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Grey mould, caused by Botrytis cinerea and other Botrytis spp., is a major cause of fruit rot in strawberries and other fruit crops worldwide. Repeated fungicide applications are essential in order to secure harvests. However, resistance to all currently registered single-site fungicides is widespread. The rising importance of strains with multiple resistance to most or all fungicides is of particular concern. These strains may be introduced into fields via contaminated nursery plants and/or by immigration from adjacent plots. On the basis of research conducted in northern German and Danish strawberry production, a concept to manage fungicide resistance under northern European conditions has been developed and put into regional strawberry production practice. This principally includes the testing of nursery plants for fungicide-resistant Botrytis strains prior to planting; the restricted and specific use of fungicides at flowering in the production fields, taking account of the resistance spectrum within the local Botrytis population; and crop sanitation measures such as the removal of rotting fruits at the beginning of harvest. Further options such as protected cultivation, reduced fertilisation and biological control are also discussed. The practical implementation of such a strategy in northern Germany and Denmark has been shown to reduce the occurrence of multi-resistant strains to a tolerable steady-state level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Untreated recycled irrigation water has been shown to introduce and spread plant pathogens such as Pythium and Phytophthora in commercial nurseries. Nevertheless, few nurseries currently treat their recycled irrigation water. Instead, nurseries use prophylactic pesticides to control the spread of plant pathogens, which increases costs and promotes the growth of resistant pathogens. Of interest to California is the spread of Phytopthora ramorum, causal agent of Sudden Oak Death (SOD), responsible for the death of tens of thousands of trees in California and Oregon. This study investigated the use of a novel UV disinfection system to inactivate P. ramorum and other microbial contaminants at the National Ornamental Research Site at the Dominican University of California (NORS-DUC). In this system, the UV lamps do not come in contact with the water and hence remain free of the ‘lamp fouling’ problem. Tests on waters having the same characteristics as run-off from commercial nurseries showed a minimum of 3.7 log removal of bacterial species, 91.7% reduction of fungal counts, and 100% inactivation of the P. ramorum in the effluent. Treating the run-off from plant nurseries limits the spread of plant pathogens and enables the onsite re-use of the run-off.

Because of the high costs and environmental impacts of peat and chemical fertilizers, the search for sustainable alternatives is increasing. Posidonia-based compost (C) has been widely tested as a growing media, while the combination with decontaminated dredged sediments (S) has only recently been studied. Moreover, little information is available on the relationship between plants and growing media. In this work, the suitability of growing media (CS) composed of 100% C, 70% C + 30% S and 30% C + 70% S were investigated compared to peat, for ornamental plants (Elaeagnus macrophylla, Photinia × fraseri and Viburnum tinus). Plant growth, physiological, nutritional and antioxidant responses were also investigated. The CS were compliant with current legislation on growing media. The Cu (+60%; +70%), Mg (+11%; +23%) and Ca (+66%; +72%) concentrations were higher in CS with 30% and 70% of S, respectively, than peat. The plants growing in CS had lower antioxidant activities than those on peat, suggesting a better plant tolerance to abiotic stress. In conclusion, the use of CS growing media, especially those with 30% and 70% of S, can be a valuable strategy to replace peat and reduce the application of fertilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lateral roots (LRs) are critical for absorbing water, minerals, and nutrients. Nitrate is a vital signaling molecule for regulating LR growth. However, understanding how nitrate interacts with endogenous hormones and genes to coordinate LR development is a bottleneck. In this study, B9 apple rootstock nursery plants were cultured hydroponically and treated with different nitrate treatments (Control; T1, 2.25 mM L−1; T2, 9 mM L−1; T3, 18 mM L−1; T4, 36 mM L−1; and T5, 72 mM L−1), where T5 outperformed the other treatments. Nursery plants were subsequently treated with control and T5 to explore the underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms by which nitrate promoted LR growth. Plant height, stem diameter, root morphological parameters, endogenous hormones, and gene expression levels were measured. Results showed that T5 promoted LR growth by increasing the endogenous contents of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and gibberellic acid (GA), and by decreasing the contents of abscisic acid (ABA), jasmonic acid (JA), and zeatin riboside (ZR) at most time points. Furthermore, the relative expression levels of nitrate transporter genes were upregulated in the control group, and nitrate assimilation genes were upregulated in T5 nursery plants at various time points. In addition, the transcript abundances of auxin-related genes were higher in T5 nursery plants, which increased auxin contents. MdSHR, MdGATA1, and MdSCR1 expressions were induced, hence increasing LR growth. In contrast, higher auxin content raised MdWOX11 expression, which enhanced the MdLBD16 and MdLBD29 expression levels, thus prompting the transcripts of cell cycle-related genes: MdCYCD1;1 and MdCYCP4;1. Overall, the changes in hormonal content and gene expression levels followed superior LR growth by T5.

There have been significantly increased reports of finding invasive quarantine pests with increasing import plants into Korea. Moreover, the efficacy and work safety issues have been reported regarding use of methyl bromide (MeBr) for fumigation of imported nursery plants. For replacement of MeBr use on imported plants, a new technology of using liquid ethyl formate has been registered in South Korea as FumateTM. The technology involved to mix ethyl format with nitrogen gas to form non-flamable ethyl format formulation. It has been evaluated on various imported plants. The FumateTM is recently developed and commercialized in Republic of Korea and Australia for quarantine treatments on fresh fruits, grains etc. Fumigation with FumateTM offers environmental-friendly and practically safe use of liquid ethyl formate. We have extended the use of liquid EF application technology to quarantine treatment of imported nursery plants.

There are two primary forms of plant propagation: sexual and asexual. In nature, propagation of plants most often involves sexual reproduction, and this form is still used in several species. Over the years, horticulturists have developed asexual propagation methods that use vegetative plant parts. Innovation in plant propagation has supported breeding programs and allowed the production of high-quality nursery plants with the same genetic characteristics of the mother plant, and free of diseases or pests. The purpose of this Special Issue, "Innovation in Propagation of Fruit, Vegetable and Ornamental Plants", was to present state-of-the-art techniques recently developed by researchers worldwide. The Special Issue has brought together some of the latest research results of new techniques in plant propagation in nine original papers, which deal with a wide range of research activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two primary forms of plant propagation: sexual and asexual. In nature, propagation of plants most often involves sexual reproduction, and this form is still used in several species. Over the years, horticulturists have developed asexual propagation methods that use vegetative plant parts. Innovation in plant propagation has supported breeding programs and allowed the production of high-quality nursery plants with the same genetic characteristics of the mother plant, and free of diseases or pests. The purpose of this Special Issue, “Innovation in Propagation of Fruit, Vegetable and Ornamental Plants”, was to present state-of-the-art techniques recently developed by researchers worldwide. The Special Issue has brought together some of the latest research results of new techniques in plant propagation in nine original papers, which deal with a wide range of research activities.

The growth of Eucalyptus pellita in forestry plantations requires attention to water requirements, especially in the initial growth phase from seedling to field-ready plant. In this study, actual evapotranspiration (ETa), crop coefficient (Kc), and the irrigation requirement of E. pellita were assessed during the nursery growth phase (day 40−142). The experimental set-up included lysimeters with different treatments in terms of plants, drainage, and soil conditions. Plant growth and water balance were monitored during June September 2018 in an open nursery area in Riau, Indonesia. ETa was determined by the water balance lysimeter method and potential (reference) evapotranspiration (ETo) was extracted based on the Penman-Monteith method (FAO/56). The results showed that the average Kc value for E. pellita at age 40−142 days is 0.79, which exceeds that reported for E. grandis. The recommended irrigation requirement varies depending on precipitation, from 70 mL/plant/day with no rainfall to zero at precipitation of >30 mm/day. This is the first study to assess water use in E. pellita growing in pots during the nursery phase, which provides guidance on irrigation requirements during their initial growth phase.

Separate experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of plant canopy shape and presence of flowers on counting accuracy of container-grown plants. Images were taken at 12 m above the ground. Two species of juniper (Juniperus chinensis L. 'Sea Green' and Juniperus horizontalis Moench 'Plumosa Compacta') were selected to evaluate plant shape and Coral Drift ® rose (Rosa sp. 'Meidrifora') was used to evaluate the presence of flowers on plant count. Counting algorithms were trained using Feature Analyst (FA). Total counting error, false positives and unidentified plants were reported. There was no difference between all variables measured when an algorithm trained with an image displaying regular or irregular plant canopy shape was applied to images displaying both plant canopy shapes even though the canopy shape of 'Sea Green' is less compact than 'Plumosa Compacta'. There was a significant difference in all variables measured between images of flowering and non-flowering plants when non-flowering 'samples' were used the train the counting algorithm in FA; total counting errors and unidentified plants was greater for flowering plants. In this specific case, applying an algorithm that did not include a training set displaying flowers, resulted in a less accurate count. Algorithms developed using FA appears to be fairly robust under these conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The occurrence of Phaeomoniella chlamydospora was investigated during vine propagation in an Italian nursery, and combined hot water (HWT) and cyproconazole treatments were carried out to limit the spread of the fungus in nursery vines. In the three-year period 2005-2007, cutting and graft samples (scion cv. Sangiovese, rootstock cv. 140Ru in 2005 and 1103P in 2006-2007) were taken during propagation at several infection risk stages, and the occurrence of P. chlamydospora was assessed by nested PCR. In 2005 and 2006, cuttings from esca-symptomatic grapevines (scion cv. Sauvignon blanc, rootstock cv. 140Ru in 2005 and 1103P in 2006) were treated at different stages of the propagation process. In 2007, artificially infected 1103P cuttings were treated with HWT and cyproconazole after being inoculated with P. chlamydospora, and the fungus was detected by isolation on agar medium. The effect of HWT on the growth of 1103P, 779P, Sangiovese and Cabernet franc cuttings was also assessed. Despite extended wood discoloration, P. chlamydospora was scarce in nursery vines during the three-year period. The contamination of planting material may have resulted from already infected mother plants (0.0 to 6.7% of infected cuttings) or may have started during the propagation, particularly after grafting (0.0 to 23.3% of infected grafts). Canes from esca-diseased mother plants were always infected, but the incidence of infection of the cuttings varied widely (about 30% in 2005, from 1.9 to 4.1% in the other years). However, no final conclusions could be drawn about the stage or stages at which the nursery vines mainly became infected, because the infection frequencies detected in the propagation process were too low and irregular. As regards control of P. chlamydospora, HWT of cuttings performed before or after cold storage influenced plant growth, depending on both the cultivar and the growing conditions, but HWT was harmful to callused graftlings. Natural contamination of nursery material in 2005 and 2006 was insufficient to allow the effectiveness of treatments to be assessed. In 2007, HWT and cyproconzole alone did not reduce the percentage of infection in artificially inoculated cuttings. Only cyproconazole immediately followed by HWT significantly reduced the number of infected cuttings, but this procedure did not eradicate the pathogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The differential grasshopper, Melanoplus differentialis (Thomas) (Orthoptera: Acrididae), frequently migrates from highway rights-of-way, pastures, and harvested fields to feed in urban/suburban landscapes and retail/wholesale nurseries across the southern and southwestern U.S.A., as these areas dry down during hot dry summers. Nine selected turfgrasses and 15 species of landscape plants were evaluated for their susceptibility or resistance to this grasshopper. Grasshoppers were collected from stands of Johnsongrass, Sorghum halepense , which was used as a standard host for comparison in both experiments. Based on feeding damage, number of grasshopper fecal pellets produced, and their dry weight, Zoysia matrella cv. 'Cavalier' was the least preferred grass followed by Buchloe dactyloides cv. 'Prairie' and Z. japonica cv. 'Meyer'. Festuca arundinacea was significantly the most preferred host and sustained the most feeding damage, followed by Poa pratensis × P. arachniferacv. 'Reveille' and 2 Cynodon spp. cultivars, 'Tifway' and 'Common'. Among the landscape plants, Hibiscus moscheutos cv. 'Flare', Petunia violacea cv. 'VIP', Phlox paniculata cv. 'John Fanick', Tecoma stans cv. 'Gold Star', and Campsis grandiflora were the least damaged or most resistant.Plumbago auriculata cv. 'Hullabaloo', Glandularia hybrid cv. 'Blue Princess', Canna × generalis, Johnsongrass, and Cortaderia selloanacv. 'Pumila' sustained the most damage. Based on the number of fecal pellets produced and their weights, Canna × generalis and Glandularia hybrid cv. 'Blue Princess' were the most preferred landscape plants tested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the suitability of agricultural and municipal organic wastes as growing media components for ornamental plants. Nine growing media prepared by mixing the main components of peat (P), hazelnut husk (H) and maize straw (M) with the fertilizer sources of municipal solid waste compost (C), bio-solid (B) and poultry manure (Pm) were compared against soil-based (C1) and peat-based (C2) controls. The suitability of such mixtures for use in soilless media was evaluated using their physico-chemical characteristics. To investigate the impact of mixtures on plant growth, two different pot experiments, including the plants of ligustrum (Ligustrum lucidum) and cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa), were conducted for two years. Physical and physico-chemical properties of mixture indicated that peat and soil were successfully replaced with hazelnut husk, maize straw, MSW-compost, bio-solid and poultry manure. The effect of fertilizer additives on plant growth was more pronounced than that of the main components. Therefore, among the present mixtures, the most suitable one for ligustrum was the mixture containing poultry manure, whereas for cypress was bio-solid, regardless of the main components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonindigenous freshwater species cause large ecological and economic impacts in Great Britain. In response the government is in the process of implementing a broad, new nonindigenous species strategy. We assembled a list of all nonindigenous freshwater species that are or were established in Great Britain, their date of first record, and their vector of introduction. This list provides a baseline against which the success of new policies can be assessed. Because the biota of Great Britain has been well recorded, our results provide a highly resolved case study of the vectors and drivers of species transport and establishment. A total of 117 nonindigenous freshwater species are currently established in Great Britain; a further 17 species were once established but are now extirpated. Between 1800 and 2000 the number of established species increased at an accelerating rate, and this increase correlated with the growth in human population and gross domestic product. The construction of large reservoirs in Great Britain occurred over a short period and overlapped high rates of new species establishment, indicating that habitat modification may have been an important driver of establishment. Nonindigenous species now account for 24% of fish, 12% of plant, 54% of amphibian, and 88% of decapod crustacean freshwater species richness in Great Britain. The ornamental trades have been responsible for the greatest percentages of intentionally (73%) and unintentionally (34%) introduced species that have become established. Shipping and aquaculture have also been strong vectors. These vectors should be prioritized for management within the new nonindigenous species strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A garden center exit survey examining consumers' purchasing habits of environmental horticulture products was conducted in Florida in 2002. Nine hundred and ten surveys were completed with required information on why a particular store was chosen for shopping, availability of planned purchase items, and whether or not the final purchase matched the intentions of the buyer. The category of convenience/location was the major reason for shopping at a particular store. Other categories included price, quality, service, information, and other. This is EDIS document FE473, a publication of the Department of Food and Resource Economics, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, IFAS, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. Published March 2004. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe473

Paulownia species are fast growing trees native to China, which are being grown in managed plantings in several European countries for the production of wood and biomasses. In 2018, wilting, stunting, leaf yellowing, and collapse, as a consequence of root and crown rot, were observed in around 40% of trees of a 2-year-old planting of Paulownia elongata × P. fortunei in Calabria (Southern Italy). Two species of Phytophthora were consistently recovered from roots, basal stem bark, and rhizosphere soil of symptomatic trees and were identified as Ph. nicotianae and Ph. palmivora on the basis of both morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analysis of rDNA ITS sequences. Koch's postulates were fulfilled by reproducing the symptoms on potted paulownia saplings transplanted into infested soil or stem-inoculated by wounding. Both Phytophthora species were pathogenic and caused root rot and stem cankers. Even though P. palmivora was the only species recovered from roots of naturally infected plants, in pathogenicity tests through infested soil P. nicotianae was more virulent. This is the first report of Phytophthora root and crown rot of a Paulownia species in Europe. Strategies to prevent this emerging disease include the use of healthy nursery plants, choice of well-drained soils for new plantations, and proper irrigation management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigations were conducted in the greenhouse of the Faculty of Agriculture with the aim of studying the influence of biostimulators on the quality of medicinal, aromatic and herb nursery plants. The nursery plants of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.), cone flower (Echinacea angustifolia D.C.), lavender (Lavandula angustifolia Mill.), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) i marjoram (Majorana hortensis L.) were grown in polystyrene containers (Speedling system) 76 cm³ in size. The first part of the experiment was focused on the effect of the natural biostimulator Viva (3 ml/1) and Megafol (1.5 ml/1) on the quality of basil, lemon balm and cone flower nursery plants. The second part of the study encompassed the influence of different Viva biostimulator rates (0 - control, 1, 2, 3, 4 ml/1) on the quality of lavender, rosemary and marjoram nursery plants. Viva soil biostimulator and Megafol leaf biostimulators were added during the production of nursery plants at 10-day intervals. Based on the results obtained, a positive effect of natural biostimulator (Viva and Megafol) use was noted in the production of basil, garden balm and cone flower nursery plants. In addition, the use of different Viva biostimulator rates in the production of lavender, rosemary and marjoram nursery plants showed positive influence. The highest Viva biostimulator rate (4 ml/1) showed the most favourable effect on lavender and marjoram nursery plant quality. In case of rosemary nursery plants the rate of 3 ml/1 was the most favourable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A garden center exit survey examining consumer purchasing habits of environmental horticulture products was conducted in Florida in 2002. A total of 910 surveys were completed with information on why a particular store was chosen for shopping, the items planned for purchase and whether or not the final purchase matched the intentions of the buyer. Convenience/location was the most important reason lot shopping at a particular store, followed by price, quality, service, information and miscellaneous other reasons. Most respondents were shopping for non-plant (hardgood) items, but when shopping for plants, flowering plants for the outdoors were the most sought after. Seasonal shopping habits were identified with nearly every respondent shopping at least once during the spring and fewer respondents shopping at least once during each of the other seasons. Information was also collected on gender, age. education level, and annual income of respondents, as well as location and type of store (chain or independent!. Respondents who reported having college level education, an annual income greater than $50,000 or were shopping at an independent garden center, also indicated convenience/location as their primary reason for selecting a particular garden center; however, unlike other respondents, price was not their second reason for shopping at a particular store. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A leach collection unit (LCU) was assembled to capture all leachate draining from a nursery container. An injection molded 2.8-L nursery container was plastic welded into the lid of a 7.6-L black plastic collection bucket so that the bottom 2.5 cm of the nursery container protruded through the lid. The LCU was designed to track total N release from CRFs without confounding effects of plant uptake or N immobilization. Total N released between any two sampling periods is determined by multiplying the N concentration in a leachate subsample × total leachate volume. The LCU were placed in a container nursery area with overhead irrigation. LCU were thoroughly leached before sampling the leach solution. To study the effects of substrate on N leach rates, Osmocote 18.0N-2.6P-9.9K (8 to 9 months 21 °C) was incorporated at 1.8 kg N/m³ using a locally available, bark-based substrate or medium-grade quartz sand. The experiment was conducted at Scotts Research locations in Apopka, Fla., and Marysville, Ohio. Osmocote incorporated into either a bark-based substrate or sand resulted in similar N release profiles. Although substrate did not affect N leach rate, quartz sand was recommended as the substrate in the leach collection system for polymer-coated CRFs. Quartz sand is chemically and biologically inert, does not immobilize nutrients and has low ion exchange capacity compared to bark-based potting substrates. More than 90% of the total nitrogen applied from Osmocote was recovered from leachate and unreleased N in fertilizer granules. This research has demonstrated the leach collection system as a reliable means to quantify nitrogen release rate of a polymercoated CRF under nursery conditions. The LCU, when used with a crop plant, allows nutrient budget and nutrient uptake efficiency to be determined for CRFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth of Eucalyptus pellita in forestry plantations requires attention to water requirements, especially in the initial growth phase from seedling to field-ready plant. In this study, actual evapotranspiration (ETa), crop coefficient (Kc), and the irrigation requirement of E. pellita were assessed during the nursery growth phase (day 40–142). The experimental set-up included lysimeters with different treatments in terms of plants, drainage, and soil conditions. Plant growth and water balance were monitored during June September 2018 in an open nursery area in Riau, Indonesia. ETa was determined by the water balance lysimeter method and potential (reference) evapotranspiration (ETo) was extracted based on the Penman-Monteith method (FAO/56). The results showed that the average Kc value for E. pellita at age 40–142 days is 0.79, which exceeds that reported for E. grandis. The recommended irrigation requirement varies depending on precipitation, from 70 mL/plant/day with no rainfall to zero at precipitation of >30 mm/day. This is the first study to assess water use in E. pellita growing in pots during the nursery phase, which provides guidance on irrigation requirements during their initial growth phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No presente trabalho foi estudada a morfologia dos frutos, sementes e plântulas de cinco espécies de Clusiaceae presentes em vegetação de restinga do estado do Rio de Janeiro. Os frutos das espécies estudadas apresentam características ligadas à zoocoria (Clusia fluminensis, C. lanceolata, C. criuva e Garcinia brasiliensis) e à anemocoria (Kielmeyera membranacea). As sementes recém-coletadas apresentam altas taxas de germinação: C. fluminensis (100%), C. lanceolata (100%), C. criuva (99,2%), G. brasiliensis (90,45%) e K. membranacea (91%). A germinação fanerocotiledonar foi registrada em C. fluminensis, C. lanceolata, C. criuva e K. membranacea e criptocotiledonar em G. brasiliensis. Plântulas de espécies de Clusia são frequentemente encontradas no habitat natural, especialmente associadas a espécies de Bromeliaceae, que funcionam como plantas-berçário.