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THECOMMERCIAL GREENHOUSEGROWER • MARCH 2017
CONTENTS
News
4-6
PropagationWorkshop
7-8
ScreenUse Increasing
9-11
IPM Flowers
12-16
IPMMachinery
18-21
HTAConference
22-23
BPOAConference
24
SaturnBioponics
24-26
Grower Profile
27-28
ResearchDiary
29
Classified
30-31
Front cover - Pot lily Tiny Invader from
WeteringPotlilium • See page 12
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MARCH 2017 •
Awide selection
of youngplants
• CupressusWilma
• Sundaville
• Patioplants andherbs
• Lavandula
• Senetti
• Euphorbiamilii
• Ficus varieties
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COMMENT
Fresh produce has been in the news recently, as severeweather caused
problems in Europe leaving supermarkets and other retailers very short of
supply and prices rocketing as a result. Courgetteswas the cropmainly
affected, but also spinach, lettuces, aubergines and peppers.
According to Fraser McKevitt of research specialists, KantarWorldpanel,
759,000 fewer shoppers bought courgettes in January - a 31%drop in
spending compared to the samemonth last year; and sales of spinach fell by
12%.
What have these fewwinter months of discontent taught us? The first has
to be that nomatter where you are growing fresh produce in theworld, no
supplier is ever going towin the fight against theweather.
But secondly, canwe bemore prepared? Possibly not in this case. A lot of
these crops are out of season in theUK and growers and suppliers rely on
crops grown on the continent to supply the retailers during thewinter months.
At the same time however, it must be frustrating for growers not to be able to
step in and take advantage of situations like this and supplymoreUK grown
produce. This brings into consideration the type of varieties that we can
produce towithstand harsher winter conditions andmore research is surely
needed onwhether extending the season further is possible in some cases.
Perhaps that researchmoney also needs to go into re-examiningwhat we can
grow under glass andprotection on a large scale. Glasshouses have been
used in theUKmainly to grow salad crops. But with awealth of current and
emerging technology at our disposal, shouldwe not be considering growing
more vegetable crops thisway, where the conditions the crops experience
out in the field can be replicated in the glasshouse using themost advanced
climate control systems?
Past experiencewill tell you that there aremany reasons as towhy this is not
possible, including planning laws and regulations. But it shouldmake us at
least evaluate how our crops can be grown in different ways in the future.
Vertical farming is in its early days in theUK, but its rapid development will
provide uswith another way of growing our produce in the not too distant
future.
Surely somewhere there is an answer to combatting short supply problems
whether this is abroad or during theUK season. Perhaps technology and
innovationwill enable us to think differently about these sorts of problems and
solve some of them.
