June 2020 - 15

DUETS
and I have been sounding this
alarm for some time. Tell us more
about your experience.
Michelle: I work primarily with
Figure 1. Trial of pak choi showing traditional cultivar on left and compact
cultivar on right.
using a flood and drain system.
Depending on the plug tray density
choosing one cultivar over the
other has consequences in terms
of disease control, crop time and
harvest quality. Another message
you have for growers focuses on
the impact seed quality has on
their day to day production and
operational profitability. What is
the challenge you see growers
wrestling with?
Michelle: I work with a lot of
reputable seed companies. These
companies follow legal requirements
for seed in the United States. When
you purchase seed, they come in
a bag with a seed tag. That tag is
regulated by the Federal Seed Act.
It requires that companies provide
accurate information about the kind
of seed, the lot number, the purity,
the germination rate, the amount
of hard seed, inert seed, weed seed
and when the seed was tested. If
the information provided is not
accurate, then the grower has
legal ramifications.
Seeds are an important input into
any farming system. They are what
turn into the plants you sell. Highquality
seeds will result in highquality
plants. Low-quality seeds
could result in minor problems, like
lower quality produce. But there is
also risk of serious problems.
Seeds can carry and transmit
diseases and pathogens. They can
lower the quality of produce that
comes from your farm, but they
can also have longer lasting and
more expensive impacts. Infected
seed could contaminate an entire
system. The seed could bring a
disease into your operation, but if
it is mechanically transmitted as
well, you could keep re-infecting
the operation with contaminated
equipment. This could require
shutting down the entire operation
and disinfecting it before starting
over with new seeds.
Also, when you purchase seed
online from an unfamiliar company
and you don't know the source
you don't know where the seed is
coming from. It may or may not
meet the legal requirements spelled
out in the Federal Seed Act.
Peter: You raise several valid points
that are not tied to any particular
production system. Agronomic
crops, vegetable crops, outdoor,
greenhouse, indoor vertical farm ...
as far as seed quality goes, most of
the growers reading this understand
that we get what we pay for.
You mentioned above that you
work with reputable seed companies.
Traditional greenhouse growers,
growers I've worked with for many
years, for the most part get what
you're saying. I'm finding a new
group of growers, those entering
CEA production with no horticultural
experience, who are vulnerable to
the pitfalls we're discussing.
Next, I understand one of your
recurring observations is poor
design and execution of grower
trials. This topic hits close to home
for me, several of my colleagues
controlled environment agriculture,
more specifically with vertical
farmers that operate plant factories
that mostly grow leafy greens. They
are largely focused on the sensors
and the technology that make these
operations run. With the right tools,
many think that farming can be
automated, especially when the
environment is controlled.
I was drawn to this space
because of my seed background
and the fact that the environments
are fixed. If nature and nurture
both affect the final product that
comes out of these systems and the
nurture (the environment) is fixed,
then the power of nature (genetics)
is much higher. By helping farmers
pick the right genetics the growers
can obtain higher yields or better
produce at harvest.
Peter: I'm with you but need
to share an observation. I've
been involved with several CEA
projects in recent years, all led
by individuals coming from the
tech sector you cite. To date, I've
been disappointed by their lack
of appreciation for general crop
culture, daily farm management
and basic plant physiology.
What I'm saying is that the
nurture side of the equation, in
my experience, extends beyond
just the environment to include
its management as well. I am
confident that those who embrace
the plant as well as tech will play
key roles in leading us into the
future. Proceed, how are you
helping your growers understand
trial design and execution?
Michelle: To capitalize on the fixed
environment, you need to run variety
trials to figure out what works and
what doesn't. Before you can start the
trials, growers must understand their
systems. They should ask: how far
apart are the trays, is it a deep-water
culture or an NFT channel, how much
blue light is there, and what is the
temperature inside? All of these will
impact what can grow. Then you need
to decide what the most important
characteristics are. Do you want
to maximize yield? Do you want to
maximize flavor? Do you want to
harvest as quickly as possible?
As growers answer these
questions, they can try different
seeds and see how they perform in
the system. Good data is key. What
was the germination rate? How long
did germination take? What did the
leaves look like? How tall did the
plants grow? Without setting goals
and collecting data, it's impossible
to objectively compare different
varieties. The beauty of an indoor
system is the amount of control
you have. Many farmers don't
leverage this by running controlled
experiments and collecting data to
feed into future trials. Every detail
that you can capture is helpful.
For example, growers report that
growing kale on the bottom racks
and basil on the top has higher
yields than a full stack of either crop.
Peter: Amen to a grower's version
of the scientific method. Ask good
questions, run a good, controlled
trial, collect good data and make
informed decisions that will
contribute to profitability. Michelle,
thanks again for spending this time
with us.
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GREENHOUSE PRODUCT NEWS 15
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June 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of June 2020
