How a PEI garden centre and market went medical, and now eyeing recreational | 28
A future for greenhouse labour?
Recruiting skilled labour lies with the industry, not just colleges and education | 38
Fresh picks from California
Which unique varieties caught our eye at the 2018 California Spring Trials | 12
BY KATHY BIRT
BY ANNIE CHAMPAGNE
Switching on the rootzone
How to ensure your crop is soaking up nutrients and water BY
WILLEM GERICKE
Tim Verbeek of Platinum Produce, one of this year’s Top 10 Under 40 winners | 20
Identifying with the younger generation
This issue may seem like a mixed bag at first – announcement of this year’s Top 10 Under 40 winners, coverage of the California Spring Trials, medical cannabis operations in PEI, clean cannabis stocks – and that’s not all. But at the end of the day, the stories in this issue boil down to hard work, dedication and innovation.
Once you’ve read about each of our Top 10 winners (and you may even recognize some of them on pg. 20), you’ll find that our winners all have several things in common: they love what they do, they’re always looking for new opportunities to learn, they think outside the box, and they don’t give up when the going gets tough.
Albert Grimm’s Grower Day speech will attest to the hard work and dedication needed to work in the horticultural industry, but also the sense of fulfillment that it can bring (pg. 38). How many other sectors can say the same?
As the Huffington Post reports in September 2017,1 the results
the right individuals and retain them? Connie Harder of AgStep helps address this in our Business Issues column this month (pg. 10), breaking down what the needs and wants of potential hires are, while identifying some surprising demographics that may be neglected due to age, personal circumstances or other factors.
But if this younger generation simply wants a fulfilling and meaningful life, then perhaps horticulture is the answer. If you think about it, this industry fits the bill. According to a CNN report2 on what matters most to millennials, they found that this generation valued:
• A wealth of experience over being rich with money. Check.
• Doing something inspiring or something they’re passionate about. Check.
• Looking for feedback and a clear vision to work towards. Check.
• An environment that allows ownership of their work, but not necessarily be their own boss. Check.
“...fulfilling and meaningful...perhaps horticulture is the answer”
of a survey conducted by Hays Canada showed that 47 per cent of respondents were unhappy with their jobs – that’s almost half of the 2500 people surveyed. What’s more, a 2016 ADP survey (cited in the same article) reported that 55 per cent of those between 18 and 34 years of age wanted to make a career change, whereas this statistic was only 30 per cent when averaged across workers of all ages.
In other words, this age group is more likely to switch jobs, start a business or return to school. So how can an industry that’s facing a shortage in skilled labour attract
As much as I detest being labelled a millennial due to the many negative connotations and stereotypes associated with it (not to mention that I am on the much higher end of the millennial age range), I have to agree that many of these values fit in with my own. Often, the problem is finding an opportunity with meaning.
1Sharma, A. No wonder Canadians hate their jobs: a lot of our work is meaningless. 2017 Sept 7, https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/arash-sharma/ no-wonder-canadians-hate-their-jobs-a-lot-of-ourwork-is-meaningless_a_23200391/
2Bahney, A. What Millenials really want at work. 2017 December 29. http://money.cnn. com/2017/12/29/pf/millennials-work/index.html
‘Chocolate’ added to pepper lineup
Leamington, ON – Health-oriented producer Orangeline Farms has managed to fit ‘chocolate’ into their suite of offerings.
Marketed under their Zing! Healthy Foods brand, the new Chocolate Bell pepper offers a uniquely darker colour and sweet taste. It’s sure to attract the attention of foodies and those looking for something to spice up their meals.
“Wanting to bring unique colour, texture and
flavour profiles to the marketplace, we took five years of extensive trials and research with different varieties,” says Orangeline Farms. Not to mention the development of proper growing techniques to get the quality, taste and outcome they were looking for.
According to the release, the flesh inside is crisper and sweeter than a traditional bell pepper. How did they achieve this? Well, that’s a secret.
SAFETY ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR BC AGRICULTURE
For BC greenhouse operators looking to take their health and safety programs one step further, AgSafe has recently launched an online safety selfassessment tool for agriculture.
Known as the Safety Ready Certificate of Recognition (COR) SelfAssessment, the web tool helps employers determine whether they’re ready for a COR
BY THE NUMBERS
program audit – a voluntary WorkSafeBC program that recognizes employers who go above and beyond regulatory requirements to promote workplace health and safety and reduce risks. As an added benefit, the online tool will also provide an estimate of the employer’s potential WorkSafeBC incentive.
“Being COR-certified helps employers gain an edge in attracting and retaining skilled labour,”
states AgSafe. “An employer that is CORcertified with a robust Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) program is an employer that makes the safety of their workers a priority.
In British Columbia, COR certification also helps an employer’s eligibility to receive a WorkSafeBC incentive payment of up to 10% of the assessment premiums paid in the prior year.”
A certifying partner
of the COR program, AgSafe is a non-profit health and safety association that works with agricultural operations to reduce workplace death and injuries.
For greenhouse operations, AgSafe highlights two key areas that should be given particular attention: picking carts and endof-season cleaning.
For more information, visit agsafebc.ca It’s cheapest in Quebec at $5.86 per gram (April 2018) 43% of users are between the ages of 25 and 44 (2017) 55% of LPs are in Ontario (April 2018)
COST OF CANNABIS (medical and non-medical) in Canada is $7.48 per gram (2017) Domestic supply margins totaled $1.7 billion (2017)
Source: Statistics Canada
Easy
Delosperma Luckhoffii Hybrid
Delosperma Luckhoffii from Jelitto offers blooms that are orange, red, pink and white to yellow, for a very colourful mix with mostly lighter centers. With green succulent leaves and drought-tolerant character, it’s ideal for xeriscaping or for a water-wise design. Attractive for butterflies and other pollinators. An easy and quick crop; first-year flowering when sown late winter. jelitto.com
Lavender Madrid Lavish
The first ever multibract Spanish lavender for a truly unique presentation. From Green Fuse Botanicals, the massive blooms on Lavender Madrid Lavish present themselves extremely early in the season. Larger flower bracts for long-lasting colour, and a beautiful focal point for mixed containers. Excellent retail capabilities as the flowers last for weeks or even months! greenfuse.com
Dianthus Mountain Frost Pink Pom Pom
Darwin Perennials’ Mountain Frost collection of hardy landscape dianthus requires no vernalization to flower and will rebloom consistently from early spring until fall. The plants are tolerant of rainy and wet conditions – a great landscape
Perpetua Blueberry
Perpetua™ from Bushel and Berry™ will produce two crops of sweet and delicious blueberries. The first fruit will appear in mid-summer and then the plant will flower and set fruit a second time in the fall.
The leaves are dark green and will turn to deep reds and greens in the winter, making it a beautiful addition to any landscape. USDA zones 4 to 8. Full sun. 1.2-1.5 m tall, vase shaped. bushelandberry.com
City Lights Dahlia
Harmony Blush Impatiens
A new addition to one of the top selling New Guinea series on the market, Harmony Blush from Danziger boasts high reliability in production. Easy to grow and early to flower, it produces large blooms that create lots of colour all season long. Great for 12-cm pots; medium mounded habit in stick to flower trials. Great shelf life. danzigeronline.com
This dark-leafed garden dahlia comes from Dalaya breeding, so it is a powerhouse in the garden. The dark leaf makes it pop with contrast. Its bold, bicolour blooms last all season long. This series from Selecta One is a
Main Street Coleus Ocean Drive
Reliably uniform, late flowering and adaptable to sun or shade, this resilient series from Dümmen Orange adds texture and appeals to inexperienced gardeners. It’s a top choice for season-extending
programs into summer and fall with sun and shade versatility. Best for patios, mixed containers and landscape beds. Full sun to full shade. 40-90 cm tall x 30-60 cm wide. dummenorange.com
border collection. The tidy, mounding habit of Mountain Frost will thrill landscape designers. Available in six varieties with various foliage colours, blooms and habits. USDA zones 5 to 9. 15-20 cm tall x 25-30 cm wide. darwinperennials.com
magnet for butterflies and birds. Dark-leafed varieties are known for having excellent colour and good branching. City Lights makes an outstanding centerpiece. 41-46 cm tall x 30-41cm wide. selectanorthamerica.com
BIOSTIMULANT + MYCORRHIZAE™
With its high perlite content, PRO-MIX® HP BIOSTIMULANT + MYCORRHIZAE™ provides a great growing environment to growers looking for a significant drainage capacity, increased air porosity and lower water retention. The added benefit of fibrous peat moss and coarse perlite makes this formulation ideal for growers who require a superior-quality product adapted to their needs for watering flexibility and crop seasonality.
Finding the right hires
“Management is nothing more than motivating other people.” – Lee Iacocca, Ford
Today’s labour market is tight. Profits are tight. As hiring managers, our job has become increasingly difficult. We can talk all day about the challenges we face – the aging labour force, millennials, skilled labour – the fact is, most people are already working. Their families depend on it. The question is, how do we motivate people to work for us?
Let’s be clear – there are different motivation factors for different people. Only when you match your intrinsic company values to an individual’s motivational force will you achieve your goal. So, how do you do that? Here are five steps:
1) Know your company – from the ground up. Your HR department may not know what motivates your employees. Ask your workers WHY they like working in your greenhouse. What would make their lives easier? These answers are gold –especially if you want to find like-minded workers.
2) Take what your employees have told you, follow it and market it. Use job boards, employee referral incentives, career fairs and social media. Find professional help. There are many organizations who will help you create a great job description based on your corporate culture, position and company. They may also offer advertising services that include an online job board and social media channel advertising.
there are over 5.9 million seniors in Canada)
Gender: The age-old mindset that women will leave to have babies. Guess what? Parental (Dad) leave happens as well. Heart attacks, sick leave, a change of heart, more money – these are all factors that will change your workplace. You can’t control any of it – so open those doors to both genders.
4) Be competitive, yet different. Cost of living is immense, especially in certain areas. Pay competitively. Remember, pay isn’t only an hourly wage, it can include bonus incentives, benefits and company “perks” such as transportation to and from work, adjusted hours or housing.
5) Be flexible – Focus on lifestyle
Never before have we seen an entire generation focused on flexibility and lifestyle. Our newest generation(s) work to live, and don’t live to work. They want to know, FEEL and be apart of your corporate story. They will investigate you on social media to assess your impact on their world. To motivate this generation, tell your story with social conscience. Health spending accounts, wellness opportunities, social events, flexible hours, holiday time – these are all attractive.
“Challenge preconceived notions - open up hiring constraints”
3) Challenge preconceived notions - open up hiring constraints:
Age: At 65, my father can outwork me. He’s had a great career in farming and mechanics and has retired - twice. Twice he has come out of retirement. Why? He has more to offer. He has common sense, practicality, wisdom and work ethic. You’re not sure he can handle the manual labour, the bending, the early hours? What is hard on HIS body, is also hard on your 25-year-old employees. The difference is, he will figure out a way to modify his work to conserve energy, save his body from physical duress and still get the job done. At this age, most know who they are and what they want. They are not interested in job hopping. Seniors have roots and can be loyal, long-term employees! (Census Canada (2016) says
The older workforce, looking for their second career may be a great fit for a part-time or seasonal role. They want something to do in the spring/ summer, and then escape the cold for the winters. What are most seniors interested in during those off months? Insurance! Offer them company insurance and you’ll have loyal return employees when the growing season ramps up. With a referral program, they might have a few friends too!
Employees with school-aged children are often unable to work due to lack of before and after child care. Create a shift to accommodate them. You might be surprised at how valuable your 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. labour force can be. It’s not conventional, but it might open doors to those looking to work for you. Your flexibility may well make up for an otherwise lower-end pay scale.
You all have great employees. Find out why they love to come to work every day. Use their motivation; embrace it, expand on it and tell your story to everyone everywhere!
Connie-Lyne Harder is the marketing and recruiting manager for Alberta and British Columbia at AgStep, a recruiting service for agriculture and horticulture. She can be reached at c.harder@agstep.com
Propagating into cannabis culture
Tissue culture offers a pest-free propagation environment for cannabis.
For horticulture, propagation using tissue culture is nothing new. In fact, the technique has been used in crops like lettuce, hops, mint, potato stock, orchids, ornamental plants and berries.
“Tissue culture is the basis for just about every other big ag company,” says Dr. Jon Vaught, CEO and co-founder of Front Range Biosciences
ABOVE
Producers can use tissue culture to propagate cannabis in a sterile environment.
(FRB), an agricultural biotech company based in Lafayette, Colorado that specializes in tissue culture propagation of high value crops such as cannabis through its Clean Stock® program.
The process involves taking a small cutting from the mother plant, which is then sterilized to remove viruses, fungi and other pathogens before being placed on a gel-like growing medium full of nutrients tailored toward that crop. Multiple plants from the same mother plant can then be propagated quickly using this method – cloned, in other words, and without the need for pesticides.
“You start out with clean, healthy vigorous plants,” says Vaught. “It also allows you to propagate a plant in a pest-free environment. In a laboratory, there are no bugs like thrips or mites or any of the other things that carry nasty diseases and cause crop loss.”
Growing in high-humidity environments such as greenhouses and indoor spaces can drive fungal growth and diseases, such as powdery mildew, encourage bacterial growth, and harbour insect pests that carry harmful viruses.
“All those different diseases can have really dangerous effects,” says Vaught. “We’re going from a small industry to now tens of millions and hundreds of millions of plants that are grown and spread all over the world.” If a biopathogen were to spread globally, it could cripple the industry, he adds.
That’s why Vaught and his team are looking to provide Clean Stock material to LPs internationally, mitigating the risk of a global outbreak. And with the high demand for cannabis plants, tissue culture presents a good solution to large-scale clone production with little to no crop loss or disease.
In Canada though, many of the suppliers are vertically integrated, controlling their own supply chains with their own nurseries. While some continue to clone using traditional methods, others have seen the advantages of propagating through tissue culture.
“This is a major advantage in crops that are clonally propagated, as disease and pathogens can be transferred from generation to generation using those [traditional] propagation techniques, and can cause production issues,” notes Anandia Labs, a licensed cannabis-testing facility in Vancouver, BC. They’ve been using plant tissue culture for cannabis production since receiving their licence in 2016.
Once established, plant tissue culture can also be used as a way of storing different varietal genetics until they’re ready for transfer to cultivation facilities. This is how Anandia stores its collection of more than 350 different genotypes, a kind of genetic “archiving” service they offer to LPs for backing up their proprietary or valuable cultivars.
“While there are a number of advantages to plant tissue culture, the skill and infrastructure required to develop techniques and maintain plants are not trivial,” Anandia adds. “Plant tissue culture is often referred to as an art as much as a science as the technical expertise requires creativity, refinement, flexibility and attention to detail.”
Simply scattering seeds amid a field of corn is no longer an option. From industrial hemp and protein to highly regulated cannabinoid-based drugs, production needs to meet demand.
“The ability to maximize production across all of these different segments and product categories is going to require a lot more than just throwing some seeds in the ground,” says Vaught. “It’s going to require a massive industry that can handle the supply chain. The growth that we’re seeing is massive.”
Coasting through California: A look at the 2018 California Spring Trials
BY GRETA CHIU
Photographs can be beautiful, but nothing quite beats the rush of seeing new varieties in real life.
Joining the Cornell University tour group for this year’s California Spring Trials (CAST), I got to see first-hand the new varieties being rolled out for 2018/2019. Following a very ambitious fourday itinerary, here were my highlights. Note that we were not able to visit all the breeders.
For more new varieties, flip to pg. 8.
AMERICAN TAKII
Note: varieties marked “experimental” are approximately two years from market and will not be available for 2019.
1. Linaria Fantasista: This vibrant series is extra dwarfed, blooms extra early, has good basal branching and can tolerate mild frosts and short-duration freezes
down to -4 degrees Celsius.
2. Trilogy Purple Vein (experimental): True to its name, this experimental addition to the hybrid petunia series Trilogy has a vein-like appearance. This series is meant to use fewer PGRs, have a longer shelf life and be low maintenance in the garden.
3. Delphinium grandiflorum (experimental): A striking blue colour, this experimental line also comes in a light pink. Meant for garden or cut flowers.
4. Helianthus Marley (experimental): A gorgeous bicolour sunflower line reminiscent of a Van Gogh painting, with long shelf life and multiple blooms.
5. Capsicum Onyx Red: Its dark foliage is attractive enough standalone, even before fruiting.
TRILOGY PURPLE VEIN
American Takii (experimental)
LINARIA FANTASISTA
American Takii
From seed to table, higher quality with better taste.
A better-quality product for the consumer. An integrated, innovative greenhouse solution for you. That’s what Syngenta provides through quality genetics and new variety innovations. Your customers, and their dinner tables, deserve nothing less than the very best.
To learn more about varieties from Syngenta, contact Plant Products at 519-326-9037 or info@plantproducts.com
6. Coreopsis Super Star: A new perennial coreropsis hybrid with large yellow flowers and strokes of red across its petals.
7. Dianthus Corona Strawberry: Large, multi-tone blooms are the focal point of this variety, with uniform flowering time and compact, mounded habit. Patterning is wonderfully varied with solid, bicolour and picotee. Great performance in cool weather.
8. Drift Roses: These compact, groundcover roses bloom repeatedly over the season and come in nine different colours. Great for filling garden space.
9. Helichrysum Silver Threads: Uniquely shaped needle-like foliage paired with an attractive silvery colour, this variety goes well in combinations and gardens.
10. Lavandula Avignon Early Blue: This new lavender flowers earlier than similar English lavenders. Needing just a 10.5 to 11-hour initiation period in lower temperature greenhouses; no PGRs and no pinching required.
11. AmeriHybrid Picotee Tuberous Begonia: These large, full bicolour blooms either have light edge on dark petals, or dark edges on light petals.
See pg. 8 for Perpetua Blueberry, Dianthus Mountain Frost and City Lights Dahlia.
DANZIGER
12. STREAM Lobularia: New this year are ‘lilac’ and ‘snow’. Not only is this series pollinator-friendly, it’s early flowering and emits a beautiful floral scent. Long-lasting flowers, mounded habit and lots of blooms.
13. Sunstrong Bicolor Purple – New for the season and only available in North America and Japan, this large Erysimum linifolium will continue to flower and maintain its colour throughout the season.
14. AMORE Queen of Hearts: One of their best sellers, the striking colours draw attention. Early flowering with a mounded habit.
See pg. 8 for Harmony Blush Impatiens.
DÜMMEN ORANGE
15. Calla Pink Arrow: This compact, medium-tall series can be grown for cut flowers or for landscaping and can be stored year-round. A beautiful colour on an elegant bloom.
16. I’Conia Portofino Champagne: A gorgeous new mixed-colour addition to this hybrid begonia line that loves both sun and shade and transports well.
17. Party in a Box: Just one example of their new pre-mixed planters. All the components are shipped at once, and selections all finish on the same day. This
HELIANTHUS MARLEY
American Takii (experimental)
COREOPSIS SUPER STAR
Ball Horticultural Co.
LAVANDULA AVIGNON EARLY BLUE
Ball Horticultural Co.
DRIFT ROSES
Ball Horticultural Co.
STREAM LOBULARIA
Danziger
DELPHINIUM GRANDIFLORUM
American Takii (experimental)
CAPSICUM ONYX RED
American Takii (experimental)
DIANTHUS CORONA STRAWBERRY
Ball Horticultural Co.
AMERIHYBRID PICOTEE
TUBEROUS BEGONIA
Ball Horticultural Co.
HELICHRYSUM SILVER THREADS
Ball Horticultural Co.
SUNSTRONG BICOLOR PURPLE Danziger
AMORE QUEEN OF HEARTS Danziger
one shows great contrast.
18. Poinsettia Golden Glo: Who says poinsettias are only for Christmas? Extend the season with autumn colours like this Golden Glo.
See pg. 8 for Main Street Coleus Ocean Drive.
GREEN FUSE
19. Echeveria Coral Reef: An Echeveria gibbiflora hybrid, this variety is meant for summer production due to its slow growth and warm temperature requirements.
20. Lupine Staircase: Unlike traditional lupine, this perennial series flowers continuously.
21. Dianthus Constant Cadence: This day-neutral series requires no vernalization and offers the same bloom time across colours. Available in a number of colours. ‘Milk cherry’ opens up white and turns cherry.
See pg. 8 for Lavender Madrid Lush.
HILVERDAKOOIJ
22. Helleborus Winterbells: Not new but worth a look, this early and abundantly flowering variety produces unique lime green flowers.
23. Kaylee: This small-stature, potted carnation features large, bicolour blooms and a subtle floral scent. Cute and elegant.
24. Mooodz: This echinacea is propagated using tissue culture, resulting in full, beautiful plants within a short time frame.
CALLA PINK ARROW Dümmen Orange
PARTY IN A BOX Dümmen Orange
ECHEVERIA CORAL REEF Green Fuse
KAYLEE Hilverdakooij
DIANTHUS CONSTANT CADENCE Green Fuse
SUPERBELLS HOLY SERIES
Proven Winners
I’CONIA PORTOFINO CHAMPAGNE
Dümmen Orange
POINSETTIA GOLDEN GLO Dümmen Orange
LUPINE STAIRCASE Green Fuse
MOOODZ Hilverdakooij
HELLEBORUS WINTERBELLS Hilverdakooij
DIAMOND MOUNTAIN EUPHORBIA
Proven Winners
PROVEN WINNERS
25. Superbells HOLY series: With names like ‘Holy Moly!’ (bestseller), ‘Holy Cow!’ (new, yellow with blue-purple splotches) and ‘Holy Smokes!’ (new, yellow with pink splotches), what’s not to love about these calibrachoa hybrids? Unique colour splotches are reminiscent of colouring with crayons.
26. Diamond Mountain Euphorbia: A low maintenance plant that’s great for landscaping and in mixes. It may start to drop leaves in the fall, but not the flowers.
27. Truffula Pink Gomphrena: Adorned with hot pink blooms like mini pom-poms, this variety makes a great “thriller” in the garden and maintains its height with good scaffolding. Great as cut flowers.
28. Rockin’ Fuchsia: Say hello to the world’s first fuchsia-coloured salvia with dark-coloured sepals and a black calyx. Pollinators love this plant, too.
29. Coral creations succulents: At the time of print, Proven Winners has delayed the sale of this succulent collection in order to build stock. Varieties were chosen for their lasting colour and shape, even up to 9 months. Not pictured: Amazel basil is the first Italian sweet basil with downy mildew resistance, it flowers extremely late and is sterile, meaning more leaves and more consistent flavour. One pinch to finish. For tomatoes, both Garden Gem (cherry, determinate) and Garden Treasure (larger, indeterminate) were developed for heirloom taste, disease resistance and high yields.
SAKATA ORNAMENTALS
30. Harmony Double: Hardy to zone 5, this double flower anemone series is sister to Harmony. Comes in three colours.
31. Lisianthus Voyage 2: Large flowers with an elegant, spilling fringe. Comes in eight unique colours.
32. Pink Fizz Coleus: This is the latest addition to the Party Time series. Instead of an upright habit, it’s mounding, compact and dense.
33. Citrus Mix Color Max: this mix of giant violas offers great contrast and large blooms. A mix of ‘clear yellow’, ‘clear orange’ and popcorn.
34. SuperCal Petchoa: A cross between calibrachoa and petunia, this series of petchoa hybrids offers vibrant colours and large flowers. It can better tolerate heat and pH than calibrachoa, and doesn’t get as beaten down by rain as typical petunia. Pictured here is ‘Premium French Vanila’.
35. Sakata Home Grown: These compact, container-friendly plants need to taste and look good. New “Lola” sweet banana peppers come in three colours, ranging
TRUFFULA PINK GOMPHRENA
Proven Winners
CORAL CREATIONS SUCCULENTS
Proven Winners
LISIANTHUS VOYAGE 2 Sakata
SAKATA HOME GROWN Sakata
CITRUS MIX COLOR MAX Sakata
PERENNIALS
Syngenta
ROCKIN’ FUCHSIA
Proven Winners
HARMONY DOUBLE
Sakata
PINK FIZZ COLEUS
Sakata
SUNPATIENS VIGOROUS RED
Sakata
SUPERCAL PETCHOA
Sakata
SUNFINITY
Syngenta
Hydra Sprayer
Full of Features
from light yellow to bright red.
36. Sunpatiens Vigorous Red: First discovered in Indonesia, this series of interspecific impatiens is more robust in cooler climates, and blooms in extreme heat. This latest red is an attention-grabber.
SYNGENTA
37. Perennials: Having relaunched their perennial genetics in the last year, their display included Kirigami Aquilegia, Delphina Delphinium (open-pollinated, naturally compact), Phlox trot (more vigorous type with large flowers), Scent Lavender (earliest and most programmable English lavender with more consistent flowering), Western Star Leucanthemum (firstyear flowering white daisy with a long flowering window).
38. Sunfinity: Pre-launched last year and appeared earlier at Canada Blooms, Sunfinity produces hundreds of blooms all through the season – hence its slightly higher price. Because of its free-branching and vigorous habit, Syngenta compared different PGR treatments in trials (check out the results on their website).
39. Snapdragons: Their snapdragon genetics are earlier to flower and have stronger stem strengths for better post-harvest quality. With the exception of scarlet, all the colours of their latest Snaptini dwarf snapdragons flower within the same week – helpful for production planning.
40. Delta Speedy: These pansies offer fast crop times even under short days. The yellow and purple ones are particularly gorgeous.
41. Moxie! Geraniums: These interspecific geraniums offer new, rich colour options with densely branched habits.
VARINOVA
42. Goblet cyclamen: Because most commercial varieties look very similar, Varinova offers special varieties that appeal to different markets, such as Globlet, a wellreceived variety in Japan. Speaking with Bart Kuijer, cyclamen could be a great option for landscaping in Canada thanks to its ability to withstand colder temperatures, even when covered with snow.
Taking Farming TO THE TOP
This year’s Top 10 Under 40 winners came from across the nation, including not only greenhouse vegetable and flower growers, but indoor farming as well.
BY Greta Chiu
HENRY FRIESEN
Whether it’s an insatiable appetite for knowledge or a drive to innovate, their nominators’ comments – as well as their own – reveal exactly why these winners earned a top spot.
HENRY FRIESEN, Lake Erie Farms Inc. Norfolk County, ON
Henry Friesen is the greenhouse manager at Lake Erie Farms. His hard work and endless dedication have not gone unnoticed.
“He epitomizes the employee that every employer hopes to have in that he runs the business as if it were his own,” says Jessie Witzel, agribusiness manager at Lake Erie Farms. “He takes pride and ownership in everything he does, and instills that, along with his amazing work ethic to all his staff.”
Managing crop after crop along with other expansion and retrofit projects, Friesen’s devotion to the operation shows.
“I come from a farming background, my Dad always loved farm work and I guess I do as well,” he says. “My summer breaks were always spent on farm work, when I finished high school I knew I wanted to stay on with farming”
While exploring tobacco production, he applied for an opening in the greenhouse division. What started as a three-month trial become eleven years, and he’s still enjoying every minute of it.
“... if it hadn’t been for [Lake Erie Farms] I really don’t know which path I would’ve taken,” he says.
“All my knowledge and experience I have and will be taking with me, they gave me the opportunity to learn and it is greatly appreciated.”
and CEO Brian Bain.
With a dramatic rise in sales over the past two years, high employee retention rates and strong relationships with retailers, their team has never been more cohesive and motivated. And she’s accomplished all this with limited capital, little farming experience and the odds stacked against her.
“I started in this industry because of my husband Brian Bain,” says Bain. “The reason for my shift to farming is that it feeds my soul. Feeding people clean food, close to home and working with an incredible team that wants to challenge the regular way of thought make my job not feel like a job.”
“We have many social missions within our company,” she adds, “and the thought of making any of those successful is absolutely satisfying.”
“The reason for my shift to farming is that it feeds my soul,” says Roberta Bain.
A community leader in Norfolk County, Norfolk agriculture and the Mennonite Community of Southern Ontario, he’s got a lot on his plate, but his children keep him going. “Seeing the joy on their faces when we walk through the greenhouse on a Sunday afternoon to check up on the plants… and seeing them grow as I grow a crop in the greenhouse is just priceless.”
ROBERTA BAIN, Ecobain Naturals/Ecobain Gardens
Saskatoon, SK
Roberta Bain is chief operations officer at Ecobain Naturals / Ecobain Gardens, an indoor herb producer. Successfully managing the operations, logistics and consumer relations of this fast-growing, technologically-challenging company, Bain still manages to make work fun.
“Roberta has helped create an amazing space that allows employees to flourish in their roles, grow personally, and she somehow managed to keep everyone laughing during the process,” says husband
STEPHANIE BACH, NutraPonics Sherwood Park, AB
Steph Bach is chief scientific officer at NutraPonics, an indoor vertical aquaponics operations. After completing her graduate degree in 2011, she spent several years working in and around the agricultural industry.
“After moving to Alberta, I met many key players in the organic and conventional agricultural industry,” says Bach. “Shortly afterward, I learned about an indoor vertical farming company operating in the local area.”
First brought on by NutraPonics as a horticultural technician, her determination and drive quickly led to her promotion into a managerial position. Also serving as the point person of the indoor operation, she provided structure and process to the farm and farm staff.
“During this time, she had to face unexpected setbacks including power outages and the shuffling of employees,” says Derek Rolston, chief design officer at NutraPonics. “She met these challenges head-on
LEFT ROBERTA BAIN (MIDDLE)
and still managed to maintain consistent quality in our products as well as in the research performed at the farm all while balancing the health of our fish and plants. Now, nearly two years later, the farm is operating better than it ever has.”
Alongside their chief executive officer, Bach is helping guide NutraPonics to their next chapter by managing the company’s scientific research, production work, farm-related activities, and outreach and extension program.
“Knowing that I am contributing to agricultural efforts that can sustainably support our growing global population is what keeps me going every day,” she says. “Seeing the smiles on our clients’ faces is the icing on the cake.”
ANDREW HEINEN, Ontario Plants Propagation
St. Thomas, ON Andrew Heinen is head grower at Ontario Plants Propagation. He first started as a general labourer at Ed Sobkowich Greenhouses at the age of 16, learning all the nuances of running a greenhouse – soil mixing, transplanting, irrigation, spraying, shipping, maintenance and everything else in between. He then spent 10 years growing flowers at Creekside Greenhouses – first as an assistant grower, then as head grower.
“My mother insisted that my first job was in a greenhouse because it would teach me the value of good hard honest work,” he says. “Little did she know it would become a life-long career in the greenhouse.”
Taking a keen interest in crop growing and greenhouse climate control, he graduated from the horticultural technician’s program at Niagara College and eventually became part of the program’s advisory committee.
“Andrew has always strived to enhance his knowledge and skills, in both floriculture and vegetable greenhouse areas,” says wife Dawn Heinen. “He possesses an innate ability to understand the nuances and larger scope of the plant life he is cultivating.”
Always looking to further his greenhouse knowledge, he took on the position of senior grower at Ontario Plants Propagation, working with hydroponic vegetable transplants. After three years, he was promoted to head grower.
“Growing is a rewarding career whether you’re growing flowers for the garden or putting veggies on people’s
plate, it’s something to be proud of.”
EMMA JOHNSTON, Jeffery’s Greenhouses Lincoln, ON Emma Johnston has been a supervisor at Jeffery’s greenhouses for several years.
Known to colleagues as a passionate and effective leader, she inspires and helps her team successfully grow annual bedding plants for Home Depot. Johnston has also demonstrated her ability to take on new challenges, running this year’s poinsettia trials for instance and temporarily filling in for the production manager on a leave of absence.
“She has put in really long hours,” says former co-worker Maxine Murphy, “working 7 days a week to make sure that the growing [department] kept running smoothly as usual and making sure that nothing fell through the cracks while leading the production team.”
Growing up in Niagara on a 25-acre fruit and vegetable farm, Johnston’s first part-time job outside of the family business was at a local greenhouse.
“I had many opportunities as I graduated high school but I was confused about how to proceed,” she says. “I decided to follow what I knew and loved, I attended the horticulture program at Niagara College.”
Knowing the dynamic nature of the greenhouse industry, Johnston places a big emphasis on learning and mentoring.
“I have been fortunate to have had opportunities to work with growers with years of experience in both perennial and annual production and have tried to gain as much as possible,” she says. “I feel it is just as important to continue the cycle and help others learn.”
JENNIFER MCINTOSH, Meyers Flowers Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON Jennifer McIntosh is head grower at Meyers Flowers.
“Perhaps you could say I stumbled upon the greenhouse industry by mistake,” she says. “An appreciation for plants was instilled early in my life. However, it wasn’t until a summer job working in a garden centre and a family friend recommending University of Guelph’s diploma horticulture program that I considered a career in this industry.”
Graduating in 2002, she then began her career as a flower grower and has since worked in a number of different
STEPHANIE BACH
ANDREW HEINEN
EMMA JOHNSTON
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greenhouses, going from assistant grower to head grower.
From ensuring daily crop requirements to creating and implementing IPM programs, colleagues have recognized her expertise in greenhouse operations. She takes an active part in creating crop schedules and production plans, delegates responsibilities and isn’t afraid to implement new ideas and strategies for improving efficiencies, raising quality standards and reducing costs.
“Jennifer has a passion for growing plants and runs accurate crop trials like the one on cyclamen,” says Mel Sawaya of Focus Greenhouse Management. “And most importantly, she is a great communicator and you always know what she’s thinking of.”
With a true love for this industry, McIntosh is driven by every aspect of her job – the people, the challenges and new ideas.
“I feel that there is great potential and many possibilities in this field,” she says. “I am grateful to be able to do what I love.”
NICOLE
RADKE, Jeffery’s Greenhouses
St. Catharines, ON Nicole Radke is the vendor managed inventory (VMI) specialist at Jeffery’s Greenhouses. She first started at Jeffery’s as a seasonal student on spring break 14 years ago, returning each season throughout her post-secondary studies.
Studying business administration and marketing at Niagara College at the time, one of her courses offered a co-op placement. “That is when Barbara Jeffery took me under her wing in the sales department and kick started my career in the horticultural industry,” Radke says.
“Nicole embraced the very novel concept of vendor managed inventory,” says Albert Grimm, head grower at Jeffery’s. “In those years, the company had its first exposure to this marketing platform and everything was new, uncertain, and difficult.”
Methods and procedures had to be developed and tested – some worked and some didn’t. The process transformed how planning, production, growing, shipping and marketing had to go about their jobs, says Grimm.
Embracing the opportunity to learn about production processes, horticulture and greenhouse logistics, she worked the farm floor, first observing how different
departments interacted and relied on one another, then becoming a liaison between them.
“Her function became very important in our task of bringing our product to a new market in a manner that helps consumers become more successful,” Grimm explains. “Nicole’s vision helped our company to transform into this new environment with great success.”
Motivated by her love of plants and the customer experience, her infectious positivity hasn’t gone unnoticed. In recent years, she began to represent the company and the Ontario industry on international platforms such as tradeshows and organized visits in Europe with the Luxflora Group.
Enjoying the camaraderie she has with other growers, breeders and container suppliers, “We all win when customers are put first,” Radke says.
SAMAN SOLTANINEJAD,
Orangeline Farms Ltd. Leamington, ON Saman Soltaninejad is a grower at Orangeline Farms, and getting there wasn’t a short journey.
“My grandfather was a farmer and I remember how hard he was working on his 5-acre farm,” he says. Unfortunately, he lost the farm due to a savior pest invasion, but that loss triggered me to study [the] field of agriculture to help people and save the products.”
Following his bachelor’s degree in crop protection at the University of Tehran, he pursued a master’s in plant pathology and biological control. He went on to hold a number of key commercial agricultural positions in Iran, then moving to Belgium to conduct and publish research on biological controls of pests and diseases with different research centres.
Seeking to bring his knowledge to the field, Soltaninejad made his way to Leamington. He was hired on as a bioscout by Orangeline Farms, promoted to IPM coordinator and now grower.
“Saman is an excellent student, and perhaps more importantly [a] teacher,” say Duffy Kniaziew, president of Orangeline Farms. “[He] is an excellent leader in all endeavours he encounters from the challenge of attacking pest and disease head on, to managing a chemical-free greenhouse with a multi-layered biological system, as well as managing a diverse workforce”.
“When I look back to my journey, my
“I am grateful to be able to do what I love,” says Jennifer McIntosh
JENNIFER MCINTOSH
NICOLE RADKE
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GREENHOUSE Canada is proud to celebrate Canada’s young, skilled and knowledgeable professionals who are driving the greenhouse industry forward. From commercial growers and wholesalers to manufacturers, equipment suppliers and service providers, they are the best and brightest in our industry. Join us as we congratulate this year’s Top 10 Under 40 winners
Roberta Bain Ecobain Naturals/Ecobain Gardens Saskatoon, SK
Stephanie Bach NutraPonics Sherwood Park, AB
Andrew Heinen Ontario Plants Propagation Ltd. St. Thomas, ON
Jennifer McIntosh Meyers Flowers Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
Saman Soltaninejad Orangeline Farms Leamington, ON
Tim Verbeek Platinum Produce Blenheim, ON
Henry Friesen Lake Erie Farms Inc. Norfolk County, ON
Emma Johnston Jeffery’s Greenhouses Lincoln, ON
Nicole Radke Jeffery’s Greenhouses St. Catharines, ON
Steve Stasko Orangeline Farms Leamington, ON
passion and interest have led me into this level,” he says. “Producing fresh and healthy products and helping people to get more valuable ingredients motivates me to get up early every morning and drive 50 KM to get to work.”
Soltaninejad also credits his success to the people at Orangeline and the people in this sector. Their positivity and support helped get him to his role today, he says.
STEVE STASKO, Orangeline Farms Ltd. Leamington, ON Steve Stasko is a grower at Orangeline Farms. A third generation farmer, Stasko grew up on his family’s farm processing tomatoes, cash crops and more recently potatoes.
Graduating with an honours bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the University of Guelph in 2011, Stasko knew he wanted to return to Leamington and take part in his family’s farm – though not on a full-time basis.
“One of my favourite courses in university was Greenhouse Production which had a greenhouse project component to it where myself and a partner were actually able to grow a small crop of cucumbers over the course of the semester, testing different nutritional variations,” he says. Harvest was rewarding for him and his friends, but the handson experience of growing in a controlled environment, including pruning and applying beneficial insects, all peaked his interest in greenhouse production.
After working as a quality assurance manager in a packing facility, he witnessed the importance of quality produce to the production chain, prompting his decision to go back to growing.
“We were excited to welcome Steve to our team in May of 2012 as assistant grower,” says Duffy Kniaziew, president of Orangeline Farms. Now as a grower, Stasko is in his fourth year of growing strawberries under LEDs and has recently applied this technology to greenhouse peppers.
“One of the biggest components of my job that continues to motivate me is Orangeline’s mantra of being different from anyone else in the industry and a strong focus on research and development,” he says.
He’s involved in an array of projects at Orangeline, including tests of 40 to 60 pre-commercial varieties for different seed companies each year. He and Orangeline have also worked with a local elementary
school greenhouse, supplying them with plants and educating them on the greenhouse growing process.
“It’s a pleasure to see their excitement when learning about greenhouse agriculture,” he says, “and if it motivates them to pursue education and careers in agriculture then I’ll consider it a win.”
TIM VERBEEK
Platinum Produce
Blenheim, ON
Tim Verbeek is vice-president and grower at Platinum Produce. Always looking to streamline greenhouse operations, he constantly finds new ways to improve every inch of it – from irrigation all the way to employee motivation.
“What motivates me is something that my parents instilled in me when I was young, and that is to try to do/be the best that I possibly can at any task I set out to do, or in whatever situation that is presented before me,” he says. “I enjoy growing because it is a very challenging job that always keeps me on my toes and is very rarely the same experience from day to day.”
Verbeek’s family was involved in farming for years, and starting greenhouse operations in 2003. Verbeek himself joined in 2009 when he retired from playing professional hockey in the United States –and he’s been here ever since.
Active in the local community and a committed sponsor to local sports teams, he’s also involved in local, provincial and federal politics in promoting the interests of the greenhouse industry.
When it comes to the industry-wide issue of the pepper weevil, Verbeek’s colleagues agree – he’s been at the forefront of combatting this greenhouse pest. He has campaigned MP’s and MPP’s, as well as the CFIA and CBSA, about possible means of preventing the potential introduction of the weevil from the United States and Mexico. Working with other members of the greenhouse industry, he’s researched and implemented ways to combat the weevil while making these solutions as efficient as possible.
“There are highs and there are lows,” he says about his work, “but in the end, I find it very rewarding because I am working with my hands and I get to be creative with coming up with new solutions to problems that present themselves. Growing is both physically and mentally rewarding, and I love that!”
SAMAN SOLTANINEJAD
STEVE STASKO (MIDDLE)
TIM VERBEEK
PEI’s medical cannabis operation to grow with legalization
Licenced producer looks to advance into recreational once legalization is in place.
BY KATHY BIRT
“The road from the initial idea in 2013 (of a medical marijuana operation) to where we are today … I could write a book on that,” says Edwin Jewell, president and CEO of Canada’s Island Garden (CIG) the only medical marijuana operation in Prince Edward Island.
He notes that banks do not want to loan money to marijuana-growing operations. So he had to find other lenders and investors and bring them on board. He was able to bring four Islanders and one Nova Scotian to the table. That’s where the initial start-up money came from to get things off the ground. He had received his letter from Health Canada in January 2014 and had to meet two conditions i.e. pass security clearance for all senior staff and be able to build a building.
Locally, the government had nothing to say about the kind of building that would be erected. Jewell says there was no PEI government money
ABOVE
going into this venture, so they were not initially involved. “We had to work with engineers and all aspects of the building were designed to meet HVAC regulations.”
The building per se, is not a greenhouse, in fact, from the outside has the appearance of a large warehouse, but within has what is called flowering rooms where the medicinal marijuana is grown. There are three 12,000 square foot flowering rooms, a larger 1450 sq. ft. flowering room, one germination room and a vegetative room. “The medicinal marijuana flowers are grown and dried,” notes the CEO.
He says “cuttings” are taken from the mother plant, and that mother plant is coming from a national operation that is also licensed to grow medicinal cannabis. These cuttings then spend two weeks to root, two weeks to grow vegetatively, then eight weeks to flower. He indicates that the new cuttings need to be kept
Edwin Jewell and his son Jordan looking at new cuttings. All images courtesy of Canada’s Island Garden.
Cuttings take two weeks to root, two weeks to grow vegetatively, then eight weeks to flower.
very cool, so misting is done every 30 minutes for under a week. Past this stage, the plants themselves grow quite warm between 26 to 28 degrees Celsius. From cutting to finish, “it takes a total of 12 weeks to get to the harvest stage,” says Jewell. “At the end of the day, it’s a plant that has the same basic needs as any other plant.”
He says the cannabis operation sells in 10-gram sizes in plastic bottles similar to what you would find in a pharmacy. “All clients would be registered with us and have all the medical documents from their doctor … just as they would with a pharmacy,” offers Jewell.
With all Health Canada quality control specifications in place, Jewell says the bottle/vial of medicinal marijuana can be traced back to the plant it came from. “We have a Standing Operation Procedure SAP and if Health Canada wants to see what we’ve done, and are doing on any given day, we have video to back that up.”
To date, Canada’s Island Garden, is only allowed to sell the dried product. “We can extract oil in our operation now, but as yet, are not allowed to sell (oil).”
“People can vape it, smoke it, or a lot of people can use the oil,” notes Jewell adding, “Some people may have been taking opiates for pain relief and were not doing well on them. But with medical marijuana the quality of life is greatly improved.” He adds that with the oil, some people will drink it in another beverage.
Jewell says his clients/customers for the medical marijuana are from all walks of life with most being Islanders, while others are in the Atlantic region as well as across Canada. All product is delivered by Purolator Courier and is moving faster than the operation can produce it.
With start-up funds in place, and the criteria set out for him, Jewell was all about optimism and broke ground in the spring of 2015, a year before he got his Health Canada license to grow.
Jewell says what he is doing now is in line with what he has done his whole life.
Grow plants.
He owned and operated Jewell’s Country Market in York, PEI for about 20 years. That business was put on the market when he started the medical marijuana operation and sold last year.
He now points out that he had to deal with politicians provincially regarding his new business, and found there were some local politicians who had personal beliefs, (about growing marijuana).
He applied for the licence in 2015 and admits everything was a challenge, and says, “No one knew, at that time, the regulations were going to change.” By that he means the announcement from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the spring of 2017, that recreational marijuana would become legal on July 1, 2018.
While the time frame surrounding that may have moved, the promised legalization prompted Jewell and several others across the country to up the ante and advance from growing medical marijuana to diving into the recreational market.
Again he is looking for investors and says, “There will be no money coming
from the province.” Right on the heels of his first high-demand, successful year with the medicinal marijuana, Jewell was approached by an American tobacco company, Alliance One International (AOI) in November 2017, and according to Volker Lauterbach with AOI, he and his colleagues were impressed with what Jewell had built. “The professionalism and quality of
“No one knew, at that time, the regulations were going to change.”
the product (impressed us).” says Lauterbach. “CIG’s and Edwin’s values seemed like a great match with what AOI stands for.”
“AOI will be financing the expansions and will have to find the funding through their own means,” says Jewell. He says they will build 160,000 square feet of greenhouse space in 2018, with another 90,000 square feet added next year. There will be a 54,000 square foot supporting warehouse. “In two to three years, our business will grow 25
to 30 times bigger,” he says.
The new expansion will be built to comply with the regulations as laid out by Health Canada. “They will issue a license for us to grow in that expansion once they are satisfied that our new building has met the regulations.”
He notes that the process will be similar to the first building. “However, we now have a successful track record with Health Canada and have proven to them that we are capable.”
These are lofty aspirations for the greenhouse CEO whose beginnings were from a playpen in his parent’s greenhouse. “So I have been working in greenhouses all my life and growing cannabis is not that far removed from growing other plants,” he says
While Lauterbach did not reveal the dollars involved in the deal, where AOI bought 75 per cent of the entire operation, he was quick to point out that, “All parties involved are coming out winning.”
AOI has also purchased 80 per cent of Goldleaf Pharm Inc. in Simcoe, Ontario and Lauterbach notes, “The two investments so far are a great starting point but we remain interested in strengthening our operation if we come across the right opportunity.” He points out that the two operations that AOI has
From cutting to finish, it takes 12 weeks to get to the harvest stage.
Jewell expects the business to grow 25 to 30 times larger than its current size, based on financing from American Tobacco company Alliance One International.
purchased come under the umbrella of Canadian Cultivated Products, which was renamed to FIGR Cannabis Inc., of which he is the president.
In keeping with Jewell’s mindset of hiring all local people, growing his businesses and strengthening PEI’s economy, AOI will hire all local people for both their (Canadian) entities.
“We will create jobs locally and hire all local talent,” notes Lauterbach.
Jewell says it is a $15 an hour job for locals and offers that his current 20 employees will grow to upwards of 100 to 200 when he has the recreational marijuana greenhouse up and running. Jewell states that CIG is still selling to their medicinal marijuana clients, and will continue to look after them, “As we have done so far.”
He points out that the cannabis they are growing now could be sold to the medicinal market or saved and sold into the recreational market when it opens up. Some of the cannabis grown here has THC and some has not. CIG will be supplying the province with one thousand kilos in the first year (of legalization). “Just so the province can supply the four stores.”
Those four stores Jewell talks about will mean one located in the Island’s capital city, Charlottetown, one in the neighbouring city of Summerside; one in the town of O’Leary in the Prince County area of the province and one in the town of Montague, in Kings County.
“The regulations in Canada have evolved and are evolving. We had no idea that would happen (the legalization) and we see it as an opportunity,” notes Jewell. He points out that cannabis is in all communities so the legalization is a chance to cut out the black market …”To stop illegal activities.”
CANADA’S MEDICAL MARIJUANA OPERATIONS GROWING
In April 2017 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made Canada the second country in the world to look seriously at legalizing recreational marijuana. And Bill C-45 was passed through a third reading in the House of Commons in November 2017.
While the initial July 1 date for the sale of recreational marijuana has been bandied about since April 2017, the Senate managed to nudge Bill C-45 through a second reading in March this year.
But this much-awaited legalization now has to pass final muster, in other words, “royal assent” in June 2018. While all this debate is going on, entrepreneurs and greenhouse operators around the country have hopped onto the band wagon to start up medical marijuana operations and some will, no doubt, advance into recreational when all laws, rules and regulations are in place.
One of those is in Prince Edward Island and thus far is the only medical marijuana operation in the province of
150,000 people. One has been turned down for a licence in that province. As of May 11, 2018, there were 104 medical marijuana operations across Canada
In Simcoe, Ontario Goldleaf Pharm Inc. medical marijuana greenhouse has had 80 per cent of their operation purchased by Alliance One International (AOI) which is a tobacco conglomerate located in Morrisville, North Carolina with 3000 full-time employees and upwards of 5,800 to
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The promised legalization prompted many across the country to advance into the recreational market, including Jewell’s operation.
9,600 seasonal employees. The revenues up to Dec. 13, 2017 for AOI were US $1.8 billion.
It is the same U.S. tobacco company that bought 75 per cent of Canada’s Island Garden in PEI. Volker Lauterbach, president of the tobacco company says he will buy others in Canada if he sees an operation that meets the criteria he is looking for.
Goldleaf has applied for a cultivation licence, and Lauterbach notes that when recreational marijuana becomes legal they will be supplying the retail market.
Information provided from Health Canada states that, over the past almost year, Health Canada has built upon already established regulatory requirements that were in place for those who already produce cannabis for medical purposes.
By enacting many of the same types of strict regulatory controls for production under the proposed Cannabis Act (for legal and quality-control products to be originally available by July 2018), Health Canada felt this would help address the public health and safety risks posed by illegally produced cannabis.
As well, in an email from Health Canada it was noted that the provinces and territories have advised that they need eight to 12 weeks between when the Bill receives Royal Assent and when the new laws come into force to effect an orderly transition to the new framework. This transition time is important for all levels of government, industry, law enforcement and other stakeholders to prepare for implementation of the new system.
EDITOR’S NOTE: At the time of print, Bill C-45 had just passed its third reading in the Senate on June 7, 2018. As reported by the Canadian Press, the vote was 56 to 30 with
one abstention. With almost four dozen amendments made, the bill will return to the House of Commons where MPs will vote to approve, reject or modify these changes. One of the major amendments proposed will allow provinces to ban home cultivation of cannabis within their jurisdictions if they so choose. Once it passes through the House of Commons, Bill C-45 will be voted on again by the Senate.
NIAGARA
FALLS
OCT 3&4 2018
Join us for Canada’s foremost event for all crops grown under cover. The Canadian Greenhouse Conference is the ultimate connection point for growers, suppliers and research partners.
Registration opens July 1st
Les Quebeckers’Exceptionnelles: favourite plants
Eight plants stood out in ‘la belle province’ this year.
BY ANNIE CHAMPAGNE
Similar to the All-America Selections Program in the United States, Quebec’s horticultural assessment program, Les Exceptionnelles (the Exceptionals) selects six to ten annual plants each year that have stood out for their performance and ease in growing in the assessment gardens in Canada’s northern climate. For more than twelve years, the program has called upon the public to vote for their favourite annuals from among hundreds of varieties that arrive each year on the market. Thus, between 150 and 200 new arrivals are presented each year in the program’s assessment gardens. At the end of the summer, a committee of horticultural experts ratify the general public’s favourites and crown the winners that will be sold as Exceptionnelles the following spring in Quebec’s garden centres.
The eight annual plants that were selected this
year are beautiful, naturally high-performing, resistant to insects and diseases and easy to grow. In addition, the diversity of the 2018 selection is beautifully complementary, both in flower beds as well as in pots.
Discover this exceptional selection that will satisfy gardeners looking particularly for both ease and spectacular results.
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL ALSTROEMERIA
With the most votes from the public during the last assessment, this alstroemeria can be grown in full sun as well as in partial shade. In addition to its spectacular decorative foliage, when the reddishorange flowers appear in July, it’s an apotheosis!
SOLENIA YELLOW WINTER BEGONIA
This prolific blooming begonia is particularly well-
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL ALSTROEMERIA
SOLENIA YELLOW WINTER BEGONIA
# HeresToCdnAg fcc.ca
adapted to growing in pots, as a hanging plant or in the ground. This begonia is even happy inside the house.
‘XXL TABASCO’ DAHLIA
This plant was chosen because of its huge flower made up of pointed petals with stripes in tones of orange, yellow and red. Its flamboyant and attractive colour – very flashy – is perfect for attracting hummingbirds.
BRIGHT LIGHTS DOUBLE MOONGLOW AFRICAN DAISY
This plant’s semi-double flowers bloom continuously throughout the season in all conditions, and its flowers attract pollinators.
TANGO BICOLOR CHERRY HORTICULTURAL PELARGONIUM
The flowers on this pelargonium are edible; they have a slightly tangy taste. They can brighten up your plates by offering gorgeous visual impact in a salad.
TANGO BICOLOR CHERRY HORTICULTURAL PELARGONIUM
DOUBLE ZAHARA RASPBERRY
THUNBERGIA ALATA
MYSTIC SPIRES IMPROVED SALVIA
This salvia is an inspiration in a large pot; the verticality of its spires is a beautiful contrast with shorter plants. Since this plant is hardy, it easily tolerates droughts.
TANGERINE SLICE A-PEEL
THUNBERGIA ALATA
Originally from South Africa, this plant that is poetically called “Black-Eyed Susan” is a climbing plant that is ideal for adding height to an arrangement. Tangerine Slice A-Peel, a Quebec creation, has a two-tone orange and red colour.
DOUBLE ZAHARA RASPBERRY
RIPPLE ZINNIA
Double Zahara Raspberry Ripple has a large, double, two-toned flower that is pom-pom shaped. Its large pink flowers are visited by both bees and butterflies.
SEVERAL NEW
DEVELOPMENTS
FOR 2018!
2018 marks the addition of two new
assessment gardens starting this summer: the Jardin Roger Van Den Hende in Quebec City and Montreal’s Botanical Garden. Along with the Daniel A. Séguin Garden, more than one million visitors will be able to vote for their favourite Exceptionnelles throughout the summer season! Another new addition in 2018: tomatoes, chard, basil and even tatsoi will be included in the gardens. Lastly, in the last few weeks, the list of official retailers for the Exceptionnelles has been added online at www.lesexceptionnelles.ca.
Are you planning on visiting Quebec this summer? Don’t forget to go and vote at one of the program’s three assessment gardens. Who knows, maybe your “favourite” plant will become an Exceptionnelle next year!
Annie Champagne is the project communications manager at the Fédération interdisciplinaire de l’horticulture ornementale du Québec. She can be reached at annie.champagne@fihoq.qc.ca.
MYSTIC SPIRES IMPROVED SALVIA
BRIGHT LIGHTS DOUBLE MOONGLOW AFRICAN DAISY
TANGERINE SLICE A-PEEL
RIPPLE ZINNIA
THURSDAY JULY 26th | 8AM - 5PM |
Thank you to our 2018 Event Sponsors
Focus Greenouse Management Inc., AMA, Ball Superior, Benary, Berger, C French Ltd., Colonial, Concept plastic, Darwin, DummenOrange, Ed Sobkowich Greenhouses, Express Seed, Florist Holland, George Sant and Sons, Green Fuse, Greenhouse Canada, HC Canada companies, JVK, Linwell Gardens, MGS/Plant Products, Orchard Park, PanAm, Proven Winners, Sakata, Selecta, Sonnyside Flowers, Syngenta Flowers, Vacform, Vanden Bussche Irrigation
The future of greenhouse labour
A head grower shares his thoughts on finding skilled labour in the greenhouse industry.
BY ALBERT GRIMM
Labour trouble in the greenhouse industry is not merely a question of minimum wage. We will not solve our problems by trying to find people who work hard for long hours and do not ask for too much money. Quality of work is an issue that goes much deeper, and this is true for employers and employees alike. Our industry desperately needs to attract and coach a new generation of dedicated industry specialists. If our industry is to stay alive, we need people with a passion for greenhouse work
It is not enough to equip a generation of high school graduates with horticulture diplomas. Textbook knowledge may be handy to have, but much more important will be the degree to which this new generation identifies themselves with our trade and with our industry. If no one is willing to invest into the future of our industry it will cease to exist, at least in the form that we know it.
The dynamics of industries are often misunderstood. Industries are not built by politicians. Industries cannot be created by smart investors or consumer interest; they are built by people who dedicate their working lives to the task. Building an industry takes a critical mass of people who share the same passion for a trade.
Industries happen, when people with good education, experience, and passion are working to build themselves a livelihood – when they apply themselves to what they do best.
It is true that industries continuously morph and develop. As long as there is enough passionate talent to drive this change, it will create better and more viable results. Industries slide into crisis when they no longer attract people who are willing to invest themselves. I am certainly not alone with my belief that horticulture is approaching such a crisis situation. An entire generation of business leaders is very close to retirement, and we do not have enough qualified successors waiting to follow in their footsteps. With each grower and each operator that retires, one qualified teacher is lost. We need experienced business leaders to pass on knowledge that was acquired over generations. And we need a generation of future leaders to whom this knowledge can be passed on.
Horticulture schools cannot do this for us. Education does not generate the personal investment that is needed and for this reason this crisis cannot be fixed by the schools. It takes a lot more than academic excellence to build companies, lead people, and drive innovation. It
takes resilience and serious mental and physical stamina, as well as a devotion to excellence. Excellence starts with a sense of responsibility for oneself, and this is something that cannot be taught in a classroom. Neither can it be absorbed from a book. Those are qualities that require years of patient mentoring by qualified masters and applied learning by qualified trainees. The trouble is that we are running out of candidates for the job of master and trainee alike.
In the words of poet and essayist
Adrienne Rich:
“The first thing I want to say to those of you who are students, is that you cannot afford to think of being here to receive an education; you will do much better to think of yourselves as being here to claim one. One of the dictionary definitions of the verb ‘to claim’ is: to take as the rightful owner… ‘To receive’, is…to act as a receptacle…The difference is that between acting and being acted upon…”
“Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and
naming for you. It means learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts; hence, grappling with hard work.”
We are responsible for encouraging more talent onto a career path in our industry. This immense responsibility is for both employers AND for students alike.
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If you are getting close to retirement, you have the responsibility to pass your knowledge to the next generation. If you do not teach, who will? The future of this industry depends on employers who take students and young professionals seriously. Young people entering our industry need role models who show them the kind of professionalism that we expect. Good work ethics don’t just happen – they need to be developed and practiced. We need to make room for training in the necessary skills, and this means that we have to let go of our urge to call every decision. We have to create opportunities for the next generation of leaders to practice leadership. The responsibility lies with the retiring generation to teach the next generation how to be professional greenhouse growers and owner-operators.
If you are relatively new to this industry, you have the responsibility to claim knowledge. If you do not learn, nobody will do it for you. You will recognize that it has nothing to do with absorbing information and passing exams. You will need to learn by experience and by mistake. Neither comes easy. Learning by experience takes stamina and patience. Learning by mistake is even harder. You have to figure out how to fail but not become a failure. You have to learn how to fall and then get up and keep trying until you succeed.
In the words of Adrienne Rich, “recognizing that the most affirming thing anyone can do for you is demand that you push yourself further, to show you the range of what you CAN do.” DEMAND to be challenged. If you limit yourself merely to what you find easy, you will never come close to reaching your potential. If self-pity keeps you from pushing your limits, you have to develop more mental and physical stamina. One of the worst possible career scenarios is a job, however well paid, which offers no challenge and no serious obstacle to success. Your days revolve around boredom and around the hands of the clock, which will never move quickly enough. You are going to spend a significant amount of time at
work, so it is worthwhile to consider whether a paycheque is really all you want to get out of your invested time.
Excellence is always a voluntary effort. An employer can force you to perform simple and repetitive manual tasks, but nobody can force you to take on a really difficult job with the passion needed to make a difference. We cannot command resilience or excellence from you against your will, no matter the title we carry. Think about it: why is it ‘work’ to sweep the floor, but a ‘sport’ to climb the highest mountain we can find? Both activities take effort. The difference is that sweeping is forced onto us by necessity or by circumstance. The mountain is conquered by our own decision, stamina, resilience, skill and our own free will.
The previous generation of achievers learned a long time ago that gratification can be found when we learn how to overcome difficult challenges. However, someone had to teach us this concept. Good work ethics don’t just happen: they develop over time. If we want to help this new generation of greenhouse specialists, we have to give them room for development. We have to provide opportunities for them to fail, so we can help them learn how to deal with failure. We have to keep doing so until they succeed. That is the essence of leadership: help junior horticulturists identify with their chosen trade. Offer young people opportunities to discover meaningful work and the value of mastering a challenge. If we succeed, we will have done more for their education than any school or college will ever be able to offer.
who offers opportunities to apply themselves, and who supports them in the development of a meaningful career. I am going to sum this up into an old-fashioned platitude: ‘We ARE what we DO’. We can help a new generation identify with our trade and proudly introduce themselves as horticulture specialists. By doing this, our industry will not only stay alive but thrive. Students and employers share a common responsibility for the future of the greenhouse sector. We cannot pass this
responsibility for the future off to the schools. We all have opportunity and responsibility to improve the labour situation and the outcome of education in this industry. The greenhouse industry has to get involved and we have to take this issue seriously.
This is the shortened text of a lecture from Greenhouse Canada’s Grower Day on June 21, 2017. It has been edited for print.
Albert Grimm is the head grower at Jeffery’s Greenhouses. He can be reached at albertg@jefferysgreenhouses.com.
What about money? Money alone would not do anything to solve our crisis. People don’t leave a job because of money. People leave bad bosses and boring work. It is not so difficult to create a work environment which reduces boredom and increases engagement. Think about it: if someone who earns minimum wage has the choice between interesting work and a job that offers eight hours of boredom, which one would they pick? If the same worker gets a sense of contribution, would that not make a difference?
Highly skilled people create their own incentive for income. No employer in their right mind is going to let a valuable key person walk away over a few dollars a month. The opposite is also true: no horticulturist in their right mind is going to walk away from an employer
TRADITIONAL
HYBRID LED
Water and nutrient uptake: An overview and irrigation strategy
BY WILLEM GERICKE
For plants to grow optimally, adequate nutrients and water uptake are necessary to maintain plant growth and development. There are two general methods in which water and nutrients move in and out of plants cells: passive and active. Passive uptake is driven by diffusion, and the uptake is dependent on transpiration. Water and nutrients, especially calcium (Ca2+), move from an area of high concentration (growing substrate) to an area of low concentration (the roots) without energy needed from the plant. Think of it as walking downhill – it’s easy and relatively effortless. The root hair cells are hypertonic (lower water molecule concentration) to the surrounding substrate water. Therefore, water moves along a concentration gradient from the epidermis cells to the xylem cells. These xylem vessels are limited in fruit, and can limit nutrient delivery, leading to physiological disorders such as blossom end rot (BER). It is important to obtain transpiration before irrigation to stimulate a working rootzone. The second type, known as active transport, is where dissolved molecules move across a cell membrane from low concentration to high concentration, and relies on energy (ATP) from the plant to drive the movement. Sometimes the
dissolved molecules inside a cell are at a higher concentration than outside, and because the cell needs it, they still have to be absorbed. Carrier proteins transport specific molecules through the cell membrane against the concentration gradient. Think of it as walking uphill – it’s laborious and takes more energy.
WATER MOVEMENT THROUGH PLANTS
The amount of water uptake is governed by transpiration. The process begins when water is evaporated through the stomata, which are small pores that allow for carbon dioxide and oxygen exchange during photosynthesis. The water lost is replaced from adjacent cells behind them, and water moves into these cells via xylem vessels in the leaves. As water moves into the leaf, a pulling force is exerted on the water column in the root xylem. This creates a negative pressure, as the xylem walls are pulled inwards resulting in water moving from the substrate into the roots and towards the leaves –similar to drinking through a straw.
Up to 90 per cent of the water is transpired while only 10 per cent is utilized for growth. A transpiring crop can evaporate as much as 4.5 L of water/m2 on a sunny day (2000 J/cm2), cooling
The nutritional needs of a plant will change with growth, so nutritional recipes should be adjusted.
GREENHOUSE PEST MANAGEMENT
As the sustainable agriculture movement has grown, there has been a dramatic increase in the production of horticultural crops in greenhouses worldwide. Although there are numerous publications associated with pest management in greenhouses, Greenhouse Pest Management is the first comprehensive book on managing greenhouse arthropod pests, particularly in commercial production systems
The book contains the necessary information on major insects and mites, describing their biology and life cycle. Colour images are included to help with identification and also to illustrate the damage these insects and mites can cause to greenhouse-grown horticultural crops.
The book also assesses strategies for managing greenhouse pests, such as cultural, physical, and biological control as well as the use of pesticides, and describes how cultural practices and sanitation affect pest population dynamics
the greenhouse. That’s why transpiring leaves can be 2 to 6 °C cooler than nontranspiring leaves.
During this process, relative humidity in the greenhouse will rise. Adequate ventilation is necessary to control the increasing relative humidity during the summer months, and especially when milder weather with dark days are the norm and ventilation is limited.
INCREASED ROOT PRESSURE
When irrigation commences during low plant activity or before transpiration occurs, a phenomenon known as “active root uptake” will increase water uptake. Most growers refer to this as “root pressure”. Carrier proteins are necessary to move ions such as K+ and Ca2+ from the surrounding substrate into the roots through a single layer of cells. Energy formed during photosynthesis, helps to move those ions into the root, and is converted into a concentrated ion solution within the root cell. The water follows the ions as it moves into the root cell, through a passive process called osmosis, resulting in increased pressure. Therefore, growers should not have a pronounced irrigation EC reduction based on light intensity (W/m2), and should stop irrigation before sunset. This action will ensure that electrical conductivity (EC) is not at its lowest when transpiration stops, and enables the grower to achieve a higher substrate EC going into the night, decreasing the potential for cracking and splitting of tomatoes.
NUTRIENTS AND EC
Water uptake is influenced by EC, which is used to indicate the salt content in a solution. It’s expressed in milliSiemens or microSiemens per linear centimeter (mS/ cm or μS/cm). A higher ion concentration will increase the EC of nutrient solutions. (Note:1 mS/cm = 1000 μS/cm).
A low EC substrate enables easy water uptake. As EC increases, water uptake becomes more difficult after a certain EC level is reached. This level is determined by a specific higher EC concentration and is crop specific. There are differences between the individual concentrations of each ion in a nutrient solution, the substrate EC, as well as the rootzone concentration and the nutrients absorbed. Rootzone concentration can differ from substrate concentration because of the differences between monovalent (K+) and bivalent (Ca2+) cations, monovalent (HCO3-) and bivalent (SO42-) anions, and the ratios between them. Monovalent cations and anions have a higher uptake potential than bivalent cations and anions, so those ions will be depleted more quickly around the rootzone.
To balance a nutrient recipe, the total number of cations must equal the total number of anions. But certain cations such as K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ are antagonistic towards one another, and it is vital to mix these elements in specific ratios to ensure optimal plant growth. Note, cations and anions with a single charge (+) will be absorbed more easily than cations and anions with a double (2+) charge. Thus, it is important to check the ratios of the cations and anions when
calculating fertilizer recipes.
Antagonistic reactions also occur between ammonium (NH4+) and potassium (K+). In tomatoes, during the formation of the first 2 to 3 flowering trusses, the K:N uptake ratio is about 1.2:1, and will increase to approximately 2:1 with an increased fruit load. To compensate for this higher K+ uptake, it is necessary to increase K+ concentration.
Synergistic uptake is also possible. Nitrate (NO3-) improves the uptake of cations such as K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+
INTERPRETING WC AND EC GRAPHS
By measuring water content (WC), EC and water temperature within the rootzone, growers can formulate an irrigation strategy considering the crop type and developmental stage, solar radiation levels, overnight substrate dry back, etc. Irrigation is necessary to replenish the decreasing substrate WC and EC during transpiration. Each irrigation cycle stimulates a vegetative impulse in the plant, and small but frequent irrigation volumes will increase the WC. This action is beneficial especially during high transpiration periods. Large irrigation volumes with long waiting times between irrigation cycles can decrease the WC and have a generative effect on the plant.
Irrigation start and stop times have a major influence on substrate WC. Early start and late stop times (less than ±2 hrs after dawn/before dusk) will equate to a small overnight dry back, resulting in vegetative plant steering. The opposite is true when large overnight dry backs
Figure 1. Illustrating an effective irrigation strategy with large cycles in period 1, followed by smaller cycles in period 2 and the overnight dry back in period 3.
are prevalent, stimulating generative plant steering, and is due to late start and early stop times. Therefore, plant growth can be steered in a vegetative or generative direction using a specific irrigation strategy. The golden rule to remember is transpiration before irrigation! Following this strategy will reduce the potential increase in active root uptake, and reduce the risks of certain physiological problems such as Mycosphaerella melonis (gummy stem blight), BER, etc.
An effective irrigation strategy is necessary to generate the lowest EC during the highest solar radiation period (Figure 1). This is realized when the first four to six irrigation cycles used, varies between four to six per cent of the substrate volume. Drain is due to start around 400 J/cm2 or in the region of 600 W/ m2, and it is more critical to achieve effective drain at the right time than to focus on the 24hour drain percentage. False drain is achieved when the drain water has no effect anymore on refreshing the nutrient solution or decreasing the EC. Once drain is achieved, the cycle size can be decreased to three per cent of the substrate volume. This will ensure a stable WC in the substrate, and the dry back percentage between irrigation cycles must be in the region of one per cent. When a smaller dry back percentage between irrigation cycles in phase 2 is generated, dissolved oxygen levels in the substrate water will decrease, thus increasing the potential for root diseases such as Pythium. This problem can increase with a high drip water temperature (24°C), as dissolved oxygen levels decrease when water temperatures rise.
TAKEAWAYS
• Anions and cations attract each other, and their total amounts must equal one another to balance a fertilizer recipe
• Certain elements have synergistic or antagonistic reactions towards one another, and are absorbed in certain ratios
• The quantitative elemental requirements change as a plant is growing, and should be adjusted accordingly
• Water uptake in a plant can either be passive requiring no energy, or active which requires energy
• Water uptake is determined by root activity and transpiration, and a structured irrigation strategy will assist with root hair and root development and nutrient uptake
• An irrigation strategy can be used to steer plants in a vegetative or generative direction as required.
Willem Gericke is a technical advisor at the Grodan Group who recently submitted his MSc. thesis. Email him at willem.gericke@grodan.com
CLASSIFIED RATES: Minimum order $75.00 or 84¢ per word, word ads must be pre-paid. CLASSIFIED DISPLAYS: $72.00 per column inch, or $5.14 per agate line. GENERAL INFORMATION: Payment must accompany order. Copy required by the 1st of the month preceding publication. All advertising copy subject to the approval of the publisher. Send order and remittance to: Classified Dept., Greenhouse Canada, P.O. Box 530, 105 Donly Dr. S., Simcoe, ON N3Y 4N5
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ADVERTISERS INDEX
The rise of cannabisis it over yet?
There used to be a time when the morning business news on the radio was all about the auto industry or electronics or energy or precious metals and the price of gold. But there’s not a day now without mention of activities in the marijuana industry. Yesterday was news of yet another (humungous) takeover and other mergers. The numbers are just mind-boggling. Today was a report that greenhouse vegetable growers are justifying the switch because it’s ‘no longer profitable to grow food’. Never do I recall the greenhouse industry being so front and centre in mainstream media.
If, as the old adage says, there is no such thing as bad publicity, then this must surely bode well for our industry. If nothing else, its putting greenhouses out there as a viable career choice to potential new entrants. Which has to be good, considering demand. Just this week, a local licensed marijuana producer reached out with a job posting as they are “in need of 150 Plant Technicians by September 2018 in addition to many other greenhouse positions”. When did you last hire 150 new people? “Cannabis could become a major disruptor in the industry” says Hank Daniszewski.1 It already is.
Even prior to the emerging weed field, the BCLNA had embarked on a five phase research
production.”2 In the same vein, the Aboriginal community has also been looking hard and long at the subject. Indeed, they came up with a big ask, seeking that Bill C-45, “be amended to allow for a delay in implementation of up to a year.”3 According to John Paul Tasker, CBC News, the Senate’s Aboriginal Peoples committee suggested “the government should take the extra time to make certain “culturally sensitive” materials are available to warn Indigenous peoples about the risks of consuming cannabis, and to negotiate a revenue-sharing deal with First Nations governments to ensure they get a cut of the millions of dollars expected to be collected in excise taxes on the drug.”3 Not surprisingly, the prime minister quickly responded by saying that the delay won’t happen.
Then there are details around how we sell recreational marijuana. One group seeking clarification is the managers of farmers markets. Will they be allowed to sell this crop?
“...it’s putting greenhouses out there as a viable career choice...”
project looking at the labour market (‘BC Ag-Horticulture Landscape Labour Market Information (LMI) Research Project’). Horticulture has been struggling with the issue of labour availability (and cost) for some time, together with energy, import substitution and (now) zoning of agricultural operations. The advent of a crop like marijuana that many people connect to in a deeply emotional way (quite literally) polarizes viewpoints and magnifies the issues ten-fold.
Zoning of agricultural land is a renewed hot topic, now on many a political agenda out west. According to Jan Jacob Mekes, “The Delta Optimist reported on a moratorium by Central Saanich, asking the provincial government of British Columbia to halt any cannabis production on prime agricultural lands until a proper analysis of what it could mean to food
Looking at some of the investment figures, there’s obviously much at stake. While it may ultimately prove to be a “race to the bottom”4 as one commentator put it, the early adopters (=risk takers) stand to make lots of money before the crop becomes another commodity. Then the overseas market opens up. Even Malta is opening a new greenhouse for growing pot. Maybe this crop is different, and its Canada’s turn to export to other countries a crop that we can do well. Payback time for the demise of many of our cut flower specialties to foreign imports.
There’s still much to be decided, but by the time you read this, much will have already changed. Just like the daily news reports.
1 Hank Daniszewski. ‘A ‘pot’ of gold for greenhouse operators.’ London Free Press. April 20, 2018
2 Jan Jacob Mekes, ‘The Great Canadian Switcheroo’. April 20 2018. www.hortidaily.com
3 John Paul Tasker, CBC News. May 2018.
4 Kris Krane, 4Front, “Cannabis Cultivation Will Be a Race to The Bottom”. April 25 2018. www.hortidaily.com
Gary Jones is co-chair of horticulture at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Langley, BC. He sits on several industry committees and welcomes comments at Gary. Jones@kpu.ca.
