U of S Horticulture Club

Sheet mulching

2011-07-19T14:40:00.006-06:00

Following some pictures of the current field project. And information about the sheet mulching we are currently trying out.

Thanks a lot to Grant Wood for making the sheet mulching experiment happen.

2011-07-19T14:35:00.002-06:00

As you can see in the field, there are many weeds. Many of those weeds are edible and pretty healthy. This video shows you how you can make a dandelion salad (please only use organic/free run/local eggs from a known source if you choose to add raw eggs to the salad).

2011-07-07T00:24:00.001-06:00

Next field orientation Thursday July 7th at 4:30pm at the field lab

Likely the last for this years U of S horticulture club field project.

2011 Field Project Update!

2011-06-24T13:19:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone,

Sorry there has not been much news about the Field Project on here yet... I just learned how to use it.

The Field Project is well underway this year! We were able to get into the field much sooner than last year, and everything has been planted. We have about 14 rows of plastic mulch laid down with all our hot crops in them (pepper, eggplant, tomatoes, pumpkins, melons, etc) and then another bunch of rows with all kinds of veggies.

All interested members must have a field orientation before they get involved in the Field Project. There have already been several this year and there will only be another one if there is demand. If you are still interested in getting involved, please email us at:
hortclubfield@gmail.com

That is the update for now... so if you have interested friends who are students, please send them our way. Enjoy your summer,

Clare, Grant, Veronica, Tariq
Field Managers

2011-06-13T12:12:00.003-06:00

Message from field project manager Clare:
**************************************
In trying to accommodate all of the responses I received about when an orientation would work, I have decided to schedule the last orientation for tomorrow, Tuesday June 14th at 5:15pm at the Horticulture Field Lab.

The field lab is located at 2909 14th st. East, between Preston and Arlington, with a big metal gate and sign that says "Horticulture Research Facility" (or something like that).

Please bring your $15 membership fee is you have not already paid this year (membership fee covers Sep.2010-Aug.2011)
and also a completed membership form (attached).
**************************************

location in google map

Hopefully see some of you there,
Thomas

2011-05-18T17:20:00.001-06:00

Hello everyone,

The fields have dried up quite nicely and have actually been tilled, staked and partly seeded! This is great news and an improvement over last year. This is a reminder that:

Thursday May 19th (tomorrow) at 5pm will be the first field orientation (which every memeber who wants to be part of the field project must do every year) at the Horticulture Field Lab (2909 14th st East... between Preston and Arlington). This will be the first of several orientations, but please try to make it so that we can get help out in the field as soon as possible.

If you are not an active member for this year yet (from Sep.2010), please bring your completed registration form (attached) and $15 for the season.

Look forward to seeing you there,

Clare

Plant sale for Japan relief was a great success.

2011-03-30T13:05:00.015-06:00

Check the following videos:

And some pictures here:

Big thanks to the University of Saskatchewan for providing the space, thanks a lot to all people that came out and helped, to all that helped with the cutting, to all that helped with the plant propagation, to all that helped with the plant transplanting, and to all that bought some plants.

I was also talking about mushrooms containing ergothioneine in the second video, as presented by Professor Manabu Nukina at the conference where we handed over the money. Ergothioneine has anti-oxidative properties. Check his homepage:
http://www.tr.yamagata-u.ac.jp/~mnukina/

For more information about the event:
http://uofshorticultureclub.blogspot.com/
http://www.kuruk.de/index.php?id=73

Do not forget to buy and eat some seaweed if you life in or close to effected areas:
http://www.kuruk.de/index.php?id=71

Keep up to date about the atomic crisis here:
http://www.naturalnews.com/031894_Fukushima_meltdown.html

"indoor ornamental plants" and "vegtable" sale in Arts tunnel 22.03.2011

2011-03-21T14:04:00.006-06:00

Hello everybody,

The "indoor ornamental plants" and "salad, herbs, cucumbers, and maybe tomatoes" sale will happen this Tuesday 22.03.2011 from 9:30 to 15:30 in the Arts tunnel. More than 50% of the earnings will go towards Japan crisis relief (see details below). Helping and volunteering will be highly appreciated.

Here the time plan:
9:00 - 10:00 cut vegetables and wash them in the greenhouse (you need to have had the greenhouse orientation to help with this)
9:30 - 10:30 moving vegetables and plants from the greenhouse to the Arts tunnel
9:30 - 15:30 sale in the Arts tunnel
15:30 - 16:00 move left overs to the greenhouse and clean up greenhouse
Please let me know if you can help, when and where you would like to help, and whether you can provide logistic by providing a truck or car (very important) for moving the stuff (contact me here). Then I will give you more detailed directions. To not let me know beforehand is fine, you still can come out and help. You can also contribute by coming out and buying something or letting your friends know about this event.

Location of the Arts tunnel, that is the tunnel between arts and Murray Building. E.g. enter arts turn two times left going down the stairs left to A&W (worst food at UofS):
map

Crisis relive recipient:
More than 50% of the earnings will go towards Japan. We will give the earnings to Japanese professors from the effected areas that will distribute the earnings directly. This Japanese professors are work mates of Karen and visit the Agriculture department next weeks. No middle mans, direct and maximum impact of the money (great opportunity to have a direct impact, and maybe we could even donate some seaweed to help people to deal with the atomic crisis.)

Wear a smile and you might win a price.

Take care everyone,
Thomas

Horticulture club update

2011-01-17T15:47:00.003-06:00

Hello everyone,

The day cycles are getting longer again and there is a lot of interesting stuff going on and coming up.

Saturday the 22.01.2011, there will be a tropical fruit and vegetable seminar starting somewhere between 11:00 - 14:00. Like for the plant propagation seminar, the person doing the teaching will be Mr. Nair. There are a maximum of 17 spaces, so sign up by getting into contact with me. The open places will be given out on a first come first serve basis. Time and location will be fixed later and send out to the signed in people.

Don't forget about the next greenhouse orientation on the 24.01.2010 at 17:00 in the greenhouse. You need the orientation to be able to participate in the greenhouse project. For everybody not knowing what's the greenhouse and whats going on there, here some videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8frNWk9ENc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DclAiw18WFk
Also make sure to let me know whether you want to participate in the greenhouse project so I can put you on the greenhouse project mailing list.You can contact me e.g. via my contact formula on my website:
http://www.kuruk.de/index.php?id=11

Karen, one of the most active horticulture club members, is on the organizing committee (actually, chairing the committee) for the First Saskatchewan Food Summit (March 2-3, 2011) at TCU Place. (---Note: Deadline for early bid registration is Jan. 31.):
http://www.ccde.usask.ca/ExtensionDivision/noncredit/AFH/foodsummit.htm
The will be freely accessible material about the conference later, soeven you don't sign up for the Saskatchewan Food Summit, it might be interesting to keep an eye on that topic.

Also check the Gardening Classes offerings by Saskatoon School of Horticulture.

For any people participating in any of the horticultures projects please make sure you signed in for the club and paid the annual fee of 15 $ (roughly lasting from 09.2010 till 09.2011), to either the horticulture club president or your project's leader. To my best knowledge the currently ongoing horticulture club projects include greenhouse project, the presentation/seminar series, and cherry wine making. The cherry wine making project is already full. Note: you won't need to pay the fee for just being on the mail list. You can add a filled membership form to your payment, or just let the person you paying the money to take down your name.

Sincerely,
Thomas

Job Opportunity at SaskPower

2010-06-20T23:19:00.003-06:00

Here is the email regard to "greenhouse technician" position at SaskPower from Dr. Karen Tanino.

From: llangman@saskpower.com [mailto:llangman@saskpower.com]
Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2010 12:56 PM
To: Provincial_Aboriginal_Sourcing_Fax_Contacts@saskpower.com; Aboriginal_Sourcing_Email_Contacts@saskpower.com; General_Email_Distribution_List@saskpower.com; employmentmgr@rods.sk.ca; rmc.pa@sasktel.net; edu@sasktel.net; mjmc@sasktel.net; intercultural@sasktel.net; counsellor16.workprep@sasktel.net; esu@sods.sk.ca; svmea@gov.sk.ca; dss@usask.ca; austin@dimension11.com
Cc: DTourangeau@saskpower.com
Subject: SaskPower Job Opportunity

Attached is a job posting for a Greenhouse Technician at SaskPower Shand Greenhouse in Estevan. This competition closes July 9, 2010. Please share this posting with anyone you feel may be interested and qualified to apply. If anyone requires assistance or any further information, please call me at (306) 566-2167. Further detail related to the job description can be viewed on-line at www.saskpower.com - careers - current job openings.

Please ensure that applicants refer to CAAR #628813 when applying for this position. As well, if a diversity candidate wishes to self declare they may do so in their cover letter. Online applications are preferable; however, we will accept resumes submitted by mail or fax. If you wish to apply by paper and choose to self-declare, please feel free to print off the attached form and submit it with your application.

Lorna Langman
Recruitment Consultant, HR
Professional/Business Portfolio
SaskPower - 10NE
2025 Victoria Avenue, Regina, SK S4P 0S1
Ph: (306) 566-2167 Fax: (306) 566-2087
Hrs of work: Monday to Friday: - 8:00 a.m. to 4:47 p.m.
llangman@saskpower.com

At SaskPower, we generate more than just electricity for Saskatchewan residents. We also offer some of the best career opportunities in the province. There’s never been a better time to join our growing team. Challenging careers, competitive salaries, attractive benefits, professional development, career advancement opportunities and the chance to become involved in your community await you.

Greenhouse Technician (temporary)

(position #CAAR 628813) Estevan, SK

SaskPower Shand Greenhouse, located in Estevan, Saskatchewan, is currently seeking a temporary full time greenhouse technician for a term ending October 20, 2011.

Shand Greenhouse is a wholly owned subsidiary of SaskPower. The Greenhouse strives to enhance public awareness of the environmental and social impacts of electricity generation. This is achieved through the production and distribution of tree, shrub and native plant species for environmental improvement projects and through education and communications programs.

The successful candidate will possess a university level education in horticulture, agriculture, biology, forestry or related discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Abilities and experience in research, statistics, plant pathology or entomology would be an asset. While the focus of this position is in greenhouse culture, the successful candidate will be called upon to participate in education and communications activities. Experience in these would be an asset. In addition to these interpersonal and communication skills, the candidate must be able to supervise others, work with computers and equipment, and contribute in a team environment.

The position will involve physical labour, some travel, and a staggered work week (10 days on, followed by 4 days off). Remuneration will be at the rate of $20.15/hour, plus benefits.

The closing date for this competition is July 9, 2010.

_____________________________________________

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those being interviewed will be contacted. For more information and to apply online, please visit saskpower.com/careers, or send your resume making clear reference to position #628813, to:

SaskPower Recruitment

2025 Victoria Avenue

Regina, SK S4P 0S1

Fax 306.566.2087

Our goal is to have a workforce as diverse as the customers we serve.

Job Opportunity

2010-04-28T13:53:00.001-06:00

The City of Meadow Lake is looking to hire a student for the summer with horticultural training/background. This student would look after all existing flowers/trees and work on new projects within the city (with the guidance of the local Communities in Bloom committee and the Meadow Lake Parks & Recreation Department). The rate of pay would be approximately $15.50 (subject to change due to Union negotiations).

I’ve attached an ad for you to post (if possible). If I have not contacted the proper department, please feel free to forward this email. Thank you.

Leah Lehoux

Parks & Recreation Manager

City of Meadow Lake

Box 610, 120 - 1st Street East

Meadow Lake, SK S9X 1Y5

Ph: (306)236-3622 Ext 204

Fax: (306) 236-4299

Horticulture Club AGM

2010-03-30T10:06:00.002-06:00

Next Tuesday, April 6th, 2010, the Hort Club will be having an AGM in Room 2E17 at 5:30pm. At that time we will be updating our constitution, electing a new executive and awarding $500 to the Hort Club Award Winner. There will also be managers there to give updates on the Greenhouse and Field Project. Hope you can make it out!

Greenhouse Orientation Session

2010-03-29T00:49:00.002-06:00

Hey Everyone,
There is going to be a Greenhouse orientation session held this Thursday, April 1st, 2010. You will need this to help with seeding for the field this summer. Please contact the 2010 field team, Danette and Clare at hortclubfield@gmail.com for more information.

Gardenline needs you!

2010-03-25T11:29:00.006-06:00

Gardenline is a complimentary service collectively put on by the University of Saskatchewan, the Dept of Plant Sciences in the College of Agriculture and Bioresources and the Government of Saskatchewan to provide sustainable horticultural information and problem solving to the public.

Here's how you can help:
Take a look at the old gardenline website, http://gardenline.usask.ca/

There are numerous informative articles on a wide variety of topics... but we need more! The website is in the process of being revamped and renovated to have a more wiki-styled format in order to improve usability.

We are asking Horticulture Club members to come up with some creative articles to be added to the website. Everything from fabulous fungus to creative composting ideas. Articles can be sent to Grant Wood; grant.wood@usask.ca

Remember that it would look great on your CV and is a learning experience!

2010-01-26T10:07:00.001-06:00

General Meeting - January 11, 2010

U of S Horticulture Club General Meeting January 11, 2010

Meeting called to order at 5:01 pm.
(Jacey motioned, Jamie seconded)

Treasurer's Report
-$7000 in savings and $4000 in chequing as of Nov. 24, 2009
-$2900 in the online account

Greenhouse
-By the end of January there will be an orientation for members interested in joining the greenhouse project
-There was a whitefly outbreak over the Christmas holidays; the vegetables were sprayed and damage is not too severe
-tomatoes, cucumbers and swiss chard is ready to go
-there are currently 30-35 people in the greenhouse project group
-STM would be willing to buy 50lbs of veggies from us
-Chelsea suggests we hold off on selling and email club members to take the veggies first
-Kayleigh sent out an email to involved greenhouse members about perennials and bedding plants
-There will be emails about weekly greenhouse meetings, likely Thursdays
-Grant has volunteered to bring excess veggies to the Gardenline office for all hort club members to take, at 1:00 pm one of these days
-Cucumbers are producing steadily, parsley and cilantro nearly destroyed, lots of chard and basil
-Reminder: please replace key after opening door

Stored Veggies
-Tomatoes went bad
-Hopefully will be enough tomatoes for salsa soon
-Carrots & potatoes in cooler still good

Cider & Wine
-Save your beer bottles for cider
-Waiting for an update on wine

Poinsettia Sale
-We sold out and made a profit

Food Safety
-January 23rd at the PAC, 9am-5pm
-Terri will teach it
-There will be a test at the end
-$25 with book and certificate (good deal!)
-Family members can also get discounted price

Constitution Meeting
-Sometime in February
-Will be more information soon and the constitution will be sent around

New Years Party
-Will invite Jackie, Eldon, Doug, Devon, Paul, anyone else who has helped with the Hort club
-Decided on a potluck and bowling
-We will have the potluck here then go bowling at Eastview Bowl
-Chelsea will book lanes and send out an email to let us know what day (Jan 29/30/31)

Speakers
-Nair and Karen have volunteered to talk about India. Also Dr Walker is willing to give a talk on cacti
-A honey production talk was suggested; will be about half an hour at the end of February with a honey tasting panel

Aquatic Plants
-Let Grant know if you are interested in learning more about aquatic plants

Gardenline
-the website is going to be renovated
-A new format, sort of wiki-style
-Grant suggests Horticulture Club members write new articles, update old ones
-Articles are a 2 page fact sheet with pictures
-Looks good on CV and is a learning experience
-Look at topics on website or pick anything you want
-Gardenline.usask.ca
-An email will be sent out
-Contact Grant if you want to write an article
-A weekend Gardenscape pass is the incentive to do this

Horticulture Club Award
-Nominations will start this month
-award is $500 for student returning next year
-Guidelines, nominations, criteria, forms will be available

Field
-A new field manager will be needed beginning of February
-There can be 2 co-managers
-Emails will be sent out regarding this
-STM's Choices wants to expand their international culinary and would like to buy food from us

Next Meeting
-Between Feb. 8-12, will find out via email
-Check the blog!

Kayleigh motioned to adjourn, Chelsea seconded
Meeting adjourned 5:48 pm.

Interested in growing aquarium and pond plants??

2009-12-02T12:48:00.001-06:00

If you are interested in learning more about growing common aquarium and pond plants, please contact Grant Wood. If enough students are interested in this activity, we will try to establish another interest group and start growing some plants. You can get ahold of Grant at grant.wood@usask.ca.

Greenhouse meeting (Reminder) Thursday Nov 26

2009-11-25T19:28:00.000-06:00

Hi greenhouse members,

Just a quick reminder that we will have a meeting tomorrow in the greenhouse at 4:30pm. For the first 30min I will introduce some common pests that we have in the greenhouse, then I will dicuss some management techniques that are used to control them. This will provide you a basic background on what to expect and what to do in terms of dealing with pests in the future.

Then we will do some maintainance and harvest the cucumbers. Yup, it is harvest time for the cucumbers. Please bring your own bags, bags will not be provided.

The meeting will take approximately 60-90 minutes long.

Hope to see everyone there,

Peter Le

Greenhouse meeting

2009-11-17T10:37:00.000-06:00

Hi everyone,

Here is the update information from the greenhouse, I'm sure that you haven't heard anything lately from the greenhouse so do I. Therefore, I guess I wlll take some actions before it is too late. So from now on, I will setup a regular meeting in the greenhouse every Thursday from 4:30pm to 6:30pm. During the meeting, I will talk a bit about related topics to greenhouse food production (~ 30 mins) then the rest 1:30hr we will go over the plants for hand on experiences.

Topic for the

Thursday Nov 19: Greenhouse food production - Is it important?
Thursday Nov 26: Intergraded Pest Management - What is your enemies?
Thursday Dec 3: Fertilizer regime - What is it?

If you are planning to come to the meeting, please send me an e-mail to confirm your spot. It will be really helful for me to know how many members are coming.

Peter Le

Pumpkin Sale!!

2009-10-16T20:24:00.002-06:00

Hi Everyone,

We are planning a pumpkin sale on Friday October 23rd from 10:00-3:00. We need Hort Club member volunteers to help sell pumpkins and raise money for the club! We especially need people who are available in the morning, from about 9:00-1:30. If you have even half an hour to spare to help out it would be greatly appreciated.

If you are able to volunteer, please reply in the comments section of this blog entry with your name and the times you are able to help out. This way other members can check out which shifts are covered and which shifts still need to be filled.

Hope to see you there! Thanks for your help!

2009-10-12T09:41:00.002-06:00

Things to do with all those fresh veggies.
After all of that harvesting the porch is full of fresh veg. Now what to do with all of this fresh stuff before it goes bad and so that I can enjoy it all winter.
I started by shredding one large zucchini and freezing it in bags for use in quick breads. I just washed, peeled and grated it and froze it in about two cup units.
Next I made a batch of an African peanut stew that uses lots of what we grew and freezes well.
Here is my take on a traditional recipe:

Peanut Vegetable Stew
4-6 medium potatoes
2 tbs., 30 ml. oil
3 tbs., 45ml. grated fresh ginger
3 tbs., 45ml. ground coriander seed
3 or 4 cloves garlic, crushed
4 large onions, diced coarse
6 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 cups, 500ml. peeled and cubed eggplant
3 cups, 750ml. cubed zucchini
2 large sweet peppers, diced coarse
hot peppers to your taste
about 1 cup, 250ml. stock or water (I like ham stock)
1 small tin tomato paste
1/2 cup, 125ml. peanut butter
3 tsp., 15ml. salt

Fry onion, garlic, ginger and spice in oil till onion is transparent. Add potato, tomato, eggplant and some stock, bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Add zucchini, peppers and salt and simmer until all of the vegetables are soft, another 10 to 20 minutes. Add peanut butter, tomato paste and more stock to adjust thickness. If you are going to freeze this keep it quite thick as it will water out when it is thawed.
This is great with any grain starch, with bread or on its own. I freeze it in 500 ml. cartons for quick winter meals.

Now what to do with all those greens?

Horticulture Plant Sale and Care Instructions

2009-09-14T19:37:00.018-06:00

This year the Horticulture Club would like to announce its first plant sale of the year. In this plant sale we will sell a variety of succulents, cacti, patio tomato plants (~30cm), Thai basils, fragrant herbs (from India), sensitive plants and many more.

The plant sale will take place on the second floor of the Biology building on Thursday, Sept 17 and in the agriculture Atrium on Friday, Sept 18 from 10:00am-3:00pm.

Come and check us out, and support our student project. We have lots of activities going on in the club, and the only way we can generate funding to keep the club going is through our annual plant and vegetable sales.

Some of our activities are:

Care Instructions:

For succulents and cacti: You only need to water them once, or twice per week.

For container tomatoes: If you purchase the small container, you'll probably want to transfer your plant into a bigger container. The only reason we put them into the small containers is to induce stress, which encourages the plants to produce more flowers and ultimately fruits over a short period of time. The bigger container = more root growth = happy plant. Please water your tomatoes ~3 times per week, and make sure the soil remains moist. Don't over water your plants because this can increase root rot problems. Last but not least, don't forget to tap the tomato flowers whenever possible to pollinate them. Enjoy your little, home-grown tomatoes. :)

For sensitive plants and Thai basils: Water 2-3 times per week, and keep trimming the branches to encourage more branch growth. Be sure to remove the flowers to ensure continuous growth (allowing this annual plant to flower will cause it to die).

General Rules of thumb:
In order to grow healthy plants, three of these components are needed:

Water
CO2
Light

Even though plants usually will need more than the above, as long as you keep these three above components constant, other requirements are optional.

Water: never under water or over water your plants. There is no better tip, than to visually inspect the soil surface; if it looks dry or soaking wet take appropriate actions.
CO2: C is important for plant metabolism, which generates sugar and complex structures to induce plant growth. You probably won't have to worry about it, since you are an excellent source of CO2.

Light: Even though most of our plants have been chosen especially for indoor environments, this does not mean the plants can tolerate a lack of light. Choose a bright spot in your house or office to situate your plants. A place near the windows or a light source would be ideal.

You're probably wondering: what about fertilizer? We already added some slow release fertilizer into your pots, so your plants will have enough nutrients for a while. In addition, you probably don't want your plants to get too big, do you? Therefore, fertilizing them is not necessary.

Warnings:

All of our plants are grown by us (students), and we did not use any hardcore chemicals (commercial pesticides). We only used trace amounts of organic chemicals and biological controls (beneficial insects) to control some insects in the greenhouse. Therefore, we do not guarantee that our plants will be completely free of pests. In the odd cases that they do show up on your plants, please quarantine your plants and use appropriate insect controls available at any garden stores.

Thanks for support and we hope you have a great time with your new plants.

U of S Horticulture Club

Welcome to another year!

2009-09-11T14:11:00.000-06:00

Greetings all,

The University of Saskatchewan Horticulture Club is a campus group composed mainly of undergraduate students, who are interested in the ever expanding and diversifying field of Horticultural Science. We strive to learn about and experience many disciplines within this realm, whether it be using horticultural production systems, learning how to make wine, propagate plant material or simply enjoying the company of other horticulture enthusiasts!

Most of all, we are not afraid to get our hands dirty, we rise to the challenge and welcome new opportunities to excel.

I am thrilled to personally welcome you to the Horticulture Club; I hope to see you participating in our many events and activities!

Our first meeting is Tuesday, September 15, 2009, at 5:30 pm in AGRC 2E25, come and check it out! So far we are planning for everything from plant/pumpkin/poinsettia sales to making wine/cider and preserves, plus more! If you have any more great ideas or projects for us to undertake, by all means, contact any one of the executive, we'd love to here from you!

May you learn what you can and have a blast in the process!
It's yours to discover.

Presidentially Yours,

Chelsea Tomcala

Greetings and May News...

2009-05-19T16:14:00.016-06:00

Hi everyone! Some of you may recognise me from working in the Field project or other activities during the year; but as the new Greenhouse Manager I'd like to take the time to introduce myself:

Kaleigh Elian

~ Saskatoon is my hometown, and always has been.
~ I am going into my third year of Arts and

Science for a Bachelor of Arts in History and

Geology, then applying to the College of

Education for Elementary Education.

~ I've been with the Horticulture Club

for two years now, I enjoy learning new

methods, meeting enthusiastic members, planting, and most of all harvesting!!

~ I love photography, reading, cooking, travel, and enjoying free time when I have the chance to relax.

May News:

So far, the cucumber, eggplant, and herb sections have been terminated; and thank you to the members who came out to help take the plants down. The overall plan for May is to finish terminating our vegetable crops-tomatoes and peppers-so that Eldon is able to fully clean the Hort Club section. This will *hopefully* decrease or eliminate our chances of early diesease outbreaks.

What I'd like to do is set up a group 'take down' session for this Saturday at 3:30/4 pm in order to look after the tomato and pepper plants. We will only need ~ six (6) members to help out, and anyone who is interested is free to send me a message at kae074@mail.usask.ca

As a side-note, any members that would like to take the beautiful and established pepper or tomato plants from the greenhouse home with them for their own gardens/personal use are free to...the one condition is that the pots MUST be returned to the greehouse, since they were purchased by the U of S Agriculture Department and are not Horticulture property.

Have a great week and hope to see a few of you on Saturday!

~. Kaleigh

Help Wanted - Farmers Market

2009-05-09T22:21:00.003-06:00

Help Wanted
Part Time

Manager’s Assistant

Email: skfarm@sasktel.net
Fax: 384-4850

Skills & Qualifications:

Computer literacy and experience - Web page design and data
entry, Microsoft Word, Excel, Publisher, Power Point and Access
Related experience in working with non profits, co-operatives or other community based organizations
Must be flexible to work weekends
Excellent people and communication skills
Professional and friendly attitude - ability to interact and empathize with people from all walks of life
Ability to be self directed and work on your own
Enthusiastic and energetic
Strong organizational skills
Reliable and punctual
Approximately 10 - 15 hours per week

Duties

Open and close markets
Assist vendors and office when needed
Assist with event planning
Data Entry for distribution lists
Attend meetings, taking of minutes, typing and distribution
Assist with sales of vendor products

Application Deadline – May 23, 2009

(From Candace Knihniski - posted by Peter Le)

Gifts update

2009-05-05T18:00:00.001-06:00

Hi all,
I am sure you are enjoying this great gardening weather.

Dr. Bruce Coulman (Head, Dept. Plant Sciences) had major surgery 2
weeks ago. He has been very supportive of the Hort Club (agreeing to
provide both the greenhouse space and the field space). Thus, a basket
of veggies, "mixed" wine, and 3 small houseplants were given to him on
behalf of the Hort Club. He was very touched by the gesture.

Jackie Bantle (Greenhouse and Field manager) and Eldon Siemens
(Greenhouse technician) have been very helpful to our club as well.
They were each given a "Thank you" card and $100 gift certificate to
the bookstore/tuck shop on campus. They were also very appreciative of the gesture.

Best wishes,
Karen

Greenhouse crop termination

2009-05-03T01:17:00.005-06:00

As we are going to the end of the growing season, we will terminate all the crops in the greenhouse. Therefore, we encourage members to harvest all the tomatoes, sweet peppers and herbs. You are allowed to take whole herb pots home for your garden, but this does not include the pots (U of S property). For those who have taken herb pots home, please return the pots to the greenhouse in E where our crops are.

For the pepper and tomato groups, I will get some cuttings from your crops to save good varieties, so please do not prune the side shoots or new meristems.

Here is the schedule to terminate the crops:

May 9: From 1pm to 3pm: terminate all the cucumbers and herbs. In addition, we will do some ornamental propagation.

The reason we're terminating the crops is because it's not feasible to keep the greenhouse crops during the summer, since the field will be much more productive during this time of the year. In addition, this will give us a break period to clean up our area and keep the bugs out. However, this year we will start planting our new crops around July, so that we can have fresh produce ready around November - December.

If you would like to know more information please don't hesitate to ask me.

Peter Le

What do I need to know as new HortClub members?

2009-04-29T20:44:00.004-06:00

We welcome you to the HortClub, and we hope you will have a pleasure time and learn a lot in the end.

A bit of history about us:

Established in 1991 by a group of students interested in Horticulture with the help of Dr. Karen Tanino, who is a professor in the Plant Science Department. The HortClub offers a variety of opportunities for students in a range of Horticultural areas. This up coming year we will have the following activities:

Field project (running during the summer)
Greenhouse project ( running all year round)
Ornamental plants
Wine and food processing

Most of our vegetable production is primarily for members' use, and any extra is proudly supplied to the Food Services, Child Hunger and Education Program (CHEP) - good food box program, U of S Students' Union Food Centre and some local restaurants.

Since we have quite a few activities, it is not required that members attend all of the activities. You only attend those activites which is best suited to your interests. Some activities will involve labor, but you won't regret your time and effort with what you have learned in the end. You can find most of our contact information on the blog, and don't hesitate to ask specific questions you may have.

For the list of executive contact information, you can find it here:

Once again, we welcome you to the club and wish you will have a good time.

Sincerely yours,

Executive members

U of S Horticulture Club Executive 2009-2010

2009-04-29T11:09:00.001-06:00

Faculty Advisor:
Grant Wood - grant.wood@usask.ca
(Previous Faculty Advisor: Karen Tanino - karen.tanino@usask.ca)

President:
Chelsea Tomcala - cmt564@mail.usask.ca

Vice-President:
Danielle Levesque - del321@mail.usask.ca

Treasurer:
Jamie Taylor - jmtaylor1022@gmail.com

Secretary:
Jacey Bell - jrb363@mail.usask.ca

Field Managers:
Danielle Levesque - del321@mail.usask.ca
Steffen Bertelsen - steffen.bert@gmail.com

Greenhouse Mentor: Peter Le - ttl541@mail.usask.ca
Greenhouse Manager: Kaleigh Elian - kae074@mail.usask.ca
Ornamentals Manager: Michelle Hubbard - michelle.hubbard@usask.ca

Cider & Wine and Processing Co-Managers:
Amalie Ask - ava875@mail.usask.ca
Ellen Watkiss - erw847@mail.usask.ca
(to be assisted by Danielle Levesque, Valerie Adrian -
vaa932@mail.usask.ca, and Chelsea Tomcala)

Job Opportunity !!!

2009-04-27T17:27:00.002-06:00

Great article in the OCN about the Hort Club. I am glad to hear that it is still so active. I have a job opportunity that I thought the one of the club members may be interested in.
Jack Braidek called me.

He lives in a condo complex in the north part of the city and they would like to hire someone to look after the grounds. He thinks it may be 13-16 hours/week. It would be general maintenance although the landscape is 12 years old, so he thinks that there may need to be some rebuilding and replacement of plantings. They will pay about $15.00/hour.

I told him that I would pass this on to any one or group
that would be interested. His contact information is Jack
Braidek - jbraidek@sasktel.net or 933-1257.

(From Dr Karen posted by Peter Le)

Ornamental benches in E greenhouse

2009-04-27T17:22:00.006-06:00

Dear Hort Club Members,
It has come to my attention that the Hort Club benches in greenhouse E are in need of some housekeeping. The benches that have the houseplants on them (benches 23 & 24) are becoming quite messy and are also becoming a haven for weed plants (specifically liverwort). Dead leaves and plant tissues are constantly falling on the floor and clogging the drains. This is resulting in standing water under the benches and algae problems on the floor. I want to remind all Hort
club members that it is a priveledge to have your plants in the Agriculture greenhouses. While we do not mind watering your plants, we do not want to be watering plants that should be hrown out or that do not belong to anyone.
Within the next 10 days (i.e. by May 8), could your members please come
in and:

Remove any dead plants from the benches
Remove any liverwort or other weeds from plants that will be remaining on the benches (try to pull out the roots along with the plant tops)
Label plants so that stock plants are labelled as stock plants and plants that belong to certain individuals are labelled with their names. There will be a box of used labels placed beside your benches along with 'Sharpie' markers. Please use these labels to mark your plants with your name. Any plants that are not labelled as stock plants or belonging to individuals WILL BE REMOVED after Friday, May 8th.
I would appreciate it if the floor could be swept at least once per week under your benches to remove and debris. A broom along with a smaller dustpan and broom can be found in the main hallway outside greenhouse E.

Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions, please
don't hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Jackie Bantle
Greenhouse Manager
Dept. of Plant Sciences
ph: 966-5864
cell: 222-7018

P.S The floor are cleaned now but you may want to pick up your plants or label it.

Greenhouse Update and New Forum

2009-04-26T23:11:00.009-06:00

I took down one of the cucumber line last Thursday and Friday. I don't know how long we want to keep the plants in the greenhouse. Therefore please vote on the main blog page, so I can know when we want to terminate the plants, as well as when we can start cleaning up the space. We need to terminate our current crops to allow for sterilization of the place. This will get rid of the insect infestation we're currently dealing with. If we don't do this the insects will transfer to our next round of crops. This is also a good opportunity to do some maintenance and to clean up the floor.

Sorry for not keeping everyone updated for the last two weeks. I assumed everyone was busy during exam time, so I didn't want to disturb you. I hope exams went well for everyone, and a big thank you to those who came and helped out in the greenhouse during exam time. Your effort was greatly appreciated.

For better communication and to provide more opportunity for everyone to share their ideas and suggestions, I'm working on a forum where everyone will get their own user name and password. In addition, you can post and ask any questions you may have, and hopefully we can share and learn new things this way.

For more information about the forum please check on:

http://uofshorticultureclub.forumotion.com/

Hope to hear lots of comments and advices from everyone. Have a happy summer.

Peter Le

Bedding plant update

2009-04-26T22:59:00.004-06:00

Just some updated information on the bedding plants on the bench. Most of them have germinated and are doing well, but others are completely dry and lacking water. I thought we have set up a watering schedule. Please remember that if you forget to water this is the result. I was in the greenhouse last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 8am to noon, but didn't see anyone coming during their watering shift, except Danielle (and she only watered her field bedding plants).

In addition, there are some concern over fertilizer damage. Please check the other blog entries for clarification about which water hose you should be using.

Peter Le

Pesticide application on the cucumber.

2009-04-22T20:14:00.010-06:00

Just to let everyone know that Eldon just applied some insecticides on the cucumbers. The product is "Organic" graded and controls spider mites. It is alright to consume these cucumbers. However, just in case, please wash the cucumbers before eating.

You can find more information of the Neem Oil here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neem_oil

Peter Le

Greenhouse watering hose

2009-04-22T20:03:00.006-06:00

There have been some concerns about the tip burns on the bedding plants. Please be careful of which water hose you use. From left to right:
1. Temperate water
2. Cold water
3. Fertilizer water

Please water your plant with "Temperate water" only. In addition, the temperature increases as the season approaches the summer months. High temperature in the greenhouse increases the rate of water evaporation. The media will dry quicker, therefore every time you water please give your plants a "good water" and make sure the tray is wet and that water is coming out at the bottom.

Peter Le

Attention All Agriculture Greenhouse Users:

2009-04-20T18:31:00.002-06:00

We will be fumigating the Agriculture greenhouse during the evening of Tuesday, April 21st through to the morning of Wednesday, April 22nd. The Agriculture greenhouse will be completely closed off to all users starting at 4:30pm, Tuesday, April 21st. There will be NO ACCESS ALLOWED until Wednesday morning (April 22) at 8:30am.

*Now that the rest of the greenhouse will be fumigated, and virtually pest-free, please do not go back and forth between greenhouse G (veggies) and any of the other greenhouses. This may reintroduce and spread pests, rendering the previous fumigation useless and redundant. Instead, visit greenhouse E first (if you must) and hit the flood-floor (greenhouse G) last.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Jackie (222-7018)
or Eldon (230-6899) as soon as possible.

- Jackie Bantle & Eldon Siemens

(Posted by Peter Le)

Volunteers, anyone?

2009-04-17T04:10:00.011-06:00

Would you have any time to help with a coleus project in the next week or 2?
Volunteers are needed to help sell a new U of SK coleus variety (Audrey III) at Persephone Theatre from mid April 18th to May 3rd. Persephone Theatre will be performing the play “Little Shop of Horrors” which is about a man eating plant named ‘Audrey II’. Our ‘Audrey III’ coleus looks like it has teeth dipped in blood with blood-coloured veins.
Proceeds of the plant sales are going to fund school trips to Persephone and for Student Horticulture projects at the U of Sk.
Persephone’s staff indicated the greatest need is the hour before the show (7 to 8pm) because their volunteers are busy handing out programs and seating people. Intermission would be nice (around 8:45 to 9) or after the show 10pm, but they could make due without someone then.
The show runs from Now to May 3rd.
Evening shows occur every day except Mondays.
Sunday they have a matinee, so we need someone at 1 to 2pm.
In appreciation, volunteers will be given their own ‘Audrey III’ or a gift certificate for the Fruit Programs plant sale on June 5th.

If you would like to volunteer, please email me at bob.bors@usask.ca
or call me on my cell phone 280-1930. Don’t leave a message on the cell phone, since I am unable to retrieve messages. If you want to leave a message call 966-8583.

Thanks,
Bob Bors

(From Dr Bob Bors, posted by Peter Le)

Master Composting Class

2009-04-17T03:49:00.003-06:00

Subject: Coming up... Master Composting Class.

What is a master composting class you ask?

A master composting class is a week-end class that covers everything you ever wanted to know about composting. The classes cover what to compost, how to compost, how to build a compostiing system in your yard or garden, and a variety of other topics related to gardening. It is a great opportunity to expand you knowledge as well as teach others.

When: April 25th and 26th
Cost: free (the City of Saskatoon pays the tuition)
In addition you recieve a manual in a binder, a reference book (or two depending on your horticultural experience and enthusiasm, a DVD and a certificate - as well as go on a field trip to the City's compost depot on McOrmand Dr. In return you are expected to share you new found knowledge in your community or through community events (generally, you are asked to volunteer for the Saskatchewan Waste Reducation Council).

Location: TBA (likely on U of S Campus)

If you are interested or would like more information please call me (Dana) at 655-5322.

I would love for some community gardeners to be able to take part in this training! I have worked with Master Composters in the past and found it to be a wonderful education.

(From Valerie, posted by Peter Le)

Greenhouse update

2009-04-05T20:57:00.009-06:00

There are some new diseases on the cucumber plants. However they are still producing a fair amount of cucumbers so far. Valerie has suggested that we could provide any extra cucumbers to small restaurants in downtown. I think this is a good idea, since we won't be wasting any cucumbers. This will also apply to the peppers. As for the tomatoes, I don't think they're doing well enough at this time. Keep harvesting the cucumbers, and removing the side shoots and foliage.

For the tomatoes groups, I've been pretty busy with exams, so I haven't been working on your crop lately. I'm not sure how you guys divide up the work, but it seems like your crop is growing wildly now. Consequently you can see some signs of nutrient deficiency, insect damage, slow growth, and yield loss.

When your crops are weak, it is a chance for insects to take over your plants. If you look closer at picture #3, you can see that your crop has a major white fly problem. I know that finals are just around the corner so stay focus and spend time on your studies. This is just a reminder so that you can do better next time :).

The pepper and herb groups are doing great. As far as I know, Valerie is the only one working on the peppers. Therefore please do not not assume that peppers don't need a lot of care. Valerie comes into the greenhouse ~2 times a week to maintain her crop by shaking the plants, and harvesting the ripe peppers. In addition, she did a good job of making observations and recording her work. I think everyone should take a look at the pepper note book to see what good note-taking is like. Thanks a bunch Valerie - keep it up.

May Guan and her group are also doing quite well with the herbs. I have noticed, however, that the chamomiles are not doing too well. Can you guys get rid of them and any other crops that are badly infected with aphids? The lettuce are doing well right now, so please keep an eye on them. Please inform me if you see any aphids on the lettuce. Also try not to let the lettuce pots come too close to any infected crops.

Bedding plants

2009-04-05T20:32:00.004-06:00

To those members who have bedding plants on bench E25, I have placed all your trays on the bench. Please see the attached photo.

From now on only one member needs to come to the greenhouse every Tuesday and Friday to water your plants (please set up a schedule among yourselves to ensure that everyone does a fair amount of the watering). I have talked to Eldon and Jackie about watering schedule, and I think it would be better if we can water our own plants. Here are the reasons why:

The plants only need watering on certain days, not every day. Over watering will kill them.
They won't be happy with the pressure from the watering hose, therefore please use the watering can only. You can find it in the header house.
Members will have more control over their plants. You don't want to come back one month later and find all your plants dead, do you?

Please sign up by replying on the comments tab with when you will be available, your name, and contact information (e-mail), so that other members can contact you.

So far there are 4 members who have bedding plants on the bench.

Kaila Hamilton
Danielle Levesque
Valerie Adrian
May Guan

When you come to the greenhouse, please water all the bedding plant trays (8 trays). Do not water other plants, such as the orchids, succulents and 2 seedling Carnivorous plants on the bench

Peter Le

2009-03-30T21:53:00.005-06:00

Hey Everyone,
our year end party is this Sunday, April 5, 2009. We are starting at about 5:30pm at the Sutherland Hall. Activities will include a Potluck, scavenger hunt and other games. Further details will be posted and emailed.

The map is below, parking is available a couple lots West of the Hall.

View Larger Map

Greenhouse meeting March 26

2009-03-27T22:41:00.021-06:00

Bedding plants for your garden:
- 2 trays per member (10 members max. Register by replying with your name under the comments tab)
- Valerie Adrian, Kaila Hamilton, Colin Kindrachuk, and Christina Huvenars (6 more to go)
- Do it on your own time, or come to the greenhouse this coming Thursday, April 2 at 4.30pm (Please confirm with Peter Le at ttl541@mail.usask.ca if you're planning to come).
- Trays and media will be provided, but you must bring your own seeds.

Greenhouse Key: ( Greenhouse key is found)
- Big security concern
- Eldon will leave the front door unlocked for active greenhouse members only.
- Concerns about one HortClub member who never shows up for meetings, or activities, but was spotted in the greenhouse even when the greenhouse key is missing ??? (under investigation)

Scale of production:
- Vegetable production : Personal vs Commercial scale?
- Supply to CHEP? CHEP needs ~600 cucumbers every 2 weeks, so who will bring produce enough for CHEP?
- Focus more on fresh herbs: this year the winner is basil.
- More to come: thai basil.
- Include recipes for herbs during herb sales.

Flower bench - MICHELLE HUBBARD (Ornamental manager)
- Plant identities and cares
- Specialty plants
- Short term: herbs, succulents, flower plants (low maintenance, low fertilizer feed)
- Long term: cacti and orchids (low maintenance, low fertilizer feed)
- Cuttings (ornamental, herbs, etc) - faster growing cycle
- Tissue cultures

Suggestions:
- Rosemary, catnip, Thai basil
- Carnivorous plants (Venus fly trap, Sundew, etc)
- Orchids from Nair?

Horticulture week:
- Promo for club - 2nd week of September

Greenhouse group award: (greenhouse members only)
- $500 (this money will come from the award I got this year)
Qualifications:

Most active group
Best plant choice
Able to make profit for the greenhouse project
New ideas

Greenhouse project meeting

2009-03-22T17:14:00.005-06:00

There will be a meeting on Thursday, March 26th at 5:00pm, location 1E80 Agriculture Building. I will report on the greenhouse project this year. In addition, we will discuss the activities we have done in the past 5 months. We will also discuss what everyone wants to do next year, as well as activities for future years. We also want to lay out the direction to take, so that we can be more focused next year.

Since we have a new greenhouse manager, this will also be a good time to share new ideas as well as look for new greenhouse group leaders.

Please come to the meeting if you are interesting in the greenhouse project. The reason why we need to make a plan for next year is because we need to know which plants to grow for the plant sales next year (if we decide to do so at all).

Hope to see everyone on Thursday, March 26th.

Peter Le

Hortclub greenhouse 360

2009-03-22T16:33:00.005-06:00

I just took a panoramic picture of our greenhouse and I hope everyone likes it.

Harvesting technique.

I'm not sure how everyone is harvesting stuff in the greenhouse, but here is how I do it. As you can see, I place 2 green trays on the cart, one for the tomatoes and one for the cucumbers. Tomatoes don't need to wrapped up, so they can go straight into the tray. However, if you are harvesting cucumbers, there's plastic wrap set right beside the tray for easy harvesting.

Underneath the cart is a yellow tray, which I use as my waste tray, so I don't have to go back and forth to the garbage can. You also see there are 2 blue bins where I put the tomatoes and the cucumber after I'm done harvesting. These blue bins must go into the cooler for storage once you're done.

Greenhouse Update

We will have a lot of cucumbers and tomatoes for a while. Cucumbers need to be harvested when they are approximately 25cm long, and tomatoes need to be harvested when they turn red. It's important to harvest these fruits in order to reserve the plants' nutrients for younger fruits. I have harvested quite a few cucumbers, so the next harvest day will either be this Wednesday or Thursday.

For the tomato group, as soon as anyone from your group comes to the greenhouse, please harvest the tomatoes on the right hand side facing the cucumber line.

Peppers are looking good. Right now you can see 3 kinds of peppers: yellow, orange and red. Harvest them when they completely turn color.

I have transplanted some of the lettuce; this time we will have butter crunch and red leaf. I have seen some aphids on the lettuce, therefore I placed the blue sticky board between the lettuce and the rest of the herb section. Please do not remove the sticky board. There are aphids on the chamomiles, as noted by Danielle. Please keep harvesting the chamomile if you have time this week.

The missing key

Once again if anyone has the key please return it to the lock box. I have discussed this with Jackie, and for now only active members who are working on the greenhouse project will be allowed access into the greenhouse. Others members who want to get into the greenhouse will have to come to the Plant Science office to get the key.

Peter Le

List of Wine Making Participants

2009-03-16T18:19:00.002-06:00

Here's the list of people who are eligible to receive three bottles of homemade Hort Club wine. There should be a few extras left over so if I missed you, please let me know and I'll add you to the list :)

adrien, valerie
Ansari, Omid
Ask, Amalie V.
Beaton, Delaney
bell, jacey
bertelsen steffen
Brunet, Nathalie
Butcher, Susan
claasen rachel
Drinkwater, Jenna
Farrokhnia baharak
Gadzella, teri
gillott, cedric
Gralian, Daniel
Guan, May
Hamilton, Joseph
hauber jillian
Hill, Angela
Hilsden, Kathleen
kindrachuk colin
Kovach, Erica
Kristiansen, Thea
Lajeunesse, Mandy
meaden justin
munson, matt
nair
Popoff, Margarita
Ramey, Robyn
Reimer, Peter
Rohr, Veronica
tanino, karen
Taupadel, Megan
taylor jamie
thorimbert lana
Walters, Jayne
watkiss, ellen

Dates for pickup are as follows:
Tuesday March 17 - 5:00-5:25
Wednesday March 18 - 5:00-5:25
Friday March 20 - 5:00-5:25
Monday March 23 - 3:40-4:00
Thursday March 26 - 10:15-10:45
Friday March 27 - 3:40-4:00

The deadline for pickup is March 27th unless you make other arrangements with me (danielle). You can email me at del321@mail.usask.ca.

Greenhouse update - March 15

2009-03-15T20:42:00.015-06:00

The HortClub shelf was cleaned and all the tools can be found there. New plastic wrap is available as requested. If you borrow tools, please put them back where they're located.

From left to right: tomato, cucumber, herb, and pepper notebooks. The herb group is doing an excellent job in recording their duties, as well as notes for future work. Nothing have been recorded in the tomato notebook, so it seems like the tomato group has some communication difficulties.

Valerie Adrian is doing a great job here. Your pepper is doing great and some of the orange and yellow peppers are ready to be harvested. Pruning should STOP at this point, but shaking the plants for pollination is still necessary.

The new cucumber line is doing great; I have seen some cucumber fruits on these young plants. Pruning the leaves is not recommended at this stage since theoretically each leaf is the food source for the fruit. However, pruning side foliage and side vines are necessary. There are a few cucumbers on the old line that are ready to be harvested, you can find the plastic wrap on the shelf, and make sure you wrap them appropriately, or they will go soft if the skin gets exposed to cold air in the cooler.

The new lettuce set has been transplanted. This time we have 2 varieties (red leaf and butter crunch). I did water them on Sunday morning, so they won't need any water until Wednesday. Do not put on the spaghetti tube, since they don't need a lot of water at this stage. Please water them with the red water container in the greenhouse.

Lots of chamomile are ready to be harvested; please harvest these flowers and I will put them in the dry room in Phytotron.

No picture for the tomato group since I've seen a lot of broken main stems. Please keep in mind that it takes a lot of time for a new main shoot to emerge, and yield will be put back for weeks. If you guys regularly prune the side shoots properly and do not let them grow wildly, you could have saved a lot of plants and fruits. In addition, you also need to harvest the ripen tomatoes, and place them in the blue box in cooler #111.2. Once again, this is what you should do this week:

Pruning off all the side shoots (only 30mins maximum, but this is really important).
Removing some of the fruits to maintain ~4-5 fruits per cluster.
Putting on the clips.

New member: We have a new member, her name is Amy Cheng and she would like to help out in the greenhouse, preferably with tomatoes and herbs. If either groups are looking for new members, please contact Amy.

Member appreciation: Everyone have been working hard and have contributed a lot to our greenhouse project. Therefore to the members who have been helping out from the beginning until now, there will be a small gift. Some members already got their gift last Thursday during the joint meeting and I hope you like it. I apologize to those who didn't get a gift, since I didn't receive your email confirming you would come. However, you will get a different gift.

You can collect your gifts during the general meeting this Wednesday, location and time TBA :( .

Here is the list of members:

Herbs group: Danielle, May, Christina, Thea, Amelie
Pepper group: Valerie
Tomato group: Colin, Rachel, Peter
Cucumber: Nathelie, Mercedes, Kaleigh

There are 3 more names: Katie, Janel, and Mandy. I will contact your group leader to get more information.

Hope to see everyone this Wednesday at the general meeting.

Peter Le

Week in photos - Week of March 2

2009-03-13T19:53:00.001-06:00

Herb and Plant Sale

2009-03-10T13:35:00.007-06:00

Here is the schedule for the plant sale so far...

To sign up to help, email your preferred time to hort.club@usask.ca or comment below.

Herb/Plant Sale – Thurs March 12

2^nd Floor Bio

9:30 – 10:00

AGRC 2E45

Chelsea T.

10:00 – 10:30

Danielle L.

Chelsea T.

10:30 – 11:00

Danielle L.

Chelsea T.

11:00 – 11:30

Danielle L.

11:30 – 12:00

Danielle L.

12:00 – 12:30

Danielle L.

12:30 – 1:00

Danielle L.

1:00 – 1:30

1:30 – 2:00

2:00 – 2:30

2:30 – 3:00

Cleanup @ 3pm

To green-house

Chelsea T.

Tomato and cucumber

2009-03-08T22:09:00.008-06:00

There are lots of tomatoes to harvest, but don't take them for now since we have a joint meeting this Thursday. Your group have done a great job so far, but you guys still need to be careful when you lower the plants.

Nutrient deficiency- Calcium deficiency is no longer a threat, you may have noticed that the beefsteak tomatoes were really susceptible to blossom end rot.
I have also noticed some tip burn on some of your plants, which could be due to some nutrient deficiency in your plants. Environmental factors may also play an important roles on nutrient uptake such as the greenhouse was quite cool during the day and hot during the evening.

Cleanliness - Since you guys have been harvesting your tomatoes, plz clean up all abandoned tomatoes left in the pots. I have noticed quite a few tomatoes lying around in the pots. When these tomato decompose, it will be a source for diseases later on. Clean up those abandoned tomatoes if you have time.

Keep updating your note books. This will really help later.

As you have seen, it is not feasible to feed on these weak, damaged cucumbers. No matter how hard we tried to feed and care for them, the damage was non-reversible. Therefore, I will terminate these old cucumbers soon. I have one full tray, ~25 cucumbers, ready for transplant sometime next week.

The young cucumbers are doing great and flowering. We lost a few fruits, since some members were confused on which part should be pruned off. In addition, you may have noticed there are two sets of cucumbers: one with the white tag, potted with regular sunshine mix #4, and the other with the orange tag, potted with regular sunshine mix #4 + perlite (3:1 ratio). The white tagged cucumbers show faster growth than the orange tagged ones.

Question for ya: What does this mean to you, and why is this so?

Peter Le.

Pepper.

2009-03-08T21:50:00.010-06:00

Peppers are ripening, but please don't take these peppers for now. These ripening peppers will produce ethylene and help to speed up starch converting process. If you remove these ripening peppers at this time, they are not quite mature enough, so it won't taste good, and the sugar converting process will be delayed and consequently delay the ripening process for other peppers.

To pepper group members, we (Pete and Pete) :) have been spending quite some time working on your pepper plants. They are in good shape now but don't forget to take care of your plants. Your help will really help us to have more time to do other things.

Do you know that your group has a blue note book located on the HortClub shelf? Every time you come to the greenhouse, please write a short report about what you have done, and what you have seen, such as any bugs, disease, wilting plants, etc... This will not only help me to take care of your crops better, but also help inform your members. Last but not least, this note book will be kept as a reference to provide useful notes for next year's members.

Peter Le.

P.S Not sure what to do, pls contact me.

Cucumber care

2009-03-08T21:23:00.010-06:00

Things you need to know:
There's been some confusion on the pruning of the cucumbers. There were a few cucumber flowers accidentally removed instead of the side foliage.

For your information.

Side foliage

Cucumber flower

Which one should you prune off?

Hope this help.

Peter Le.

Week in photos - Week of Feb 23

2009-02-28T23:34:00.001-06:00

Greenhouse group meeting - Feb 27th

2009-02-28T01:00:00.011-06:00

Meeting minutes.

News:
• Members Award application is available for download
(Deadline is March 13th )
• Joint meeting is Thursday, March 12th with guests from other colleges.
• Greenhouse books* are available, keep yourself updated and this is a great source of information for the next generation.
• Lots of cucumbers and tomatoes are in the cooler.
• Lettuce is available for harvest, check for sign on the flood floor.
• Coffee and tea are available in the coffee room.
• New tools are available such as step stools, latex gloves, syran wraps, fruit storage bag, as well as brown bag.

Greenhouse information:
• Greenhouse budget is available for review here .

Member appreciation:
• Lunch bag will be provide for volunteers during any event.

Recruit:
• Looking for new greenhouse manager, co-manager as well as group leaders.
(Tentative nominate date is March 18th)

*There are four separate books for four main crops, such as herbs, peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers.The group leader is responsible for keeping the book available to group members, as well as recording information on their crop.Members are responsible for keeping track of their attendance, as well as reporting any work or diseases during their time slot.All the book are place on the HortClub shelf where all the tools are for easy access.

Joint meeting

2009-02-24T22:24:00.005-06:00

"Rooted" is an on campus club whose members have a particular focus on local food production, especially through urban gardening and helping to preserve our loacl ecosystems. The HortClub and Rooted are planning to hold a joint potluck at the Agriculture Greenhouse. Rooted is interested in seeing the greenhouse project and hearing about HortClub activities. I think it is a great to have so much interest in horticulture on campus (never enough!) and since both clubs seem to have common interests, a joint potluck at the greenhouse seemed like a good idea.

Please vote on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday by Feb.27.

Thanks

Karen Tanino

Harvesting time

2009-02-23T00:31:00.007-06:00

Hello HortClub greenhouse members,

Harvesting time: --> Exciting

Lots of tomatoes are ready for harvest. You can start harvesting, but remember not to harvest all the ripen tomatoes. Leave some left as these ripen ones will produce ethylene, which will speed up the ripening process for other tomatoes. You can find a tray in the cooler and leave all the tomatoes in the blue box as indicated. Some of the "Trust" variety are ready for harvest as well.

For cucumbers, I have been harvesting and placing some cucumbers in the same blue box with the tomatoes. Cucumber group can start harvesting those similar in size to the one indicated in the photos. There're around 3-4 eggplants that are ready for harvest, and I left them for you to pick yourself :) . Remember to wrap up all the cucumbers before placing them into the blue box for longer storage. Without proper wrapping, the cucumbers will go bad quickly.

Solution for the fresh herbs: we can dry them. Herb group is responsible for cutting the herbs, and placing them in a brown bag. Please let me know when you're ready, so I can come and pick them up, or you can bring them to the agriculture building and give me a call. Chamile, basil, oregano, catnip, etc are ready for cutting, therefore you guys may want to do it some time this week.

Peppers are doing well, but not quite mature enough for harvest. So please wait a little longer until they change color. We didn't plant any green peppers, since green peppers are not worth the effort to grow in the greenhouse. If you compare the price of colored peppers to green peppers in the store, then you will easily understand our reason.

Working time: --> Not so exciting

Tomatoe group may want to spend some time lowering the cherry tomatoes (ie. arrange at a steeper slant). They're growing fast and are getting big again. Please, please be careful with the tomatoes !!! I have seen many broken main stems, and it will take a very long time for the plants to produce another main shoot. By the time they're back, they probably will not make it since they'll be overlapped by other plants. So be extra careful when you're working with the main stems. Last but not least, keep shaking --> yield is looking good.

The cucumbers are doing all right. The small cucumbers are going fast, and hopefully we can get some cucumbers soon. The old cucumbers are looking green again. Even though they're quite damaged by insects, we can still get some cucumbers along the way. Keep watching out for white flies, since I've seen a few. Thank you Nathalie; it was a good idea to keep documenting what you've done, so that other people can know what's been done and what to expect. Other groups may want to do the same.

As far as I know there is only one member working on the peppers. Therefore are there any volunteers willing to work with the peppers. If no one is interested I will step in.

Herb group alway has it easy going, but you guys may want to start harvesting and putting the herbs in bags, so I can dry them in phytotron. Let me know when you guys plan on doing it.

That's all, thanks everyone

Peter Le.

HortClub's cooler

2009-02-23T00:10:00.004-06:00

Hi everyone,

I'm the only one who's cleaning up the cooler nowadays, and this is not cool at all. Everyone is welcomed to take stuff from the cooler, but you need to clean up after yourself. Take a closer look at the photo; people are not only taking stuff, but are specifically looking for good produce, which messes the whole pile up.

This is the first and last notice. If this happens again, the combination lock will be changed and only members who help out in the greenhouse will get the code.

Thanks for your understanding and cooperation.

Peter Le

New stepstool.

2009-02-23T00:02:00.006-06:00

I got this step stool for your convenience. From now on you don't have to carry the heavy woody chair around when you're pruning those tomato and cucumber plants.

I also got a box of latex gloves for everyone; you can find the box on the HortClub's shelf in the loading dock area. Please do not remove the box.

Peter Le.

Week in photos (Week of Feb 9)

2009-02-15T09:20:00.001-06:00

Student's life

2009-02-13T11:43:00.011-06:00

Start of the semester:

First week:

Second week:

Before the mid-term test:

Once know the exam schedule:

7 days before exam:

6 days before exam:

5 days before exam:

4 days before exam:

3 days before exam:

2 days before exam:

1 day before exam:

Night before exam:

1 hour before exam:

During the exam:

Walking out from the exam hall:

After the exam, during the holiday:

Plant instruction care

2009-02-08T22:19:00.015-06:00

FRESH HERBS:
If not used immediately, the herbs can be stored in the freezer and they will be great for soups and stews.

PLANT CARE:

Basil
Basil is best kept in medium-rich, moist soil with a pot that drains excess water. Keep in full sun and in a warmer part of the house. Basil leaves are best used fresh in pasta sauces or on pizzas. Always add near the end of cooking so that it doesn’t lose its aroma.

Sage
Keep sage in full sunlight. It is important to keep the soil moist. If re-potting, use a light soil and make sure the water can drain through the bottom. Harvest leaves before they flower. Sage tastes great in stuffing and on meats such as pork.

Catnip
Keep in moist soil and in a sunny place. The leaves and stems of catnip can be infused for tea.

Thyme
Thyme grows best in moist, gritty soil under the sun. The leaves taste great fresh or dried on any meat!

All the pots were filled with greenhouse special soil less media + perlite. The media is disease free and the perlite helps to maintain adequate aeration in the pots. Herbs don't require lots of care and water, but do need some sunlight for photosynthesis. Place your herbs near big windows, or where light is available.
Water twice a week and always make sure that the water drains out the bottom. In most cases, people water the top soil, but fail to water enough causing the bottom soil layer to dry out. With twice a week watering schedule, you will never over water. Always use temperate water to prevent root shock.

Please let us know what you think and what plant do you prefer, so that we can do better in the future.

Once again, thanks for supporting the HortClub.

Brought to you by the Horticulture Club - Greenhouse group.

Nutritional information available here

HortClub Herb Sale

2009-02-07T12:14:00.014-06:00

This year the HortClub is hosting a herb sale. This is a brand new venture, and we hope it will be well received by students and faculties alike.

To those who are new to the HortClub, we are a student-organized club based on campus that focus on all things horticultural. One of our project is the greenhouse project. Our main focus are student hand-on experiments outside the classroom and producing fresh produce that are both sustainable and affordable.

In the past, we provided fresh produce to CHEP and on campus Foods Service.

List of potted plants that will be in the herb sale:

Herbs:
Green basil
Purple basil
Catnip
Thyme
Sage

Flowers:
Double columbine
Carnation

Fresh herbs: U pick ~ fill a bag with your selected herbs.
Basil
Thyme
Oregano
Sage
Peppermint
Catnip
Swiss chard

Here are some pictures of our greenhouse as well as the plants we are currently growing:

For plant care instructions, please click here

Please let us know what you think and what plant do you prefer, so that we can do better in the future.

Thank you for supporting the HortClub.

Brought to you by the Horticulture Club - Greenhouse Group

Week in photos (Week of Jan 26)

2009-02-02T00:15:00.000-06:00

Greenhouse week of Feb 2

2009-02-01T17:17:00.020-06:00

Here is updated information

Good news:

The story of greenhouse insects:

5 weeks ago - unwelcomed guest

4 weeks ago - explosion of insect --> extensive damage

3 weeks ago - Bio control taking place

2 weeks ago until now - We're covered.

Insects: Basically the insect population is under control for now. Although they are still around , damages are much less than 2 weeks ago. Most of the herbs and peppers are doing well, and are coming back.

Tomatoes: It is hard to say with certain that we will have a good yield, but we definitely have quite a few tomatoes and some of the cherry tomatoes are ripening. Even though there are some BER (blossom end rot) on selective varieties, overall calcium deficiency is not a concern. There are a few issues with the wilting leaves on selective tomato plants. Once again, this is because of the variety. I don't know why it showed that physical disorder. This could have been caused by a lot of reasons, like water, temperature, fertility regimen, pH, etc. However it would be an interesting question for us to find the cause?

Cucumbers: Due to precipitate and salt built up in the injectors and the fertilizer tanks the cucumbers have not be doing too well. All the injectors and fertilizer tanks have been cleaned, and hopefully they will all work again. Some of the crop-like cucumbers did not get any fertilizer at all for a long period of time. This and insect damage are the reasons why the cucumbers were doing so poorly. And it's not a good idea to feed weak + damaged plants the same way you would healthy plants, so I will tear down all the cucumbers and plant new ones instead.

Lettuce: Lettuce is doing great. ~100 heads are coming up soon. This time, we have 3 different varieties (2 buttercrunch varieties and a leaf lettuce). Don't harvest them before I say so, since all of them are fed with tons of fertilizer --> highly concentrated nitrogen --> toxic --> who wants toxic lettuce? The solution is: before harvest time, ~ 3-4 days earlier, I will water the lettuce with plain water (no fertilizer) to drain out all the fertilizer concentrated in the lettuce, then we can harvest. This is just the recommended practices, but I think it makes sense.

Bad news:

White flies: I have noticed some white flies around on the eggplants. This insect could cause some yield loss for our tomatoes. So we need to keep an eyes on these guys. For the tomato members, if you see significant amounts of them around your tomato plants please let me know. For more information about this insect check here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitefly

Odd news:

The greenhouse is back on track for now. It's up to us to keep it as an experimental learning environment, where we can produce "organic food", or simply learn how to grow plants.

From now on is it possible for the team leader of each group to organize schedules for their team members to come and look after their plants, as well as to report what has done each week? The plants are getting bigger, so regular maintenance needs to be done weekly to make sure the plants are free of disease, and to ensure good yield.

For the Herbs: Please keep on thinning, trimming, cleaning up dead leaves and planting new herbs where desirable. Please also make a list of the herbs present.
For the Peppers: Oops... whoever signed up for the Pepper group, please report to your team leader Valerie Adrian at vaa932@mail.usask.ca, since we have a little difficulty in communication.
For the Tomatoes: Please keep pollinating the plants. You guys have done a great job, so keep it up. One more thing, please be extra careful with the tomatoes, since the branches bearing the fruits can easily bend, so put the clips on for extra support if necessary. Keep putting more clip as the plant grow, watch where you put the clips; try to avoid the flowers.
For the Cucumbers: I have cut down most of the cucumbers, and have planted new ones. Put the clips along the string as the plants grow.

I have lots of midterms coming up, so I won't be around. Please contact me if you're not sure about what to do.

Thanks everyone,

Peter Le.

2009-01-30T00:47:00.003-06:00

Congratulations to Katie Senn!!

She is the winner of a new iPod shuffle for placing first in our photo contest!! Thanks to everyone who participated!!

Check out the winning picture, 'Colors of fall'

Greenhouse week of Jan 26th.

2009-01-25T21:32:00.014-06:00

Hi all,

There are some good news and bad news.

Good news:

Bugs were a big concern 4 weeks ago; there were lots of plant damage, especially in the peppers and herbs. There were lots of yield loss and the plants' growth was greatly affected. However, after 4 weeks of commitment and work with the bio-control agents, the aphids, thrips, and white flies are under control. If you take a close look on the pepper leaves you will likely see the dead aphids due to our bio-control agents. So the peppers are back and recovering.

The tomatoes are doing well; the bugs and diseases on the tomatoes are not a concern. The yield is pretty good and there is not a lot of "blossom end rot".

What is "blossom end rot"?
Blossom-end rot, a physiological disorder of tomatoes, and peppers is caused by a calcium imbalance within the plant. Fluctuations in soil moisture, excessively wet or dry soil, excessive nitrogen fertilizer, very high or low pH, or soils high in salts can all prevent the roots from taking up enough calcium to satisfy the plant's rapid cell development. The result is a water-soaked spot at the blossom end of the plant that enlarges, turning dark brown and leathery.

Bad news:

What is wrong with the cucumbers?

Some of you may have noticed that the cucumbers are not doing well; the leaves are yellow and curling, and the yield is not doing any better. Lots of fruits have been aborted, therefore we won't get as much cucumbers as expected. So what is the problem? At first, there was definitely bug-induced damage on the leaves. If you take a closer look on the leaves you may recognize lots of dark brown dots. However, there is a bigger concern regarding plant nutrients, since one of the Calcium nitrate tank got mixed up. This could have been a result of someone forgetting to turn/close one of the valves before opening the other valve from the "Macro-micro nutrients". As a result, the calcium tank now contains a mixture of Calcium nitrate and Potassium Sulfate --> Calcium Sulfate is insoluble in water (precipitate).

Ca(NO3)2 + K2SO4 --> 2KNO3 + CaSO4

How is the precipitate affecting our plants? Simply put it plugs the injector and the plants are not getting enough fertilizer. This is just one simple example that we need to be aware of later on.

How has everyone been lately? I don't see lots of us around recently. I know all of us are busy. Midterms are coming up and there are more assignments and paper work, but the plants are getting bigger and bigger as well, which means they do need care and some maintenance regularly. I have been the only one working on the peppers so far. Where are all the pepper members? Like what I have said before, peppers don't need a lot of care since they grow really slow, but they do need someone to look after them and to prune them regularly. The point here is to keep one main shoot in order to keep the plant growing straight. This work only takes 15-30 mins per week, but it really helps the plant. While you're pruning the side shoot off, you're already helping to pollinate the flowers as well. Two birds with one stone.

This also applies to the tomato group. So far the tomato group is doing great. However, be careful when you put the clips on, since I have seen several clips placed right over top the flowers. Please do not do this; if the flowers get damaged, then we won't get any tomatoes, but only tons of biomass (does anyone want tomatoes leaves?) instead.

Research project:

There is one student in PLSC 433 (Greenhouse production) course who is doing some research on our tomatoes. Be aware of the sign in the tomato pots. Check on 'greenhouse set up' for more information.

Dr. Doug (pepper trial):

There are 8 pepper plants on the trial line. Check the greenhouse setup for more information. These pepper plants are flowering and fruiting, but please do not harvest these peppers. This is a grad research project and they're saving all the seed as well as counting every single pepper seed. Once again, do not take these peppers. These plants are not HortClub peppers. If you have any concern on this please contact me for more information.

Last but not least, I hope everyone can set up a time suitable to your schedule to come and enjoy your horticulture experience. This is one in a life time experience in your university education. Remember, everyone else using greenhouse space has to pay big bucks, but we get the benefits for free. So please make good use of this. It may not seem important now, but it's really important later when the university re-evaluates our eligibility to continue using this space.

Things to do this week:

If your group hasn't established a schedule, then this is time to do it.
If your group has done this, then this is a good time to give it a start.
If you don't know what to do, please feel free to send me an e-mail @ ttl541@mail.usask.ca.
Decide when is a good time for the plant sale: some time during the week of Feb 9th before spring break. Tell me what do you think.
Strategies for the plants sale, like advertisement, deciding who will be the leader, pricing and signing up volunteers.

Things that have been done:

Big thanks to May Guan and the herb group on spending time transplanting all the herbs and flower plants for the plant sale later. We really appreciate this.

That is all for now, thanks everyone for giving your time,

Greenhouse setup.p...

Hosted by eSnips

Peter Le.

Week in photos (Week of Jan 19)

2009-01-24T23:16:00.000-06:00

New Year's Potluck

2009-01-21T16:40:00.002-06:00

We are having a New Year's Potluck, this coming Monday, January 26, 2009, at the Sutherland Hall. (1112 Central Ave, Southerland Area) With doors opening at 5:30, and supper starting at 6:00pm.

Please RSVP your dish & number of people by:

A) Commenting on this post below
B) Calling 664-8581 and leaving a message
C) Emailing: hort.club@usask.ca

I know this is short notice, this date also coincides with the Chinese (Lunar) New Year, with this year being the year of the Ox. We will also be going over our events for this semester and approving our new constitution. I hope to see you there!!

Map to the hall:

http://www.canpages.ca/page/SK/saskatoon/sutherland-hall/1715142.html

Greenhouse (Update Jan 11)

2009-01-11T20:31:00.008-06:00

Hi everyone,

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with your family and friends. Here is some updated information on our greenhouse. After two weeks running low maintenance, we currently have some problems with bugs, such as thrips, aphids and white flies. The most susceptible crops to bugs are the peppers and some of our cucumber varieties. What caused the disease on the cucumbers is not clear but it caused aggresive damage on the leaves, as well as the cucumbers. Therefore, all of the trial cucumber varieties have been removed and planted again with our "standard" variety, which is "Corona". I have harvested quite a few english long "Corona" variety cucumbers; all of them have been wraped for storage, and placed in the cooler #111.3

Having bugs in the greenhouse is the last thing wanted in the greenhouse; unfortunately, what will we do with this unwanted gift? Will we quit, spray, start over or will we fight? I don't know what to do, but I know this is a great opportunity for us to test out how the bio-control works. I think I have mentioned this before. For now, if you come to the greenhouse you'll probably see those hanging white bags on the plants. Those are our friendly bugs, so don't remove those bags.
I hope this will work out and we'll still get good yield and a great learning experience.

For all plant groups (herbs, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers) please set up a schedule for your group members, arranging the times for when you can come and look after your plants.

For the herb group, you need to thin some of the pots.
For the pepper group, you need to carefully look for insects, remove the auxiliary stems, and put on the clips.
For the tomato group, you need to remove the auxiliary stems, put on the clips, and tap the plants lightly to pollinate them.
For the cucumber group, you need to remove the auxiliary stems, put on the clips, and harvest the ready cucumbers (they're ready when they're ~25cm and both tips are firm).

Note: be extra careful when you put on the clips, be sure to place them under one of the main/thicker branches (this helps to support the plants), and keep the strings tight to ensure that the plants will grow straight. I have seen so many clips placed above the branches or right on the tomato flowers. This provides no support and may even damage the flowers. So please be careful.

Thanks everyone and hope to see you guys soon.

Peter Le

Week in photos

2008-12-23T23:29:00.000-06:00

Greenhouse Care Schedule Over Holiday

2008-12-21T18:40:00.003-06:00

Tuesday Dec 23: Jamie Taylor

Friday Dec 26: Hasan Alghouti

Tuesday Dec 30: Colin Kindrachuk

Friday Jan 2: Valerie Adrian

Tuesday Jan 6: Daniele Levesque

Thanks everyone for putting up your time,

Peter Le.

Greenhouse Care Check List.

2008-12-18T23:29:00.006-06:00

Here are the following things that you may want to go over:

If you come on Tuesday.

Close the valves of the following Tank 1-3-5-7 only (only valves indicated with “black tape”)
Open the valves of the following Tank 2-4-6-8 only (only valves indicated with “green tape”)

If you come on Friday.

Close the valves of the following Tank 2-4-6-8 (only valves as indicated with “ green tape”)
Open the valves of the following Tank 1-3-5-7 (only valves as indicated with “ black tape”)

Please go over the following on either Tuesday, or Friday:

1.Pruning off the side shoots and vines on the cucumber plants.
2.Put the clips on to train the plants upwards; make sure the strings are tight and straight.
(the above task will take you 15-20 mins max)
3.Pollinate the zucchini and shake the tomato flowers to pollinate them if you have a chance.
4.Go over all the pots to spot any dry ones. Dryness may cause the plants to die, so please water them if necessary.
5.Water cucumbers on line 1 and 2 (experimental line).

On the flood floor:

1.Water our bedding flowers and new batch of lettuce.
2.Turn off the water hose properly and you're done for the day.

Thanks for your help and enjoy your holiday break.

Emergency contact:

Eldon Siemens: eldon.siemebs@usask.ca or 306-230-6899
Steffen Bertelsen: sbb859@mail.usask.ca or 306-227-5854

Don't have the phone with ya, you can find the phone in the coffee room and dial out by pressing #9.

Photo contest reminder

2008-12-09T15:34:00.004-06:00

Hi,

This is a reminder that the photo contest is still running and picture applications will be accepted until the end of this month. So far we only have a few submissions. Please give it a try; the winner gets an IPod shuffle. For more information, please check out the following link.

http://uofshorticultureclub.blogspot.com/2008/10/photo-contest.html

or here

Peter Le

Greenhouse care over holiday

2008-12-09T15:19:00.002-06:00

We are still looking for members who can come some time during the 2 weeks holiday to take care of the plants, or at least to know what is going in the greenhouse. We don't want to come back after 2 weeks and see all the plants dead. Please send me an email if this is alright for you, and I can give you some instructions on what you need to do, etc.

There is only one member who volunteered so far.

Valerie Adrian

Hopefully we will get more volunteers.

Peter Le.

Greenhouse (Week of Dec 8)

2008-12-09T14:51:00.008-06:00

Hi everyone,

Here is an update with some information on the plants in the greenhouse. The cucumbers and the tomatoes are doing really well. It seems like we're going to have some cucumbers during January. In addition, we probably get some lettuce as well.

If any member of the cucumber group plans to come to the greenhouse, please take some time to prune off the side shoot, and vine BUT not the fruit (cucumber) at this stage (see the picture). Please put some clips on as demonstrated in the greenhouse.

That's all for now, and sorry for not keeping you updated on time.

Wishing you all the best on your exams and happy holiday.

Peter Le.

Things to do (Week of Dec 1)

2008-11-30T12:39:00.003-06:00

Here is what we need to do this week:

Transplanting some Herbs.
Moving propagated plants to the flowering bench.
Cleaning up the flowering bench.

The herbs are mature enough, and will need to be transplanted soon. I hope the herb growers can find some time to get together in the greenhouse. This will mean that you guys will have to set a time that works for everyone in your group, and I will come to give you guys a hand if necessary.

The propagated plants are good now, and need to be moved out of the mist bench as soon as possible, or they will DIE. So whoever came to the propagation session last time may want to come and move their stuff to the flowering bench. We've cleaned out space for your plants, so you'll easily find a spot there.

Peter Le.

Greenhouse Cucumber

2008-11-30T12:05:00.022-06:00

Hello Cucumber growers,
Training and Pruning:
This will help to fully supply all nutritional needs for the plants during the establishing period. In addition, you may want to put the clips on to train the plants to go upwards (see example in the Greenhouse).

If too many fruits are allowed to form at any one time, a large proportion will abort, because the plant may not have sufficient food reserves.

Fertilizer:
During this time, we're watering the plants with starter solution (10-52-10) for 2 weeks. High percentage of P will help the plants to establish their roots system, which will allow the plants to take up more water and nutrients.

Schedule:
I have 5 exams coming up, but I can come to the greenhouse at anytime, I believe Mercedes has sent out an email saying she is available on Friday. I hope the remaining 4 members can find some time during the week to come to the Greenhouse. It doesn't take long; it only takes 5-10 mins if we share the work and follow the schedule.

Hope this helps,

Peter Le.

Looking out - looking in - Looking for donation

2008-11-23T10:45:00.005-06:00

We are looking for some donation, here is the wish list:

Table
Chair
Blackboard
Radio
Temperature meter

If you have any unused goods and want to get rid of them, please donate them to the Greenhouse, so that we can put them to use.

Peter Le.

Greenhouse commitment

2008-11-22T01:15:00.021-06:00

Plant carers: this is a reminder that each of us needs to decide which plants to take care of. The reason why do we need to do this is because it will divide the work load, and allow more time for members to become knowledgeable about their plants.

Will this limit your chance to learn other stuffs? NOT at all, you're welcomed to learn other stuff as well, and that is why we need experts for each type of plants, so that we can share our knowledge around.

Please remember your one hour commitment per week to the Greenhouse. Yes it's important for you to know that you're expected to spend one hour weekly in the greenhouse.

If we're not clear on who takes care of what, then what will you do each week in the Greenhouse? Are you willing to take care of the entire Greenhouse?
How will other people know what has been done by other members?
If something happens to the plants, how can you trace the cause if you don't know what's going on? What if you're busy, or away for some time?
By assigning everyone plants, I will know which plants to take care of while you're away.

In contrast, if we're not clear on what to do, then we'll need to set up meetings where all of us has to come at the same time, which may not be suitable for your schedule. Ask yourself, do you prefer flexible scheduling, or fixed scheduling?

From my previous experience when I took care of the greenhouse for 3 months and it was a nightmare. I had to come to the John Mitchell GH every single day and it is much, much smaller than our current Greenhouse. This was because there were no rules, regulations, or commitment, and nobody knew what to do. As a result, no one learned a lot in the end.

Please email me with your preference on the type of plants you want to take care of. I need your response by Monday, Nov 24th. Once we have a list of caretakers, we will decide how many plants will be planted (we can only plant as much as we'll able to take care of). If there are too few members able to help out, we'll have to cut back. The following are the plants that still need caretakers:

1) Herbs: Dannelle Levesque, May Guan, Christina Huvenaars (spearmint), Thea Kristiansen,Amalie V. Ask.
2) Peppers: Brittany McNally, Jamie Taylor, Courtney Thompson (1 more)
3) Tomatoes: Colin Kindrachuk, Rachel Claassen, Peter Reimer, Katie Senn
4) Cucumbers*: Nathelie Brunet, Mercedes Scott, Janell Healey, Peter Le,Mandy Lajeunesse,Kaleigh Elian.
5) Lettuces: Peter Le
6) Zucchini & Beans: Christina Nguyen, Mercedes Scott

*Cucumbers need quite lot of care; that's why we need more members.

So we need to get this thing done as soon as possible. Ask yourself, are you in or not? If you've decided to commit to this, then be all the way 'in' please.

For more information about plants' layout please click here.

Peter Le.

Injector information

2008-11-22T01:14:00.009-06:00

There're quite a few different ways to set up, as well as different types of injector available in the market. Here are a few:

Dosatron injector:
These injectors operate without electricity, using water pressure as the power source. They are installed directly in the water supply line. Water flow activates the injector, which takes up the required percentage of concentrate directly from a container with stock solution. Inside the injector, concentrate is mixed with water, and water pressure forces the solution downstream. The amount of concentrate dispensed is directly proportional to the volume of water entering the injector, irrespective of variations in water flow or pressure that may occur in the main line

Electrofertic pump:
The pump is operate relate similar to those injectors, but it needs electricity and withdraw the liquid nitrogen rather than injecting into the system.

Both of the above systems are highly recommended in the commercial greenhouse operation, since they're highly accurate and easy to operate, which means they won't be CHEAP. We want some thing we can afford that's easy to operate. So what do we do? Well there're few options for us. Cheap stuffs are less accurate, involve more labour and some headaches as a bonus.

Venturi-type injectors:

Such as Hozon uses a pressure difference between the water line and the stock tank to draw a concentrated solution into a faucet connect valve and mix it with water in the hose. These inexpensive injectors can be easily attached to any faucet, but do not allow precise control over concentration. Because of water pressure fluctuations, variable amount(s) of chemical may be injected into the hose. In addition, the injection ratios are low (typically 1:16) and therefore require a large stock tank, thus limiting the use of Venturi-type injectors to small growing areas.

The Hozon requires very little maintenance; check the screen on the suction line for clogs and periodically remove salt deposits from the mixing valve. This is the one that we used before in the John Mitchell Greenhouse; it worked well, was easy to operate and was dirty cheap :) way to go? Not really, this year we will try a different one, which is relatively similar, but more precise.

We are currently looking at the Mazzei injector. It doesn't require electricity to operate, the price is more affordable and it's more precise than the Hozon. However, here comes the headache: how do we set this thing up? There're lots of way to set this thing up but what is the most suitable for our GH environment? Remember, commercial growers only select one or two types of plants in their GH vs the 4 different types we have in our greenhouse (Herbs,Pepper,Tomato,Cucumber). It is certain that they have different fertilizers and water requirements. In conclusion, we're still working on this and hopefully we'll get this done as soon as possible.

Peter Le.

(Update) Sunday Nov 23

Finally i found the solution for the injector, it looks simple but took me lots of time to figure out how to put it together.

Apple Cider Session Attendance

2008-11-20T23:14:00.004-06:00

Each member who has attended a cider session will receive approximately 1.5 – 2 L of cider. Those who have attended 2-3 sessions will receive approximately 3-4 L of cider. Those who have attended 4 or more sessions will receive ~6 L of cider. The apple slicing session was counted as two sessions due to the amount of work put into it. The cherry picking and sorting sessions will be counted towards your allotment of cherry wine. If you feel I have miscounted your attendance please email me at del321@mail.usask.ca BEFORE sunday.

alain

amalie ask

amy wheeler

baharak farrokhnia

carrie thiessen

cedric gillott

christina hevenaars

christina nguyen

colin bett

colin kindrachuk

danielle levesque

danielle stephens

grant wood

jamie taylor

jenna drinkwater

jean-paul cote

justin meaden

karen tanino

kirsten

lana therimbert

mandy lajeunesse

manya quinn

matt munson

may guan

nair

nathalie brunet

peter le

peter reimer

rachel claasen

roxanne perrault

steffen bertelsen

susie butcher

teri gadzella

1111

111111 +1 bottles

11111111

1111

111

11 +11 bottles

11 +1 sugar

Agriculture Greenhouse Rules and Regulations for Horticulture Club

2008-11-19T19:27:00.011-06:00

Agriculture Greenhouse Rules and Regulations for Horticulture Club

– November 15, 2008

1. Only current Hort Club members who have attended the greenhouse orientation from Jackie Bantle (Greenhouse manager) are allowed to access the Agriculture Greenhouse facility.

2.Eligible Hort Club members have access to the areas listed below during regular work hours (8:00AM – 4:30PM, Monday – Friday). The key to the north door will be located in a lock box hanging on the metal tower beside the door. The key will be removed from the lock box overnight, on weekends and holidays.

3.During regular work hours, eligible Hort Club Members are allowed to access only the following areas in the greenhouse:

a.North loading dock
b.Main Hallway and washrooms
c.Greenhouse ‘G’ (poly greenhouse)
d.West headerhouse
e.Cold Chamber #3 in west header house (i.e. vegetable storage)
f.Coffee room (beside west door to exterior)
Other areas of the greenhouse are off-limits to Hort club members except during Hort Club meetings. During scheduled meetings where Hort Club executive are present, members are allowed to access Greenhouse ‘E’ and ‘A1’ .

4.Only supplies or tools belonging to the Hort Club are to be moved, handled or used by Hort Club members. All other tools, supplies, bags, etc. are not to be disturbed. Bags, labels, pots, etc. that may look abandoned are probably being used by a researcher or grad student. These researchers expect these things to be there when they come to do their work.

5.All plant material in Greenhouse ‘G’, in the loading dock, headerhouse and other greenhouses is not to be moved or handled by Hort Club members unless it specifically belongs to the Hort Club. If any plants, strawberry fruit, grapes or other research material is moved or goes missing from the greenhouse, the Hort Club will immediately lose all access to the greenhouse.

6.To help control the spread of bugs and prevent unnecessary alarms, all greenhouse and cooler doors should be kept closed.

7.We would like to discourage plants being brought into the greenhouse from other places for propagation. However, if plants are brought into the greenhouse for propagation, they MUST be bug and disease free. Plants will be quarantined in the loading dock area for at least three days in hopes that any emerging bug or disease problems will be discovered prior to introduction into the greenhouse. Eldon must be contacted if plants have been brought to the loading dock. Any bug or disease problems will be treated with safers soap or chemical sprays.

8.We do not anticipate having to use toxic chemical sprays in the greenhouse. However, if bugs or disease reach higher than acceptable levels (as determined by greenhouse staff), measures will be taken to control the problems. The Hort club executive will be notified of any spraying that will occur. If signs are posted outside of the building or the outside of Greenhouse ‘G’ that say Do Not Enter, do not enter that facility. Typical spray times for the greenhouse are Monday and Thursday, after 3:00 pm.

9.Any problems with heat, water, insects and/or lights should be reported to Eldon Siemens or Jackie Bantle as soon as possible.

10.Eldon’s contact info: cell – 230-6899, phone – 966-8607, email: eldon.siemens@usask.ca

11.Jackie’s contact info: cell – 222-7018, phone – 966-5864, email: jackie.bantle@usask.ca

12.Although we do not expect any problems with this new initiative, it is important that members of the Horticulture club remember that it is a privilege for the Hort Club to be using the Agriculture Greenhouses. The Agriculture Greenhouses are a research facility where thousands of dollars and countless hours of time have been invested by researchers. This privilege will be withdrawn if any member of the Horticulture Club decides to be irresponsible and neglects the rules as listed above.

Jackie Bantle
Dept. of Plant Sciences
University of Saskatchewan
51 Campus Dr.
Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A8
Ph: 306-966-5864

Poinsettia Sale Volunteer

2008-11-19T19:19:00.007-06:00

Hi everyone,

We're looking for volunteers for our Poinsettia Sale on December 4 & 5. If you would like to participate please send an e-mail me with your desired time to: ttl541@mail.usask.ca

Thanks for your support

Peter Le.

Dec 4: 12pm-1pm and 1pm-2pm Jillian Hauber and Christina Huevenaars
Dec5: ....

Week in photos - Week of Nov 10

2008-11-18T21:14:00.001-06:00

Active Members -Week of Nov 10

2008-11-16T23:31:00.005-06:00

Thanks a lot to the following members for helping out !

May G.
Amalie
Courtney Thompson
Mercedes Scott
Peter Le
Danielle L.
Peter R.
Roxanne
Rachel C.

What is the cotyledon, and the first true leaf?

2008-11-16T23:12:00.004-06:00

A cotyledon is a significant part of the embryo within the seed of a plant. During the germination process, the cotyledon may become the embryonic first leaves of a seedling to begin photosynthesis. In addition, the cotyledons contain all the seed's food reserves. After using up all the nutrient reserves, the first true leaves will take over the photosynthesis to produce their own nutrients for the plant.

That's why it's not recommended to transplant the plant during the cotyledon stage, since the plant is not producing its own food. Therefore, any damage to the root system, as well as the leaf top could lead to a decrease in plant production later.

Peter Le

Things to do this week - Week of Nov 17

2008-11-16T22:56:00.013-06:00

Hi all,

There're few things that we need to do this week (Week of Nov 17)

Transplanting cucumbers
Cleaning up our flower bench in the G greenhouse. (Plants to give away)
Putting up the irrigation system
Sorting out carrots in the cooler

Transplant: The cucumbers are healthy and growing well. Most of the cucumbers have got their first true leaf, which means it's time for transplanting. In regards to the cucumbers, I need 4 volunteers to take care of these cucumbers. There will be approximately 24-30 cucumber plants.

Flowering bench: Re-organizing, tagging, putting in new soil, cleaning up our flowering bench area to make room for the bedding plants, as well as our flowering plants for next year's plant sale.

Storage: Some carrot bins in the cooler are going bad; I have taken out some rotten carrots and cleaned up some bins, but we may need to go through all of them to make sure all the bins are free of fungi.

Having said that, we will have a meeting on Thursday, November 20th at 4.30pm in the Ag-Greenhouse. Expect to spend 2-3 hours if we have more participants we may finish earlier. I'm looking forward to see more new faces.

Peter Le

Week in photos- Nov 3

2008-11-13T00:49:00.001-06:00

Active members - Week of Nov 3

2008-11-13T00:13:00.004-06:00

Member who was generous dedicating her time into the Greenhouse project (week of Nov 3)
She was sorted out tomatoes as well as rotten carrot to keep things fresh for us. Thank a lot for your time and effort.

Amalie Ask

Things to Do this week - Week of Nov 10

2008-11-09T21:08:00.006-06:00

There're a few things we need to get done this week.

Planting flowers for the plant sales next year (Winter semester).
Finish potting soil
Putting up injectors
Deciding which plants members will care for based on your preferences.

The reason for having the plant sales is we need to generate some money to support the greenhouse project. There will probably be some vegetable sales as well, but we are not sure what the yield will turn out to be, as this is our first trial.

We also need to finish potting more soil and get things ready for transplant later. The plants are germinating quite well and some of them are growing very fast, such as the cucumbers and some of the herbs. We won't do any transplanting this week, since it's too soon for cucumbers and the recommendation is to wait until the first true leaf emerges. So expect to transplant those cucumber next week (Week of Nov 17).

The layout for the greenhouse (i.e. plant allocation) is posted on the blog under "greenhouse vegetable update". Please check it out to get a general idea of what we'll be doing. If you have any questions or suggestions, drop me a line.

In addition, we need to decide which plants each member will be responsible for. There are a few concerns that this will limit the experiential learning. I feel that it would be better to become knowledgeable about one type of plant, and then teach this to the rest of the group, rather then try to learn everything individually. We can have experiential learning sharing sessions later and share what we've learned together. Furthermore, I've reserved some extra space for experimental trials as well. Hopefully, this will give everyone the opportunity to learn as much as they desire, while still keeping the workload manageable. We want to make learning fun for everyone.

We are going to have a meeting this Tuesday to finish plotting and seeding (~2hrs) from noon-2pm. The meeting must be this Tuesday because the header room (where the coolers are) will be closed to put in new flooring and will not be reopened until next Tuesday. So, please come out if you can.

If you have any suggestions, please feel free to send me an email.

Here are some photos of the plants so far

Peter Le.

Greenhouse vegetable (update)

2008-11-08T08:42:00.021-06:00

Tomatoes
Clarisse VFT (new trial)
Camelia VFT (new trial)
Conestoga (repeat trial)
Pitenza (repeat trial)
Smarty ( repeat trial)
Sugar F1 Hybrid (cherry variety)
Trust (greenhouse type, most popular variety)

Pepper
Sweet Pepper (Baselga) Yellow (new trial, greenhouse variety)
Sweet Pepper (Orangery RZ) Orange (new trial, greenhouse variety)
Sympathy (new trial, greenhouse variety)

Cucumber
Corona (previous trial- english long, greenhouse variety)
Long John (previous trial)
Mini (previous trial)
Raya (previous trial)

Zucchini
Sungreen Hybird (previous trial, some powdery mildew)

Bean
Bean (Mantra RZ) climbing slicing beans (new trial, greenhouse variety)

Lettuce
Burgia RZ ( new trial, greenhouse variety)
Panorama (previous trial, field variety works in the greenhouse)
Butter Crunch (previous trial, some Ca2+ deficiency )
Romaine (previous trial, some Ca2+ deficiency)

Herbs*
Basil Genois
Basil Italian large
Basil Purple
Catnip
Chamomile
Chervil
Chives
Coriander
Dill (Fern leaf)
Garden Cress
Lavender
Lemon balm
Moonset
Oregano
Parsley
Rosalia (Green)
Rosemary
Sage
Spearmint
Sweet Basil
Sweet Marjoram
Swisschard
Thyme
Watercress

Members interested in:

Group 1: Herb growers - Dannelle Levesque, May Guan
Group 2: Pepper growers - Brittany McNally
Group 3: Tomato growers - Colin Kindrachuk
Group 4: Cucumber growers - Nathalie Brunet, Mercedes Scott, Janell Healy, Peter Le.
Extra: Lettuce growers - Peter Le

Week in photos - Oct 27

2008-11-02T19:08:00.001-06:00

Active members - Week of Oct 27

2008-11-02T18:59:00.004-06:00

List of members who was generous dedicating their time into the Greenhouse project.

Brittany McNally
Christina Nguyen
Danielle Levesque
Hanny Elsadr
Hasan Alghouti
Javell Healey
Mandy Lajeunesse
Mercedes Scott
Mohammer Alghouti
Nathalie Brunet
Peter Le
Peter Reimer
Roxanne Perrault

Plant propagation

2008-11-02T13:45:00.005-06:00

What is plant propagation?

Plant propagation is the process of artificially or naturally propagating (distributing or spreading) plants (Wikipedia)

For more information please check on the Power Point Slide from Dr Karen Tanino and Dr Bob Bors. Plant Propagation

Hortclub surveys

2008-11-02T12:10:00.011-06:00

Technical support:

Please don't click on the "Other?" tab, it will cause an error on your vote. Either than that, everything is fine.

Please spend sometime on this survey, we want to hear from you.

Peter Le.

Free Online Polls

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Active members - Week of Oct 20

2008-10-27T23:38:00.011-06:00

List of members who was generous putting their time into the Greenhouse project.

HortClub members

Angela Hill
Brittany Mcnally
Chelsea Tomcala
Christina Huvenaars
Christina Nguyen
Danielle Levesque
Dr Karen Tanino
Hanny Elsadr
Jamie and Steffen Bertelsen
Kaleigh Elian
Katie Senn
May Xiu Juan Guan
Mercedes Scott
Nathalie Brunet
Peter Le
Peter Reimer

Guest members from the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition.

Michelle Hammell
Shawn Smith

If i've missed anyone, please let me know (i'm sure there are more but i can't remember)

Week in photos - Oct 20

2008-10-26T23:26:00.001-06:00

Greenhouse Members - 2008

2008-10-25T22:29:00.014-06:00

Greetings from your Greenhouse Manager,

So far we have 31 members who're interested in the Greenhouse project. The following is a list of the members:

Alison Lackie

Amalie Ask

Brittany McNally

Carrie T

Christina Huvenaars

Christina Nguyen

Daniel Gralian

Danielle Levesque

Dannelle Messer

Dr Karen Tanino & Nair.N

Hanny Elsadr & Angela Nierop

Hasan Alghouti & Sahar Alghouti

Janell Healey

Julie Deugau

Kaila Hamilton

Kaleigh Elian

Katie Senn

Mandy Lajeunesse

May Guan

Mercedes Scott

Michelle Hammell

Nathalie Brunet

Peter Le

Peter Reimer

Rachel Buhler

Rachel Claassen

Sahar Alghouti

Steffen Bertelsen & JamieTaylor

Thea Kristiansen

If I've missed anyone, please let me know.

Greenhouse project layout.

2008-10-25T21:40:00.015-06:00

The greenhouse project will be divided into 4 rows.

Row 1: Which is closest to the flood floor will be allocated for herbs and HortClub members' garden or experimental garden.

Row 2: Cultivation of sweet pepper. (60 plants)

Varieties: Sweet bell peppers: green, red, yellow and orange.

Transplanting : The age of the plant to be transplanted is an important matter. Transplant a young plant with a well developed root system. An old plant is not advised. It will turn into a generative stage too early. Do not allow the plant to set fruit at an early stage. The aim is to create a "factory" first. Therefore you need a sturdy plant with a well developed root system in order to ensure sufficient vegetative development. After that the plant will be able to produce a good quantity of well developed fruits. A badly developed root system can cause blossom end rot.

Temperature: Sweet pepper is far more sensitive to temperature and moisture extremes than many other crops. After transplanting, the optimum temperature is approximately 23o C by day and 18-21o C at night.

Plant density : The number of shoots per m2 determines the plant density. Depending on the date of transplanting and length of the cultivation, 6 - 7 stems per m2 is advised. This means 3 (three) plants per m2 for the 2-stem system. For our experiment, there will probably be 60 plants per double row.

Yield:

Row 3: Cultivation of tomato (72 plants)

Varieties: Trust, Clarisse VFT, Camelia VFT, Sugar F1 Hybird Pitenza, Smarty, Conestoga.

Set up:

Tomato plants will be set up in a double rows system with all plants on one side of the double rows leaning over and trained in the same direction along that row. All the plants on the other side of the double rows will be trained upwards and leaning forward.

Overhead and side views of the double row system for tomato plants. Every plant in each side of the double row is trained in the same direction along the length of the row. Once plants reach the end of the row they are moved forward.

Temperature: Temperature should never dip below 18oC night or day or plants will not set fruit properly, and those that manage to set will provide poor quality fruits. Day temperature should be maintained around 23-26oC and night temperature about 19-20oC. Wider difference in day and night temperatures could be beneficial for fruit set, but also risky.

Plant density: Determining the plant density is a very important component of the greenhouse preparation and is directly linked with final yield. For the best results, each plant should be designated an area of 4 sq.ft. For our allocated area, there will probably be 72 plants per double row.

Yield: A good grower, who keeps the plants warm, fertilized, and properly pollinated, should expect 7-10 lbs or 4 kg per plant over a 4-month harvest period. This equals to 31.5 lbs/week. 20 -25lbs will be exclusively reserved for us (Greenhouse members), and the rest will be shared with the other HortClub members.

Row 4: Cultivation of cucumber (30-40 plants) , bean and zucchini (5-10 each)

Variety: Corona

Set up:

The cucumber set up will be a little different from the tomato set up. Every plant on each side of the double row will be trained in the same direction along the length of the row. Once plants reach the end of the row they are trained around and down the other side of the row.

Temperature: For cucumbers, temperatures should be kept between 23-25oC during the day and 20-21oC at night until the first picking. Exceeding the maximum temperatures can be used to cause some flower abortion and maintain the fruit-vine balance.

Plant density: Six to nine square feet of space per plant is required, depending on the variety and cropping system.

Yield: With good management, greenhouse cucumbers will produce from 20 to 30 pounds of fruit per plant over a 4-month harvest period, which equals to 37.5- 50 lbs/week.

Why leaves turn colour in autumn.

2008-10-24T23:06:00.004-06:00

The beautiful colours of the leaves in September and October are
triggered by shortening days and lower temperatures. The green
chlorophyll is degraded to reveal the yellow, red and orange colours
that were masked by the overpowering green chlorophyll during the
summer season.

In addition, there are two parts to photosynthesis: light-dependent
and light-independent. When the temperatures turn cooler, the
light-independent part of photosynthesis slows down (carbon fixation
portion which is tightly controlled by enzymes---very sensitive to
changes in temperature). However, the light-dependent portion does not
slow down to the same extent. The light-dependent portion continues to
receive light (photons) which split water to produce electrons which
drive the photosystems of the light-dependent portion of
photosynthesis. Since the light-dependent portion flows into the
light-independent portion, there is a back-log created when the
light-independent portion slows down. This back-log causes excess
electrons which induce free radical formation in the light-dependent
portion. In order to protect itself, the leaf synthesizes anthocyanins
(red pigments) which absorb the free radicals (same pigments in red
wine and red fruits). In addition, the anthocyanins are also located in
the upper epidermal layers and essentially serve as a sun block to
reduce excess photons from entering the leaf. In this way, the reduced
amount of light received will be in more balance with the reduced level
of activity in the light-independent portion of photosynthesis and the
number of free radicals will also decrease.

By Dr Karen Tanino

Week in photos - Oct 13

2008-10-20T22:46:00.001-06:00

Fertilizer 101

2008-10-20T11:12:00.010-06:00

What The Numbers Mean

On a package of fertilizer you will find three or four numbers separated by hyphens.

The first numbers the percentage of nitrogen (N), second number phosphorus (P), third numbers potassium (K), and last number indicate sulfur (S).

Macronutrients vs Micronutrients

Those main nutrients are called “Macro-nutrients”, and a "complete" fertilizer must contain nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

In addition, there’re trace elements which also importance as well : iron, zinc, copper, calcium, manganese and magnesium which are necessary for plants to complete there life cycle so we call it “ Micro-nutrients”

What they do

Nitrogen

Nitrogen is required for the green and leafy vegetative growth of plants. All plants need nitrogen to make amino acids, protein and DNA. Nitrogen fertilizer is often synthesized using the Haber-Bosch process, which produces ammonia. Deficiency symptoms of nitrogen are an overall pale yellow color of leaves and dwarfed or stunted plants

Nitrogen is easily leached down through the soil below the roots and is not available to the plant so is the element most often lacking and needing replacement. In addition, too much nitrogen can delay flowering, fruiting and seed set.

Do you know that most of the nitrogen on Earth is in the atmosphere and approximately 80% of the molecules in Earth’s atmosphere are made of two nitrogen atoms bonded together (N2)

Phosphorus

Phosphorus promotes root growth, root branching, stem growth, flowering, fruiting, seed formation and maturation. Phosphorus is involved in photosynthesis, seed formation, and numerous other plant functions. Ammonia can be added to the super phosphoric acid to create liquid or dry materials containing both nitrogen (N) and (P), and the liquid 10-34-0 is the most common product. Deficiency symptoms are indicated by a red or purplish tinge to steams and foliage. Phosphorus is stable and non-mobile element in the soil so leaching is not a problem.

Potassium

Potassium enables the plant to withstand stress such as drought, cold, heat, and disease. It also stimulates flower color and promotes tuber formation and a strong root system. Deficiency symptoms are indicated when the leaves appear dry and scorched on the edges and have irregular yellowing.