New webinars available for greenhouse growers

Heidi Wollaeger<wollaege@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension -

Pre-recorded webinars on how to grow “bee-friendly” plants and tools to use for crop scheduling are now available.

“Growing Bee-Friendly Plants” webinar describes how greenhouse growers can produce plants that are safe for pollinators
“Growing Bee-Friendly Plants” webinar describes how greenhouse growers can produce plants that are safe for pollinators

Michigan State University Extension has released two new free webinars for greenhouse growers: “Growing Bee-Friendly Plants in the Greenhouse” and “Crop Scheduling of Bedding Plants.”

“Growing Bee-Friendly Plants in the Greenhouse” is taught by David Smitley, MSU Entomology professor. Smitley discusses how greenhouse growers can grow plants that will be safe for bees and will share his research results from recent studies on the effects of neonicotinoid insecticides on bumblebees. The topics that are covered in the webinar are:

  • Overview of neonicotinoid and bee issue.
  • Biorational products.
  • Alternatives to neonicotinoids.
  • Biological control as an alternative pest management practice.
  • Bee-friendly insecticides.
  • Safe use of systemic drenches.
  • New products available.
  • Best management practices for producing bee-friendly plants.

The webinar is offered through the Online Integrated Pest Management Academy and pesticide recertification credits are available upon completion.

Crop scheduling webinar“Crop Scheduling of Bedding Plants” is taught by Erik Runkle, MSU horticulture professor and Extension specialist. Runkle discusses what factors influence flowering time, including temperature, lighting and PGRs. Growers will learn what factors you can control and those that you cannot. Runkle will also show how different computer programs using MSU research results, such as FlowersOnTime, can be used to help schedule your crops on time.

“Crop Scheduling of Bedding Plants” can be found on MSU’s Floriculture website under Production Information. 

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

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