GrowerTalks

April 2025 Issue

Vol. 88 No. 12

How Much Does a Greenhouse Project REALLY Cost?

See the Digital Edition

This Month ...

Secrets for Early Dahlia Cut Flower Harvests

by Roberto Lopez & Jessie Brown

NEWSLETTERS

Read and subscribe to a variety of Newsletters tailored to your industry interests.

COVER STORY

How Much Does a Greenhouse Project REALLY Cost?

Chris Beytes

Let’s say you’re a young grower ready to go it alone and start your own bedding plant business. You’ve acquired a piece of land and set aside some cash and arranged financing for your very first greenhouse and you’re ready to invest $500,000. You start shopping for structures, thinking that at roughly $10 per sq. ft. (a figure you got from the grower down the street), you can afford as much as an acre (about 44,000 sq. ft.) of greenhouse. Wow! A nice size for starting out!

FEATURES

An Update on Upgrades

Dian Smith

An ornamental grower’s guide to selecting the right greenhouse curtain.

Garden Mum Production: Preventing 5 Problems

Bill Calkins

Some garden mum challenges seem to arise every season. Here’s a look at five—and how to plan ahead to avoid them in 2025.

Secrets for Early Dahlia Cut Flower Harvests

Roberto Lopez & Jessie Brown

Do you ever dream of harvesting dahlia cut flowers in May, June, July or even earlier? Dream no more—it can be a reality when you have a few tricks up your sleeve.

Touching Base on Title 24

Jennifer Zurko

How’s it been going since California implemented mandatory energy requirements for new greenhouse builds?

Wondering About Your Water?

George Grant & Tanner Bailey

Why it’s necessary to have your water tested.

CULTURE NOTES

Go Straight to the Top

Robin Ruether

A new series of spreading pansy joins the popular Wave brand for cool-season sales.

Growers Talk Production

A Unified Horticulture Industry

Austin Bryant

Putting on our business industry hats and leaving all personal political ideals set aside let’s go over a few points I believe will be paramount this coming year.

PEST MANAGEMENT

Factors That Can Influence Pesticide Resistance & Pesticide Applications

Dr. Raymond A. Cloyd

It’s essential to know the biology and ecology of insect and/or mite pests to mitigate their populations from developing resistance.

We Know What Eradicates Redheaded Flea Beetle

Jeremy Webber

We’ve gained the same level of confidence managing this highly pernicious pest, but the devil’s in the details.

COLUMNS

Inside Look

Taking Control of Uncertainty

Jennifer Zurko

Uncertainty makes you feel out of control of a situation and most of us do not like that feeling.

Acres & Acres

Community

Chris Beytes

How do we, the traditional plant industry, get to know these new plant lovers better?

Paul's Pointers

When It’s Good to Be Negative

Paul Pilon

I’ve been using negative DIF for many years and just started implementing it with crops again this spring.

Growers Talk Business

How to Be Uncertain

Art Parkerson

Here are some ways I deal with uncertainty so that it doesn’t morph into anxiety.

Guest Column

Signaling With Acanthus

Lowell Halvorson

The appeal of acanthus is the unusual display in both flower and foliage.

DEPARTMENTS

JZ on D.C.

Steps on How to Handle ICE Visits

Jennifer Zurko

With the increase of U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) visits to businesses and communities around the country, a reader suggested we share some guidelines to help you understand how to handle these situations professionally and lawfully.

GT IN BRIEF

Ball Acquires Must Have Perennials

Congrats to TPIE: A Top 50 Trade Show

Everde Growers Files For Chapter 11

Happy Retirement, Ann & Mike!

In Memoriam: Jack Bigej

On the Move

PlantCon Orlando Draws Masses of Plant Fans

Rambo Nursery Closing

Sakata Announces Executive Leadership Transition

UF Greenhouse Training Online Program Starts June 2

COLUMNISTS

Chris Beytes

Jennifer Zurko

Albert Grimm

Art Parkerson

Paul Pilon

Bill Swanekamp

Amy Morris

Terri McEnaney

Stan Vander Waal

Austin Bryant

Stephanie Saccomano

VIDEOS

Watch More

New Annuals from Proven Winners for 2026 and Beyond!

CAST 2025: Israeli Propagators

CAST 2025: Benary

CAST 2025: ThinkPlants

CAST 2025: Danizger

CAST 2025: Syngenta

CAST 2025: HilverdaFlorist

CAST 2025: Takii

CAST 2025: Kienztler

CAST 2025: Du¨mmen Orange

CAST 2025: Sakata

CAST 2025: PDSI

CAST 2025: PlantHaven

CAST 2025: Pacific Plug & Liner

CAST 2025: Suntory

CAST 2025: Green Fuse

CAST 2025: Beekenkamp

CAST 2025: Westhoff

CAST 2025: Schoneveld

CAST 2025: Hem Genetics

CAST 2025: PanAmerican Seed

CAST 2025: Ball FloraPlant

CAST 2025: Darwin Perennials

CAST 2025: Selecta One

CAST 2025: Morel

Our Visit to DRAMM's New(ish) Location

Trending Now: PDSI’s Screen Play Ilex

Trending Now: PDSI’s Clean Sweep Snowbank

N.G. Heimos Poinsettia Open House 2024

Caladium bulb harvest at Classic Caladiums

The Robo Cut Autonomous Tissue Culture Propagation Robot

Ball Seed Customer Days 2024!

Critical Chemistries (Recorded Live at Cultivate’24) with JC Chong

What's New From the Cultivate'24 Trade Show

Trending Now: Ball Seed & Philips Lighting Solutions

Trending Now: Floxcor Fungicide from Corteva

Trending Now: PDSI’s Better Boxwood

Darwin Perennials Day 2024

TRENDING NOW

PanAmerican Seed
National Wave Day

Eckert’s Greenhouse
Water-Saving Hanging Baskets

Plant Development Services Inc.
Autumn Kiss Encore Azalea

Sioux Corporation
SF-11E Steam Generator

Hortibits LLC
HortiPeMS

GrowSpan Greenhouse Structures
Venlo Glass Greenhouses

Who will be this year’s Young Grower winner?

We’ll be awarding this year’s GrowerTalks/Ball Horticultural Company Young Grower Award at the Unplugged event during Cultivate’25. If you’re heading to Columbus, make some time to join us Monday night to see who will be on the cover of our September issue. There will be networking and your first drink is free!

WHEN: Monday, July 14 at 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: Gaswerks
487 Park Street, Columbus, Ohio

Finalists for the 2025 GrowerTalks/Ball Horticultural Company Young Grower Award:
Isabela Chamorro, Mahoney’s Garden Center, Woburn, MA
Daniel Villegas, Van Belle Nursery, Abbotsford, BC
Ginger Thurston, Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, MI

An extra special thanks goes to Ball Horticultural Company, BASF and AmericanHort for sponsoring this year’s award!