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Fourth Intake of Agricultural Stewardship Initiative Cost-Share Funding Program Opens July 8, 2026

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This post was originally published on ONgreenhousevegetables.ca on  June 22, 2026   by  Averie Mastronardi The governments of Ontario and Canada are investing an additional $12 million through the Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (ASI) to help farmers adopt practical improvements that increase efficiency, reduce costs and build long-term resilience. This initiative delivers on the government’s plan to protect Ontario’s farmers and agri-food sector by making strategic investments in cutting-edge solutions needed to support modern farming and help the sector remain resilient and competitive in the global marketplace. Read on for program details and key dates. Background Program Details Key Dates Background As part of the Ontario Agricultural Sustainability Initiative, the Agricultural Stewardship Initiative (ASI), provides cost-share funding to support farmers to accelerate the adoption of best management practices (BMPs) supporting soil health, water q...
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Effective Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 2: Colour, Placement and Duration

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Yellow or blue – that is the question. Photo by A. Summerfield. Part 1 last week covered WHY to trap and WHEN to it’s best to put up your cards. This post goes over trap colour and placement to optimize thrips catches while reducing effects on natural enemies. Although I’ve talked about this in older posts, I’ve put this data in context of what we know now, in terms of the various thrips species that invade Niagara greenhouses . I’ll also be sharing some data on card duration . If that isn’t exciting enough for you, next week’s Part 3 will discuss whether or not using lures is worth it to increase thrips catches . Choosing the Right Trap Colour Western Flower Thrips – It’s Complicated Onion Thrips Know What They Want Will Mass Trapping Cards Trap My Bios? Optimal Trap Placement – What Kind of Greenhouse do You Have? How Long are Sticky Cards Sticky? Summary: Using Cards Effectively Choosing the Right...
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Mass Trapping For Summer Thrips, Part 1: Why Trap and When to Start (Answer: This Week!)

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Sometimes your thrips biocontrol program is working great. Other times, it seems to get completely overwhelmed.   Thrips can get out of control in Summer , when fall crop production is ramping up. This is where mass trapping can really help. This post will cover where thrips come from, which species we find on cards, and when the best time is to add mass trapping to your thrips IPM program. And stay tuned for Part 2, which will cover ways to optimize your mass trapping ! Where Do Thrips Come From? Outside Pressure = Inside Problems? Preventing Onion Thrips Infestations What About Western Flower Thrips? When to Start Trapping Take Home Messages Where Do Thrips Come From? Figure 1. Thrips numbers and species were monitored directly outside the greenhouse of both side- and top-venting facilities. Although we know that thrips come in on plant material, including cuttings and whole plants, this is only half of the story. (For more info on thrips on cuttin...
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Save on Energy’s Expanded Energy Management Program – EMIS Updates for Greenhouse Operators

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This post was originally published on the ongreenhousevegetables.ca blog on  May 21, 2026  by  Averie Mastronardi Energy management information systems (EMIS) can reduce energy consumption and GHG emissions, lower utility costs, improve operational performance, and strengthen decision‑making. Receive funding of up to $50,000 or $250,000, depending on your annual energy consumption, for the installation of an EMIS through Save On Energy’s  Expanded Energy Management program . The EMIS funding ends March 31, 2027, and incentive payments must be made by this date. To ensure your incentive is available, we recommend that organizations aim to complete approved projects by the end of 2026.  What Funding Can you Receive Through the EMIS Program? Facilities with an annual baseline energy consumption of less than or equal to 400,000 GJ (all fuels) are eligible to receive $50,000. Facilities with an annual baseline energy consumption of gr...
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Growing Roses? Export Rules to the U.S. Have Changed.

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In the efforts to prevent a quarantinable strain of Ralstonia from entering the United States, USDA-APHIS has changed importation rules for rose material for planting. This includes rose material coming from Canada. Under the new federal order, roses (Rosa spp.) grown in Canada must now have been grown entirely within Canada or the U.S. . This includes root stock and graft material. This is to reduce a potential pathway for Ralstonia solanacearum Race 3 biovar 2 (Rs R3bv2) into the U.S., which can devastate solanaceous crops such as potato and tomato, as well as geraniums. Read on for more details about RS R3bv2 and the new export regulations. What is Rs R3bv2 ? Rs R3bv2 is a strain of bacterium of Ralstonia solanacearum that is particularly pathogenic, causing vascular disease of a wide variety of plants . Other races of this bacteria are endemic to the United States (Race 1) or are specific to hosts not grown in North America (e.g. bananas), and are...
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April, 2026 DLI Report

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(Originally published on  ONgreenhousevegetables.ca on May 12, 2026  by  Fadi Al-Daoud ) Welcome to the Vineland DLI report for April, 2026! So far, April is finally looking sunnier in Niagara , with the average DLI in Vineland climbing. Read on for the detailed data report and more information about our DLI data collection project. Only looking for certain information? Use the table of contents to navigate between sections: Summary Background Objectives Materials and Methods DLI Data DLI and PPFD data Excel sheet Summary DLI data for the last two weeks of April were available for Leamington-Kingsville. Average DLI for the month of ­­­­­April, 2026 for Leamington-Kingsville was 43 moles/m 2 /day. The maximum DLI was 63.1 recorded on April 20 th , and the minimum DLI was 14.8  recorded on April 29 th . The average DLI for the month of ­­­­­April for Vineland was 32 moles/m 2 /day. The maximum DLI was 56.5 r...
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Your Yearly Reminder of Japanese Beetle Requirements: Get Those Treatments on Before May 15!

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Anyone following this blog for the last few years knows I like to remind y’all to make sure you treat your plants for Japanese beetle before May 15! This is because NO pesticides are allowed when Japanese beetle (JB) pupae are present (generally, May 15-June 15 in Ontario),which has gotten some growers into a pickle during spring shipping in the past. Note that if you’re a nursery crop grower also treating for boxtree moth, you may surpass the maximum allowed applications or rate of Acelepryn per year if you also need to treat for JB . In that case, it might be better to time your treatments for JB in order to use intercept (imidacloprid) instead. So make sure to check out the pesticide timing chart in the JB Infographic in the full post. This year, I’ve updated the JB Decision Tree and Infographic to include shipping requirements to different areas in the United States . So, if you or your staff need more clarification on any of these points, make ...
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