticulture Companies To Work For study. The study is being conducted in partnership with the Best Companies Group, a research company that specializes in selecting and recognizing great workplaces.

Not only will the study look at workplace policies and practices, Best Companies Group will reach out to your employees (anonymously, of course) to see how they rank their experience in the workplace.

You can enter as either a greenhouse, a garden center or both! If you have 15 or more full-time or part-time (not seasonal) employees and operate in the U.S. or Canada, you can enter to be ranked among the “Best Horticulture Companies to Work For.” Plus, if your company makes the final ranking, you will also be featured in Greenhouse Management magazine (if you’re a greenhouse operation) or Garden Center magazine (if you’re a retail garden center).

To learn more, visit BestHorticultureCompaniesToWorkFor.com and register by Nov. 20.

I can’t wait to hear about all of the wonderful things your greenhouse is doing to make your operation the best of the best.

There’s nothing worse than an unsatisfied customer walking up to your register and demanding to know why their plant is failing to thrive. While the situation isn’t always preventable, salvage both the customer’s expectations and your reputation by creating a plant warranty policy — or in the case of greenhouses that already have one, updating your warranty. We rounded up some of the best plant warranty pointers as IGC owners head into the retail rush of spring season.

Prioritize customer success

The most important thing IGC owners should take into consideration when creating a warranty policy is fostering healthy plant growth and nurturing customer relationships. Joseph J. Kiefer, manager of Triple Oaks Nursery & Herb Garden in Franklinville, New Jersey, shares why this is the cornerstone of any good policy. “We want people to succeed with our plants” he says. “That’s the whole principle of it. The policy is there for customer success.”

Bethany Broderick, who manages the East Broad Street location of Strader’s Garden Center in Columbus, Ohio, echoes this viewpoint. “Most customers, yeah, they want to be successful with their plants and they come here so that we can help to educate as far as proper planting and care and maintenance,” he says.

Ben Polzin, vice president of retail operations at Down to Earth Garden Center, located in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, says this should be top priority when it comes to mapping out a warranty strategy. “We changed our plant warranty this spring. We had kind of a more broad spectrum, very lenient program before,” he says. “We still want to stand behind our plants. We also don’t want to be taken advantage of.”

Tweak according to your brand

Most plant warranties tend to cover big-ticket items, such as trees and shrubs, but IGC owners can tweak these to what fits their needs best. Broderick says that trees and shrubs at Strader’s have a one-year warranty, with the exception of trees or shrubs on 50% markdown. They also offer a warranty for roses sold during planting season, which lasts 90 days (as long those roses are not 50% off).

Strader’s does not offer a warranty for test plants, annuals or perennials. In order to uphold the warranty, customers must first bring in their receipt, along with a sample of the plant (like foliage) or a photo of the dead plant.

“And then we will do a one-time replacement,” Broderick says. “If it’s a plant that they were not successful with because, perhaps it’s a more difficult plant to grow, or they didn’t realize it needed a certain type of care, then we may try and educate them about a better alternative.”

Similar to Broderick, Polzin and Kiefer require proof of plant death for the plant, and both agree that a photo or physical evidence will do.

Down to Earth provides a general 30-day warranty, and then customers can opt to buy a one-year extended warranty for trees and shrubs. Roses and perennials are covered for the current growing season, which ends on Oct. 15 of the purchasing year. The IGC requires customers to buy Root & Grow, along with a bag of compost, at the time of purchase as well. “If they’re buying it, they are a lot more likely to use it,” Polzin says. “So, between the watering of the Root & Grow and using the compost when they’re planting, it’s just forcing them a little bit more to care for it, get it planted correctly.”

Triple Oaks offers a six-month “cash and carry” warranty and a two-year “installation” warranty. In Kiefer’s experience, trustworthy people usually don’t make claims, but if they do, they own up to them. “Honest people will say, ‘Oh, well I didn’t water it’ or ‘The soil there is not good,’” he says. Kiefer adds they’ll replace these plants nearly every time, even if the customer is at fault. “Yeah, the thing is, if somebody’s nice and polite and friendly, that goes such a long way,” he continues. Triple Oaks will even replace perennials, which technically aren’t even under warranty. “We pretty much make exceptions for anybody who’s nice.”

Another reason Triple Oaks is so lenient with their policy is because of big box stores who provide blanket coverage for a year. “So you’re kind of in competition with that, where people have a mindless idea that they could take a plant and throw it in a fire and burn it and then take it back for warranty coverage, and that’s the big box store kind of warranty,” he says. “Because they’re not paying, the grower’s paying it.”  Kiefer says Triple Oaks plans to edit its policy on January 1. “You know every time somebody gets the best of you, swindles you out of something, you learn a lesson and put that on paper. Say ‘I’m not going to let that happen again,’” he says. However, this mentality has made the policy too complex, forcing Kiefer to reconsider. The new policy will include a $50 inspection fee and the policy will be more open-ended. That way, Triple Oaks can review claims on a case-by-case basis.

Educate customers at the front lines

According to Broderick, enforcing the warranty policy starts at checkout. From the time customers visit the register to the time they walk out of the store, their expectations should align with your IGC’s care instructions and warranty parameters. “The cashiers are trained to pay attention to the computer screen and when someone buys a tree or shrub, they’re supposed to verbally inform the customer of the policy,” she says. Strader’s has their policy down to a science, and the team doesn’t anticipate changing its policy any time soon.

Kiefer says their policy is located on Triple Oaks’ website for easy access to the public, and employees are trained to refer to it upon checkout.

“We’ve taken it all the way out to the sales yard. It is mentioned at checkout if it hasn’t already been talked about,” Polzin says. Aside from perennials, employees are encouraged to upsell the extended warranty.

Protect your reputation

According to Kiefer, it’s easier to bite the bullet and appease angry customers, even if they’re wrong. “These people clearly went and killed a beautiful, perfect plant. But if you sit there and argue with them, that could be the worst thing in the world for your reputation and word of mouth, because people aren’t experts,” Kiefer says. While it is frustrating to honor a baseless warranty claim, in the end the monetary amount is small — he estimates about 1% of people request a plant return. Both Broderick and Polzin estimate the same. It’s a delicate balance, but one that requires customer satisfaction to keep business rolling.

It’s also important to keep your warranty policy simple and streamlined, something both Polzin and Kiefer agree on. “That’s probably my number one thing, because the more complicated it is, the harder it is for the customers to understand it and want to do it, and it also can create delays in the checkout process, which is the last thing you want to do on a busy weekend,” Polzin says. He advises that your policy should be something your team can stand behind and understand.

For those thinking about creating their own warranty policies, Kiefer recommends outlining the different types and molding them to fit your brand. He suggests owners join the Independent Garden Center Forum on Facebook to gather ideas. “Now some people on there have no warranty. Some people have an amazing warranty, some people have something in between. Some people just treat it on a case-by-case basis,” he says. “And there’s merit to all the different ways.”