TECH ON DEMAND brought to you by GrowerTalks

Forcing Your Perennials to Wake Up ft. Chris Fifo

Forcing perennials out of winter dormancy and into bloom for spring and summer sales isn’t a new concept for most growers, but growth in the perennial market has inspired a lot of folks to add perennials to their mix and there’s been plenty of research done to update protocols for breaking dormancy. Because of this, Tech On Demand host Bill Calkins wanted to have a quick discussion with perennial plant guru Chris Fifo (from Darwin Perennials) to make sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to waking perennials up this spring.

 

In this concise tech tip-style conversation Bill and Chris discuss the “traditional method” of forcing perennials and the “new-school way,” which results in better uniformity and reduced losses. Then Chris explains tactics any grower can use to force long-day perennials using an extension cord and a string of lightbulbs, as well as offering suggestions for reducing the risk of disease when perennials are being forced to wake up in early spring. The bottom line: It’s not as difficult as it sounds—warming them up and basic night interruption will work wonders on your perennial crop this spring.

 

WATCH THE VIDEO: https://youtu.be/rsq3hRTX0l0

 

Resources:

GROWERTALKS WEBINAR: 3 1/2 Steps to Overwintering Perennials

 
MICHIGAN STATE GUIDE: Long-Day Perennials

All About Princettia with Suntory Flowers’ Lorentina McKoy

For this installment, Lorentina McKoy, the North American sales and product rep for Suntory Flowers, joins host Bill Calkins to talk about Princettia—the unique poinsettia assortment from Suntory that looks different than traditional holiday poinsettias because it’s bred to be different. This opens up some unique uses and retail specs and also requires some production nuances. Because breeding on Princettia is quite active, a whole new range of colors and patterns has come to market in the past couple years, as well as a new sub-series with a more vigorous habit. In this episode, Lorentina offers tips and trick to produce Princettias to their full potential, some ways she’s seen them marketed and sold around the world, why the fact they’re a true “family” of genetics is important and much more.

Although this episode is focused on one crop, Lorentina and Bill actually get into many different topics—from an early-Spring outlook and consumer trends to retail garden center tips and strategies to sell premium products. You’ll want to listen all the way to the end because this episode closes with some other top picks in the Suntory range of new varieties for 2026.

 

RESOURCES:

12-page Princettia Brochure—with culture notes: suntoryflowers.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Princettia-Brochure-2023-digital-1.pdf

The 2026 Suntory Flowers Catalog - Suntory Flowers

Princettia Section—direct link: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/232823221/40/

“Just for Retailers” Page: Princettia Poinsettia - Suntory Flowers

Princettia Consumer Information: New Ways to Display Princettia Poinsettias this Holiday Season - Suntory Flowers

Broad Mites (and Lewis Mites) with Dr. Raymond Cloyd

One of the greenhouse pests growers have been dealing with more and more recently is broad mite. This specific mite pest is extremely challenging to diagnose and treat and can wreak havoc on a very wide range of crops across multiple seasons. Host Bill Calkins is joined by well-respected professor and extension specialist in horticultural entomology at Kansas State University, Dr. Raymond Cloyd, to discuss this pest—from susceptible crops and theories why broad mites are on the rise to symptoms and identification. Dr. Cloyd then shared a bit about the pest itself and strategies to minimize the risk of losing crops due to broad mites and methods for control.

Once broad mites were covered, Bill asked Dr. Cloyd about Lewis mites (based on challenges with this pest on poinsettia crops in 2024), and the episode closed with the importance of sanitation, diligent scouting and IPM protocols during spring production. You’ll want to listen all the way to the end of this episode and share it with your entire production staff.

 

RESOURCES:

Broad Mite and Cyclamen Mite Management in Greenhouses and Nurseries:  https://bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF2938.pdf

Dr. Raymond Cloyd Contact Information: https://entomology.k-state.edu/about/people/faculty/Cloyd-Raymond-A.html

Extension & Research Program (Publications, Articles, Reports, Etc.): https://entomology.k-state.edu/about/people/extension/Cloyd-Ext-Research/ 

 

A bit about Dr. Raymond Cloyd: Raymond has an extension (70%) and research (30%) appointment in the Department of Entomology at Kansas State University (Manhattan, KS). Raymond received his MS and PhD from the Department of Entomology at Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN), and was employed as a professor at the University of Illinois (Urbana, IL) in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences for six years prior to his employment at Kansas State University. His research and extension program involves plant protection/pest management in greenhouses, nurseries, landscapes, turfgrass, conservatories, interiorscapes, Christmas trees, vegetables, fruits, cannabis, hemp and pollinators. Raymond is the extension specialist in horticultural entomology for the state of Kansas with a major clientele that includes homeowners, master gardeners, and professional and commercial operators. Raymond has published over 100 scientific refereed publications, over 900 trade journals, and over 60 extension publications on topics related to pest management/plant protection. In addition, he has authored or co-authored numerous books including Greenhouse Pest Management, Pests and Diseases of Herbaceous Perennials, IPM for Gardeners, Plant Protection: Managing Greenhouse Insect and Mite Pests, Compendium of Rose Diseases and Pests, Compendium of Bedding Plant Diseases and Pests, and Western Flower Thrips: Insect Pest of Greenhouse Production Systems. Raymond has also written book chapters, manuals, PICT or picture-pocket guides, and extension-related publications. Raymond is a frequent speaker at state, national, and international conferences and seminars; and has received numerous awards and honors during his over 25-year academic career. Raymond’s professional specialty areas are plant protection, biological control, plant-insect interactions, insect ecology, pesticides, integrating pesticides with biological control agents and sanitation.

2025 California Spring Trials Debrief ft. Chris Beytes & Jen Zurko

Host Bill Calkins welcomed GrowerTalks’ editor in chief Chris Beytes and editor Jennifer Zurko to the podcast to share thoughts on the event—the plants, the trends, the fish tacos—and the overall impact spring trials has on the professional horticulture industry.

When Chris, Jen and Bill return from Spring Trials each year, folks in the industry always ask for overall thoughts, hot new varieties expected to be big sellers and what they consider to be industry breakthroughs. It was Bill’s bright idea to record a podcast answering some of these questions and of course, his partners in crime for the annual trek westward agreed to it.

Here are the questions the three tackled in this episode:

• If the 2025 California Spring Trials were a person, how would you describe their 2025 vibe?
• Name a few new introductions from CAST 2025 that stand out in your mind—and why.
• Do you go to CAST looking for something specific or just to see what’s new and report back via the magazine, videos and social media?
• If you could have ONE new introduction shipped to your house for free, what would it be?
• What are some new intros that you feel are Instagram-ready?
• What new variety should launch on Shark Tank?
• Name some 2025 CAST varieties that got major promotion at the event that you think will live up to the hype?
• Were there any new intros that made you think, “what the heck is that” OR that surprised you?
• What’s a new product you haven’t seen yet that you WISH would be introduced (i.e. if you were launching your own product, what would it be?)
• What’s ONE reason why a grower who’s never been to Spring Trials should go at least once?

 

CHECK OUT BALL PUBLISHING’S INDUSTRY-LEADING COVERAGE OF THE 2025 CALIFORNIA SPRING TRIALS:

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Integrated Pest Management & Resistance Management ft. Corteva’s Broch Martindale

Just in time for warmer, spring temps and the insect pests that seem to come along, Tech On Demand host Bill Calkins caught up with Broch Martindale, the national nursery and strategic account manager at Corteva. The discussion centers on pest management in greenhouses and nurseries but because Broch is a phenomenal educator and “coach” there are plenty of best management practices and training strategies mixed in.

Broch and Bill start with a conversation about XXpire, an insecticide with two active ingredients that provides control for 39 pests—while minimizing phytotoxicity risk and risk to beneficials and pollinators.  Then the topic shifts to IPM and the steps greenhouse teams can take to create a holistic plan that leads to results. Broch then dives into the importance of resistance management, a topic that is becoming more critical each year and one that he has plenty of expertise in and experience to share. You’ll want to listen all the way to the end of this episode and share it with your entire production staff.

 

WATCH THE VIDEO! https://youtu.be/1qwbpAyXe5k 

 

RESOURCES:

XXpire Insecticide

Insecticide Resistance Action Committee

IRAC Mode of Action Structures Poster (English)

IRAC Mode of Action Structures Poster (Spanish)

Finishing Top-Quality Vegetative Petunia Crops

Recently retired Ball Technical Services Manager Dr. Will Healy joins host Bill Calkins to talk finished vegetative petunia production as part of the Tech On Demand series covering crop culture for key annuals and perennials AND this one is the final installment of our finished petunia miniseries—joining “common” seed-raised petunias and the Wave family of petunias in a dynamic trio of content.

 

From transplanting best practices and nutrition strategies to irrigation management and container selection, there are plenty of tips and tricks for your entire team. Will spends extra time on nutrition in this video, because fertilizer choice and application is so critical for vegetative petunias, as well as viral pathogens to watch out for and ideally prevent.

 

Resources:

 

GrowerTalks Insecticide, Miticide & Fungicide Guide: https://www.growertalks.com/pdf/2025_IMF_Guide.pdf

 

GrowerTalks Insecticide, Miticide & Fungicide Guide (Spanish): https://growertalks.com/pdf/2025_IMF_Guide_Spanish.pdf

 

GrowerTalks Biosolutions Guide: https://www.growertalks.com/pdf/BioSolutions_Guide_0624.pdf

Finishing WAVE Petunias with Dr. Will Healy

Retired Ball technical manager Dr. Will Healy joins host Bill Calkins to share protocols for finishing Wave petunias as part of the Tech On Demand series covering crop culture for key annuals and perennials. From media selection and nutrition to water, light and temperature, finishing crops requires careful attention to avoid losses and send high quality product out the door on time. In this discussion, Will continues our finished crop miniseries on petunias by sharing nuances for finishing Waves, especially looking at the differences in culture between Wave and common seed-raised petunias. Some of these intricacies include crop times, nutrition, photoperiod research specific to Wave and more.

 

As Will and Bill continue to say, PanAmerican Seed (the breeding company behind Wave) has done so much research into Wave and has developed tools to practically ensure success with this amazing collection of series and varieties. Some of these tools are listed below.

 

FINISHED CROP VIDEOS—FULL PLAYLIST

 

Resources:

 

PanAmerican Seed—All Wave Information: https://www.panamseed.com/Products/Brands/Wave/

 

Wave Smart Scheduling Tool: https://www.panamseed.com/Products/Brands/Wave/SmartSchedule/

Finishing “Common” Seed Petunias with Dr. Will Healy

Retired Ball technical manager Dr. Will Healy joins host Bill Calkins to share protocols for finishing more common types of seed-raised (multiflora and grandiflora) petunias as part of the Tech On Demand series covering crop culture for key annuals and perennials. From media selection and nutrition to water, light and temperature, finishing crops requires careful attention to avoid losses and send high quality product out the door on time. In this discussion, Will focuses on turning crops quickly by transplanting induced plugs, keeping night temps above 65F and photoperiods longer than 10 hours.

 

FINISHED CROP PRODUCTION VIDEO—FULL PLAYLIST

Get That Flower Feeling! (A Roundtable Discussion)

Members of the Marketing Committee of That Flower Feeling join GUEST HOST Joan Mazat (Business Manager—Cut Flowers at Ball Seed Company) to share why this movement is so important to the cut flower industry. Join a dynamic group for an equally dynamic discussion about how and why industry leaders are actively working to motivate more consumers to view fresh flowers as a central part of their everyday routines, thereby raising overall floral integration and consumption.

Guests:
Karen Oie—Director of Sales, Smithers-Oasis North America
Lisa Nason—Director of Marketing, Kennicott Brothers
Carmen Marquez—Marketing Director, Ball SB

That Flower Feeling is an industry-wide cooperative effort to encourage consumers to purchase more flowers regularly. The philosophy is simple: As long as people are bringing home flowers regularly, it’s considered a success. The initiative aims to make the experience of having fresh flowers a part of daily life, challenging the notion that flowers should be reserved for special occasions.

Resources:

• Learn more about That Flower Feeling at https://thatflowerfeeling.org/
• Ball Seed Cut Flowers: https://www.ballseed.com/cutflowers/

 

A Biological Approach to Spring IPM ft. Koppert’s Heidi Doering

This Tech On Demand podcast episode is all about spring pest control, integrated pest management and implementing biocontrol strategies that work. Host Bill Calkins is joined by Heidi Doering, the National Ornamental Team Lead and Technical IPM Consultant for the Midwest Region with Koppert. Koppert is a global market leader specializing in biological crop protection and Heidi has not only been with Koppert for almost 10 years but has a broad range of horticultural experience from greenhouse production to product management and sales, which means she has a unique perspective and breadth of knowledge to find unique IPM solutions for growers wherever they’re at on the continuum of chemical, biological and hybrid approaches.

 

In this episode Bill and Heidi discuss what she’s seeing and hearing as spring production ramps up across North America, her role as a “greenhouse CSI” when walking into a facility and meeting with owners and growers, common spring pests and potential prevention and management strategies, education and planning as they relate to biological IPM, the importance of relationships and her thoughts on Thrips parvispinus, the pepper thrips hitchhiking their way North on tropical plants. Be sure to listen all the way to the end of this fantastic discussion!

 

RESOURCES:

Koppert U.S. 

Koppert Consultants & Locations

Koppert Crop Protection Products

2024 GrowerTalks Biosolutions Guide