From Bench to Breakthrough: Growers Share What’s Working in Greenhouse Production

The best ideas on new greenhouse production ideas often come from other growers. One of the questions we asked in Greenhouse Grower’s 2025 State of the Industry survey was “Did you test or implement a new production technique this year? If so, how did it perform?” We received quite a few responses to the question; here are a few that stood out.

• “We started a trial garden with 40,000 plants in a 1-acre area. It’s gone very well.”
• “Poinsettias with two plants per pot instead of three in larger containers. It was definitely a good idea.”
• “We started using bale shavers to a larger extent. It has cut down on labor and time.”
• “Changed our substrate. I went from a wood fiber and peat moss mix back to peat moss and perlite mix. It helped with pH and nutrient issues I was having.”
• “Yes, a tropical dip program. As soon as tropicals come in, we de-flower all plants to eliminate food for Parvispinus, We dip with Epishield/Uptake, drench with Zerotol, apply two drenches of Capsenum/Israrid, and spray with Suffoil-x, Captiva prime, and Ampersand.”
• “We are using bonded media plugs for difficult-to-root items and tissue culture. We are seeing very positive results with increased yield and quicker rooting. We have made the decision to change the propagation recipes of many varieties to use bonded media moving forward.”
• “Nothing new. Most of our efforts are defining problems earlier and implementing solutions earlier.”
• “Yes, water sterilization (UV) and climate chamber. Both are working extremely well.”
• “We are currently testing Aquamats for water management.”
• “Zone growing; we rearranged our production to group crops together in specific houses that we can grow better together. Cool crops vs warmer crops on bottom heat.”
• “We have pushed incoming plugs and liners back to increase their grow time on the bench. It led to a retail-ready product earlier, and better finished products.”
• “Foliar fertilization through a mist system during propagation. We’ve seen improved rooting vigor and reduced rooting time.”
• “Weather-proof stickers with production information for greenhouse staff on each crop tray. It’s saved so much time and eliminated questions and confusion.”