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Everything you need to know about growing autumn bedding plants including pansies & primulas
Grow, nurture and protect your autumn bedding plants
Primulas in bloom
The Autumn bedding market provides growers an opportunity to capitalise on the spring production and maximise returns in those darker months of the year. Typical plants in this period are Violas, Cyclamen, Polyanthus and Heuchera, which are tough bloomers perfect for these seasons.
Pansy and Primula
Within the Autumn Bedding market we see a wide range of seed grown bedding plants potted from small plugs into modular packs and trays with individual cells, also pots up to 9cm. Short term cropping typically Pansy and Primula, 8-12 weeks and Longer term overwintered Pansy and Primula crops over 5-6 months.
Even in Britain, summer temperatures can be high, leading to frequent irrigation cycles which will leach nutrients. Overwintered crops being kept frost free will have nutritional requirements but little irrigation requirements. Applying WSF in the autumn and winter with cooler nights leads to excess environmental humidity, ideal conditions for foliar diseases such a Botrytis to develop
Initially a low nutrient growing media is required to minimise the stress in high temperatures. encourage fast establishment and rooting of the plugs. Plants are potted weekly in batches and while supplementary WSF can be given, the various batches on the ground are at different stages with varying nutritional demands. Once overwintering crops start producing buds, any nutrient deficiencies in the older leaves are difficult to rectify.
Tubs and baskets
Baskets and tubs are generally planted up early in the spring using plugs. It is important not to overwater before they are established. Later on plants have a high nutritional and water need – particularly when grown in baskets.
Initially a low nutrient growing media is required to encourage fast establishment and rooting of the plugs. It is important not to overwater until plants are established. When nutrition and water demands rise, particularly in baskets, there is a high chance of leaching WSF.
Recommendations
ICL recommends using these products to grow, nurture and protect your autumn bedding plants
Grow
ICL offers standard off the shelf solutions with its Levington Advance Peat Reduced Pot and Bedding or Levington Advance Sustain Peat Free Pot and Bedding growing media, as well as bespoke growing media mixes as required with Levington Advance Solutions
Nurture
Using a controlled release fertilizer such as Osmocote Bloom is ideal, with its mini granules and High K formulation is perfectly suited for the optimum growth of bedding plants in packs. It promotes compact growth and flowering with excellent foliage colour. With the Osmocote Bloom incorporated into the growing media and providing nutrition, the plants can be grown with a drier irrigation regime reducing the need for plant growth regulators (PGR) and saving water especially when used in combination with H2Gro wetting agent.
Protect
To keep plants free of pest and diseases ICL offer Prestop within the growing media mixes to help prevent root disease and keep plants healthy, as well as Mainspring for protection from Western Flower Thrip. Black Vine weevil can be an issue with Cyclamen and other crops so consider using Seeka nematodes.
ICL also have a the Vitalnova range of biostimulant to help boost plant health throughout the growing season.
Levington Advance Seed and Modular F2 growing media has a medium base level of fertiliser to meet the individual requirements of crops and their growing regimes. With its small particle size, H2Gro wetting agent and adjusted pH to the ideal level, plants will grow happily and healthily in Levington Advance.
Levington Pot & Bedding R-M2 is suitable is designed to grow a wide variety of bedding plants. M2 provides a good quality nutrient supply for feeding of up to four weeks.
There is one product in this range – Osmocote Bloom – its mid-sized granules are perfect for mixing into smaller pots and packs. Longevity is between two and three months.
Vitalnova Prime is derived from yeast (saccharomyces cerevisiae). Yeast cell walls are rich in amino acids and peptides which are known to act as natural elicitors within the plant, stimulating the plants natural defences against environmental stresses (otherwise known as abiotic stress).
Vitalnova Guardian is a blend of naturally derived polyketides and foliar-applied nutrients essential for plant biofortification, formulated for immediate effect and rapid response in the face of external crop stresses. Well-nourished plants have a more effective defence system.
Vitalnova TriBoost is the new microbial inoculant which consists of enzymes three beneficial live cultures; Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium and Lactobaillus plantarum. Each microbial strain has been selected for their beneficial properties with regards to soil health.
Grow
ICL offers standard off the shelf solutions with its Levington Advance Peat Reduced Medium Coarse Potting or Levington Advance Sustain Peat Free Potting growing media, as well as bespoke Levington Advance Solutions growing media mixes as required.
Nurture
Using a controlled release fertilizer such as Osmocote Exact High K is ideal. The High K formulation is perfectly suited for the optimum growth of autumn plants, promoting compact growth and flowering with excellent foliage colour. The enhanced potassium release ensures the nutrients release in line with plant demand giving compact growth and flowering, giving the best quality plants for early spring sales. Improve water management in combination with H2Gro wetting agent
Protect
To keep plants free of pest and diseases ICL offer Prestop within the growing media mixes to help prevent root disease and keep plants healthy, as well as Mainspring for protection from Western Flower Thrip.
ICL also have a the Vitalnova range of biostimulant to help boost plant health throughout the growing season.
Levington Advance Medium Coarse Potting is a peat reduced growing media product designed to provide a good open well drained structure with low base fertiliser levels. This is suitable for indoor and outdoor crops as well as pots, tubs & baskets.
Levington Advance Sustain Potting is a sustainable growing media designed to provide a good open well drained structure with base fertiliser levels. H2Gro wetting agent is added to optimise water uptake and rooting. Different markets have different plant specifications so the growth can be controlled by adding Osmocote Exact or by liquid feeding
Osmocote Exact High K 5-6M is a DCT-powered fourth-generation coated NPK fertilizer with trace elements and programmed release, with longevity of five to six months.
H2Gro penetrates beyond the surface to moisten the whole root zone, improving your water management in pots and containers and preventing irrigation peaks and waterlogging.
Vitalnova Prime is derived from yeast (saccharomyces cerevisiae). Yeast cell walls are rich in amino acids and peptides which are known to act as natural elicitors within the plant, stimulating the plants natural defences against environmental stresses (otherwise known as abiotic stress).
Vitalnova Guardian is a blend of naturally derived polyketides and foliar-applied nutrients essential for plant biofortification, formulated for immediate effect and rapid response in the face of external crop stresses. Well-nourished plants have a more effective defence system.
Vitalnova TriBoost is the new microbial inoculant which consists of enzymes three beneficial live cultures; Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium and Lactobaillus plantarum. Each microbial strain has been selected for their beneficial properties with regards to soil health.
Grow
ICL offers standard off the shelf solutions with its Levington Advance Peat Reduced Pot and Bedding or Levington Advance Sustain Peat Free Pot and Bedding growing media, as well as bespoke Levington Advance Solutions growing media mixes as required.
Nurture
The release of Osmocote Exact High K matches plants’ demand. After establishment, there is an enhanced Potassium release optimizing compact growth and flowering.
The release pattern of Osmocote Exact High K matches crop needs and gives further release during retail and the whole consumer phase, maintaining flowering through the season.
Osmocote Exact High K not only contains NPK but also Magnesium and essential trace elements for optimum healthy growth.
To be used with a specific low nutrient growing media.
Improve water management in combination with H2Gro wetting agent
Protect
To keep plants free of pest and diseases ICL offer Prestop within the growing media mixes to help prevent root disease and keep plants healthy, as well as Mainspring for protection from Western Flower Thrip.
Levington Pot & Bedding R-M2 is suitable is designed to grow a wide variety of bedding plants. M2 provides a good quality nutrient supply for feeding of up to four weeks.
Levington Advance Sustain Pot and Bedding is the ideal peat free media to produce the highest quality pot and bedding plants. ICL’s revolutionary H2Gro wetting agent (liquid and granules) is added as standard to make sure that water holding, even the most sensitive and most vigorous plants can be grown.
Osmocote Exact High K 5-6M is a DCT-powered fourth-generation coated NPK fertilizer with trace elements and programmed release, with longevity of five to six months.
Osmocote Exact High K 8-9M is a DCT-powered fourth-generation coated NPK fertilizer with trace elements and programmed release, with longevity of eight to nine months.
H2Gro penetrates beyond the surface to moisten the whole root zone, improving your water management in pots and containers and preventing irrigation peaks and waterlogging.
Vitalnova Prime is derived from yeast (saccharomyces cerevisiae). Yeast cell walls are rich in amino acids and peptides which are known to act as natural elicitors within the plant, stimulating the plants natural defences against environmental stresses (otherwise known as abiotic stress).
Vitalnova Guardian is a blend of naturally derived polyketides and foliar-applied nutrients essential for plant biofortification, formulated for immediate effect and rapid response in the face of external crop stresses. Well-nourished plants have a more effective defence system.
Vitalnova TriBoost is the new microbial inoculant which consists of enzymes three beneficial live cultures; Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium and Lactobaillus plantarum. Each microbial strain has been selected for their beneficial properties with regards to soil health.
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