Why should you attend?


FOCUS ON GROWERS

Greenhouse Canada presents the latest in research, technology and production practices for flower and vegetable growers. We’ll highlight new trends, tackle issues from a local perspective, and promote discussion among growers to advance the industry while improving your bottom line.

 

 


WHY ATTEND?

Grower Day is the conference and tradeshow for growers of ornamental plants and vegetables. This one-day event features a powerhouse line-up of industry leaders sharing their expertise on cultivation, production and business management.

Hear from industry experts, share best practices, network with colleagues and see the latest innovation in products and services – all designed to help grow your commercial cultivation business.


A TRUSTED SOURCE

Celebrating over 40 years in print, Greenhouse Canada is proud to present its 28th Grower Day in St. Catharines, Ont. dedicated to growers of ornamental plants and vegetables.

If you are a commercial greenhouse grower or researcher/student in these sectors, don’t miss out!

Attend Grower Day
Get ready to discover new technologies and solutions




Should provincial guidelines not allow for social gatherings at the time of the event,
your registration can be transferred to our next event date or refunded.

Schedule

8:30am - 9:00am

Registration, coffee
9:00am - 9:15am

Opening remarks
9:15am - 9:45am

Atomic Agriculture: Investigating Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Systems for Greenhouse Application

Speaker: Dr. Rupp Carriveau - Director of the Environmental Energy Institute and Co-Director of the Turbulence and Energy Lab at the University of Windsor

Growing food in a controlled environment can increase yield density, nutritional specificity, and climatic resiliency. Depending on location this can require significant thermal and electrical energy. Small Modular Rectors are energy dense, clean sources of heat and electricity that can operate in nearly any location on earth. This study leverages two years of detailed energy demand data from a Partner Commercial Greenhouse as a basis for an SMR-centred energy system solution. High level design details and system solution sensitivities will be presented and discussed.

9:45am - 10:15am

Mixology 101: Can you run a bio program with chemical sprays?

Speaker: Judy Colley - IPM Technical Lead, Plant Products

With the ever expanding list of “hitch hiker” pests coming in from other countries the need for chemicals has become necessary to combat them. Can we still run a successful bio program while spraying for these pests? This talk will help to clarify what chemistries will work and how/when to apply them; and what chemistries will not work and for how long it will affect the beneficial insects.

10:15am - 10:45am

Networking break
10:45am - 11:15am

Sustainable practices in greenhouse vegetable production: What’s most popular and what’s trending upwards?

Speaker: Dr. Alexandra Grygorczyk - Research Scientist, Vineland Research and Innovation Centre

In 2023, the OFVGA commissioned Vineland Research to collect baseline data for Ontario fruit and vegetable growers’ adoption of environmentally sustainable production practices. The presentation will provide an overview of the most popular practices currently in use by growers and those quickly growing in popularity related to energy efficiency, water, crop inputs and waste management.

11:15am - 11:45am

The past, present, and future of genetic resistance to ToBRFV

Speaker: Dr. Jonathan Griffiths, Research Scientist, Molecular Plant Virology, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

The Tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV) is a devastating virus to greenhouse tomato production due to its ease of transmission and ability to overcome Tm-22mediated resistance. This session will describe concepts of genetic resistance to plant viruses, how ToBRFV evades existing resistance genes, and recent advances in developing resistant plants.

11:45am - 1:15pm

Lunch break
1:15pm - 1:45pm

Where are the robots?

Speaker: Dr. Brian Lynch
Director of Horticulture Technology Solutions at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre

Robotics solutions for horticultural production have been explored for decades in academia and industry, and they are touted as an enormously valuable—if not necessary—solution for solving labour and efficiency challenges. So where are they? Why don’t we see robots commonplace in the greenhouse for harvesting, de-leafing, and other tasks? In this talk we’ll explore the past, present, and future of robotics for greenhouse production. Come hear about Vineland Research and Innovation Centre's perspective on how the industry can leverage the latest technological advances, where the biggest challenges are, and what we're doing to address them through development, optimization, integration, and most importantly validation.

1:45pm - 2:15pm

Optimizing nutrition for poinsettia production

Speaker: Dr. Josh Henry
Technical Services Specialist with Ball Seed

While the basics of mineral nutrition can be applied to all plants, there are specific requirements to keep in mind for each species. Poinsettias are no exception to this rule. Getting nutrition right is critical to producing a healthy and vibrant poinsettia crop. In this session, we will discuss how to grow your best poinsettia crop by optimizing water and fertilizer inputs, as well as some key methods for nutrient monitoring and diagnostics.

2:15pm - 2:45pm

Networking break
2:45pm - 3:15pm

Speaker 7
3:15pm - 3:45pm

Speaker 8
3:45pm

Awards presentation and closing remarks

Venue

St. Catharines

Holiday Inn & Suites Conference Centre

327 Ontario St. – St. Catharines, ON
Parking is FREE!

Accommodations

Info coming soon!

Sponsors

Silver Sponsor
Delegate Bag Sponsor
Lanyard Sponsor
Coffee Sponsor