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We’ve recently mounted at daily light integral (DLI) meter at the Vineland Research and Innovation Center! As a result, the OnFloriculture blog will be making regular monthly posts detailing monthly DLI data for Vineland, Ontario. This meter acts as a reliable record of light levels for Vineland and surrounding areas, giving growers and researchers easy access to data that may help explain crop outcomes. The information is neatly organized, allowing for quick month-to-month comparisons and a clearer understanding of light conditions throughout the growing seasons. Background Purpose Materials and Methods DLI Data DLI and PPFD data Excel sheet Tell us what YOU want Background OMAFA’s greenhouse vegetable specialist, Dr. Fadi Al-Daoud, mounted a DLI meter on the border of Leamington and Kingsville in June of 2024 for the concentration of growers in that area to have readily available and organized light data. To give floriculture growers in the Niagara Region the same d...

What is it? This year at the Canada Greenhouse Conference,  we are featuring 8 stations where suppliers and researchers can give small, hands-on demonstrations to growers.  The aim is to teach growers a new skill that can help them with their IPM or production needs. Read on for more details on the demo topics and where to find us! Who will be there? Here are some of the exciting vendors and their demonstration topics! Vineland Research and Innovation Centre : “Zoom in and Decide: Microscope Test-Drive” Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) – “Green Bugs in Vegetable Greenhouses – Which Do You Have?” Anatis –“ Mites of Greenhouses: Identification, Biology and Control” GrowLiv – “How to Spot a Healthy Predatory Mite Sachet” Biobee – “Blow ‘Em Out… Keep ‘Em Alive: Best Practices for Biocontrol Application” Zengenti – “Click-Along Demonstration of Ontario’s Crop Protection Hub and Crop IPM” Susanne “The Buglady” Wainwright-Evans: “Easy Quality Control of ...

Part of running a greenhouse is keeping it safe – whether that be from hackers or from invasive pests! We recently recorded a webinar on cybersecurity for operational tech and smart devices – and why small businesses are a prime target. We also recorded webinars on Thrips parvispinus and Thrips setosus , the two invasive pests that have been affecting floriculture crops the past 4-5 years. Keep reading to get more details on these webinars, and to view the recordings. Choose the GrowON webinar you want to check out! And as always, you can see all our old webinars on the ONFloriculture YouTube page . Cybersecurity for Greenhouses Thrips parvispinus: Where we’ve been and where we’re going Thrips setosus: Another new pest of flowers Cybersecurity for Greenhouses Who: Dr. Ali Dehghantanha, professor and Canada Research Chair in Cybersecurity and Threat Intelligence at the University of Guelph, and Bryan Lachapelle, president and CEO of B4 Networks. Description: Do you w...

Characteristics needed to identify thrips to species. Although greenhouse growers’ thoughts in late summer tend to turn to pests of poinsettias, thrips are never fully forgotten (being the #1 pest and all). Ever since a bunch of new thrips began invading North American greenhouses a few years ago, proper thrips identification has become a necessary evil . If you missed our Vineland/OMAFA Thrips Identification Workshops in 2024, have no fear. Ashley Summerfield from the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre has compiled much of the workshop content in a series of easy-to-follow videos. Keep reading for what you’ll need and links to the videos. About These Videos Video 1: How to Build an Aspirator for Collecting Thrips Video 2: How to Choose a Microscope for Greenhouse Use Video 3: Introduction to Thrips Identification Video 4: Thrips Life Cycle and Anatomy   Video 6: How to Use Our Thrips Identification Key About These Videos The videos of the Thrips Identifica...

Rogers cybersecure catalyst at the Toronto Metropolitan University is hosting 2 free virtual events to bring you and your business up to speed on the very important issue of cybersecurity. Don’t miss these 2 events: a panel discussion on September 29th from 10-11 am . And a cybersecurity bootcamp every Thursday from October 2nd – November 5th from 10-12pm . Cyber Integration for Businesses : Agri-Food Panel This virtual session will explore the evolving landscape of the agri-food sector and the cybersecurity challenges that come with it. The expert panel will cover topics such as cybersecurity threats, strategies, and best practices for resilient building design and operations. With a focus on the concerns and challenges of small and medium-sized businesses, this panel will offer insights on: Introduction to cybersecurity in the Agri-Food sector Cybersecurity trends and strategy Cybersecurity risk management Emerging technologies and future trends Where: Virtual When: ...

To make sure growers have the latest information on new thrips pests affecting greenhouse crops, GrowON is running a 3 part webinar series on thrips besides western flower thrips. The second installment will be on Thrips parvispinus (also known as pepper thrips) on Wednesday, September 24th with Sarah Jandricic (OMAFA). To attend, please use the registration link in the post below. Parvi poster Sept 2025_final Download Description: When it comes to Thrips parvispinus control, many growers are asking, are we there yet? Join us to learn where we are in terms of biocontrol and chemical control for this invasive pest. This presentation will summarize research being conducted in Ontario, Florida and Europe, and put it into context in terms of strategies growers can implement now. Future research directions will also be discussed. Note, this presentation was given live at Greenhouse Canada’s Grower Day in June 2025. This webinar is hoping to reach those that weren’t able to attend i...

A uniform kalanchoe crop Welcome to this blog series, where we will discuss common production issues and practical solutions you can consider implementing in your own greenhouse. In this post, we’ll focus on preventing disease and increasing crop uniformity . We’ll discuss two key practices that can help both issues: selecting the right growing media and maintaining greenhouse sanitation . Small changes in these areas can reduce the risk of disease and shrink, while promoting more consistent growth across your crop and prevent things like plant stunting. Throughout this post I’ll use Kalanchoe production as an example . Even if you are not a Kalanchoe grower, there will relevant information that you can apply to your own crops. Read on for more details. Introduction This post discusses common issues (many of which I’ve encountered myself as a grower). However, let’s quickly start this post off on a positive note, shall we? You’re doing great. I know you used the summer t...