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GROWERTALKS - October 2026 Issue (Vol. 90 No. 6)
Acres & Acres
How You’ll Be Using AI
Chris Beytes
Here are a dozen possible ways.
Cover Story
Fixing the Flow
Jennifer Zurko
Is your greenhouse design costing you money?
Culture Notes
Perk Up Heat & Drought-Tolerant Programs With MEGA PAZZAZ Portulaca
Kathleen Hennessy
Danziger’s PAZZAZ Portulaca check all the boxes for big colorful blooms, heat-loving performance and attention-grabbing pots, combinations and hanging baskets at retail.
Features
Better Crops With a Smaller Energy Bill
Dr. Peter Ling
Data-driven strategies for greenhouse efficiency.
Features
Communicating With a Cadence
Rayne Gibson
It’s not the amount of touchpoints you have with your staff, it’s about tailoring meetings based on the issue to avoid major problems that often slip through the cracks.
Features
Compressed vs. Loose Growing Media: Making Every Cubic Foot Count
Pauline Portal
A greenhouse can hold a lot of plants, but not necessarily a lot of growing media.
Features
Creating a Culture of Quality
Neal Glatt
Maintaining quality not only goes into the plants you produce, but in how your employees are engaged.
Features
Dialing In
Luke Finn, Patrick Veazie & Brian Whipker
Balancing EC and pH in New Guinea impatiens.
Features
Homegrown Growing Media: Inorganic Products & Producers
Dr. Brian E. Jackson
This third article of a three-part series highlights domestically sourced growing media products.
Features
Integration, Intelligence & Accessibility
Chris Beytes
What can you expect from your environmental controls—whether basic or advanced—today and in coming years? We asked experts from three controls manufacturers to weigh in on the top features most all control companies are hoping to bring to customers (including AI), along with outlining their specific new offerings. Here’s what we learned.
Features
Keeping it Positive
Megan Gibb, Jeb S. Fields & Paul R. Fisher
What is cation exchange capacity and why should I care?
Features
Where Your Irrigation System & Fertilizer Matter
Alvaro Daniel Pantoja-Benavides, Mayra A. Toro-Herrera & Rosa E. Raudales
How much clean water does it take to clean up your runoff?
Features
Why Greenhouse Teams Are Turning to AI for Faster, Smarter Decisions
Tara Cosca
As AI tools become more accessible, growers have an opportunity to make faster decisions, improve operational efficiency and respond more effectively to changing market conditions.
Growers Talk Business
Are We Delivering Plants or Hauling Air?
Davy Wright
As delivery costs continue to rise, even small improvements in truck capacity can have a meaningful impact on profitability.
Growers Talk Production
On Curiosity
Albert Grimm
Creating a culture where curiosity is welcome ought to start at the top.
GT in Brief
A Centennial to Remember
Jennifer Zurko
In late August, Monrovia held a week-long schedule of events at its Dayton, Oregon, location to commemorate the company’s 100th year in business in conjunction with the Farwest show.
GT in Brief
A New Dutch Greenhouse Business
Chris Beytes
Wilbert de Rijke, a second-generation grower, just built his own greenhouse in ’s-Gravenzande, which is in the famous Westland region of the Netherlands. Kwekerij Wilbert de Rijke is the name of the business.
GT in Brief
Bates Daughters Close the Family Business
Chris Beytes
One of the oldest and most venerable families in the caladium world has decided to retire and close the business.
GT in Brief
On the Move
Jennifer Zurko
Ball Seed; Dramm; EHR; Monrovia; Proven Winners; Suntory Flowers; Unex, Inc.
GT in Brief
RIP Konrad Wagner
Chris Beytes
Konrad Wagner, the breeder behind the first true clear orange pansy, the F2 hybrid Padparadja, a dual award winner, died July 31 in Hannoversch Muenden, Germany, after a full life as a horticulturist, breeder and family man. He was 90.
GT in Brief
Save the Date for the Tropical Plant International Expo
Jennifer Zurko
Mark your calendars now: the 2027 Tropical Plant International Expo (TPIE) will take place January 20-22, 2027, at the Broward County Convention Center in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
GT in Brief
Save the Date: California Spring Trials 2027 set for April 6-9
Chris Beytes
National Garden Bureau, which organizes the registration for the annual California Spring Trials, announced the date for the 2027 event as April 6-9.
Guest Column
Benary’s Begonia Strategy
Lowell Halvorson
Rather than producing one more begonia every few years, Benary has been quietly filling application niches.
Inside Look
A Jumbo Hot Dog With Pickle & Mustard Only and Cheese Fries
Jennifer Zurko
That’s my go-to order whenever I go to Portillo’s.
JZ on D.C.
Judge Sends IFR Adverse Effect Wage Rate back to DOL
Jennifer Zurko
In August, a federal court ordered that the Department of Labor (DOL) must rewrite the interim final rule (IFR) from October 2025 on farmworker wages, putting additional pressure on Congress to come up with a solution.
Paul's Pointers
Seeds of Success
Paul Pilon
Perennials from seed can be more challenging than most of the seed annuals being commercially grown, so here are a few tips to help you be as successful as possible.
Pest Management
Integrating Effective Whitefly Chemistries With BCAs in Ornamental Crops
Powlomee Mondal & Muhammad Z. “Zee” Ahmed
How chemistries can integrate with biological control, based on published studies conducted across laboratory, greenhouse and semi-field settings.
TRENDING NOW
ACRYLITE multi-skin acrylic
Polyvantis
TRENDING NOW
BioTherm & RBI Boilers
BioTherm Solutions
TRENDING NOW
Custom Fruit Shapes
MasterTag
TRENDING NOW
Novavert’s HS2 and HS Bravo retractable roof
Prospiant Greenhouses
TRENDING NOW
Panicum virgatum Dream Catcher Cherry Bomb
Emerald Coast Growers
TRENDING NOW
Soiree Double Catharanthus
Suntory Flowers Ltd.