Correction: Pumpkin Variety Trials' Tables were missing from the May issue. Article and Tables are included in this issue.

Florida Pecan Field Day. Thursday, September 2, 1999. Monticello Country Club; Monticello, FL. Contact Tim Crocker (352) 392-2134 x 310.

A Greenhouse Vegetable Growers Marketing Technique

Large or small growers will benefit if they can establish their product identity. When a customer finds a quality product and can identify that product, customer loyalty is promoted and should result in repeat business. One simple marketing technique is applying labels or stickers to the product. This serves not only to identify the product as yours, but also other information. As an example, your tomatoes could be labeled as vine ripened, hydroponic, greenhouse-grown, or organic grown. The cost per sticker is low and should not be a barrier. A round 3/4 inch diameter label with about 3,000 per roll when purchasing 10 rolls cost about $70. Math tells us this is about 0.23 cents per sticker or 4-5 stickers for a penny. Larger labels, or special colors or shapes will cost more, but their value in identifying your product should be well worth the cost.

An additional benefit of using a sticker identifying the product is to also use PLU (product look-up) numbers. The PLU number helps grocers by being sure the correct price is charged for each type of produce. Some of the most likely PLU numbers greenhouse vegetable growers might need are in Table 1.

(White, Vegetarian 99-06)

Plastics Value Recovery

Vegetable producers have been searching for ways to avoid the high cost and inconvenience of disposing of the vast amount of agricultural plastic generated in each growing season. This is primarily made up of plastic mulch and drip tubing, although in other areas of agriculture it can include silage and hay bale coverings, irrigation piping and even the polypropylene strings used to tie bales. The total amount of plastic used can be reduced by producing several crops on the same mulch. However, this requires the use of drip tape for fertigation and is best suited to crops that cover the mulch fairly quickly to reduce deterioration. The remaining mulch and drip tape must still be disposed of after the final season. Much research has been done to develop biodegradable plastic mulches but problems with variability in rate of deterioration have limited their use in large scale horticultural production.

A round table discussion on plastics value recovery was held at the 28^th National Agricultural Plastics Congress held in Tallahassee, FL May 19-22, 1999. James Garthe of Pennsylvania State University organized the round table and participants were Keith Williamson of Sonoco; Steve Clarke of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; and Arthur Amidon of Amidon Recycling.

Most agricultural plastics are now burned on-farm or landfills. Landfills are starting to restrict access to mulch film and drip tape because they tangle the machinery. Compaction of plastic by baling makes it acceptable for landfills. Also, if the plastic is placed in a separate area of the landfill, it can be "mined" for future use in incineration and, possibly, recycling. A pilot program to make baling equipment available in Florida has been started.

The primary methods of recovering the value of plastics that were discussed were incineration for power generation and recycling of plastic into plastic lumber or other recycled products. Both uses require that facilities are available and that a market exists for the product. Also, the amount of dirt and debris that are mixed in with the plastic is an issue of particular importance for using plastic mulch. The possibility that biodegradable plastic would be mixed into the other mulch material was of concern for recycling because of the additives making the plastic biodegradable.

Other types of plastic are routinely recycled and recycled plastic products, such as lumber and fiber for clothing, are easily available. A plastics recycling company is currently looking into using agricultural plastics from Florida producers as a large and fairly concentrated source of plastic to recycle. If the recycling and baling programs both succeed, the amount of agricultural plastic ending up in Florida landfills may be drastically reduced.

(Lamb, Vegetarian 99-06)

Pumpkin Variety Trial, Fall 1998

Decorative or carving type pumpkins are a relatively minor crop in Florida but in recent years interest for direct sale and local shipment has increased because of high markets. Spring production in Florida is not desirable due to the lengthy and expensive storage time to keep them until the fall marketing season. Optimum planting time would be from late June to mid July and will mature in late September to early October. Because of the high temperatures and long days during the early part of the growing season fruit will mature in as little as 70 days from seeding. They can be grown both as a main crop or as a double crop behind a spring crop.

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the performance of decorative or carving type pumpkin varieties under north Florida conditions.

Production was on white on black polyethylene mulched beds. Prior to applying mulch beds were fumigated with 400 lbs/a of 98:2 methyl bromide. Total fertilization was 146-45-146 lbs/a of N-P₂O₅-K₂O. Irrigation was with a single tube placed 6 inches from the center of the bed and 1 inch deep. Between row spacing was 8 feet and in-row spacing was 40 inches. Twelve entries were direct - seeded on 6 August 1998. Design was a random complete block with 4 replications. Registered pesticides were applied on a weekly basis to control insect and diseases.

First harvest was made 68 days after seeding on 13 October 1998. At least 4 fruit from each plot were rated for rind color and height and diameter were recorded. Only marketable fruit were weighed and data recorded.

Total yields ranged from 247 cwt/a for 'Aspen' to 98 cwt/a for 'Gold Rush' (Table 2). 'Magic', 'Howden', 'Appalachian', 'Jumpin' Jack' and 'Connecticut Field' produced similar yields to 'Aspen'. The highest yielding entries also produced the most fruit/a. The largest fruit was produced by 'Gold Rush' at 16.2 lbs and was significantly higher than all other entries. Smallest fruit was produced by 'Wizard' at 8.5 lbs. The tallest fruit was produced by 'Jumpin' Jack' with a height/width ratio of 1.13 but was not different from 7 other entries. Fruit of 'Long Face' had the deepest orange color but were not different from 8 other entries. The top 4 entries, 'Aspen', 'Magic', 'Howden' and 'Appalachian' all produced good yields, had fruit of good deep orange color and height/width ratios of nearly 1 and should be considered for commercial trial in North Florida. Of these 'Howden is open-pollinated and the rest are hybrids.

PUMPKIN- DECORATIVE VARIETY TRIAL RESULTS-QUINCY

Unit Reporting: North Florida Research and Education Center

Leaders: S. M. Olson and J. M. Snell

Planted: August 6, 1998

Harvested: October 13-19, 1998

Soil: Orangeburg loamy fine sand

Comments: In row spacing 40 in., between row spacing 8ft. Trickle irrigation under white polyethylene mulch. Fertilizer applied 146-45-146 lb/A N-P₂O₅-K₂O.

(Olson, Vegetarian 99-06)

GREENHOUSE ACREAGE IN NORTH AMERICA AND MEXICO

An update on greenhouse vegetable acreage was recently presented by several experts at the Southeastern United States Greenhouse Vegetable Growers Conference held in Tallahassee on May 19, 1999. The information shows rapid expansion in Canada, the United States and Mexico. The most rapid United States expansion is in the southwest (Texas, Arizona, Colorado, etc.). The following is a summary of the information presented by:

Dr. Merle Jensen, University of Arizona,

Dr. Rick Snyder, Mississippi State University, and Shalin Khosla, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

Southwestern United States and Mexico

In the last six years, over 400 acres of greenhouses for vegetable production have been built in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas, and in Mexico, 1,200 acres. In the next year, over 80 - 100 acres will be added to the existing 108 acres in Arizona, making it the fastest growing industry in Arizona (Table 3).

In the next several years, the greenhouse vegetable industry will see tremendous growth in Mexico. Many of the facilities are being built at low elevations, where the production will only be during the winter months.

Starting several years ago, growers from Canada started establishing greenhouse operations in Arizona and northern Mexico, specifically for market in Canada in order to compliment existing production occurring in the spring to late fall. There is increasing attention being given to the continuous supply of the product. For the Canadian growers to accomplish this, they are looking at the high light regions of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico to meet their winter needs.

The production in the southwestern United States is mostly tomatoes, with some peppers produced in Texas. In Mexico, 65-70% of the production is tomatoes, 15-20% cucumbers, 5-10% peppers and the rest melons, herbs, eggplants, etc.

Eastern United States

Greenhouse tomato acreage has clearly been in a boom cycle in the mid and late 1990's. While the great majority of growers are very small in greenhouse size, three large companies now comprise about half of the acreage in the United States. These companies are summarized in Table 2 as "major players".

States with the most greenhouse tomato acreage are shown in Table 4. As shown, leading states as of this writing are Texas, Arizona, Colorado, and Virginia. As noted in parentheses in the table, virtually all of this acreage is due to the "major players" (VF = Village Farms, BN = Bonita Nursery, CG = Colorado Greenhouse). In fact, if you add up all of the "major player" acreage in the U.S. as of April 1999, you would get 365 acres, which is about 49% of the total estimated acreage in the U.S. (750 acres). Note: these figures do not include proposed new ranges or proposed expansion of current facilities. However, expansion plans for Arizona during 1999 and 2000 will very likely put that state into first place in acreage.

The figures in Table 5 only include greenhouse tomatoes, with no accounting of other crops. It is interesting to note, however, that there has been some broadening of greenhouse crop production into other crops in the past few years. For example, it is estimated that Florida currently has 25 acres of peppers, 24 acres of European cucumbers, 5 acres of herbs, 4 acres of lettuce, and 1 acre of strawberries in greenhouses, in addition to the tomatoes. Also, there are about 20 acres of raspberries in walk-in tunnels. Both the tomato and pepper acreage are expected to grow, mostly at the expense of decreasing cucumber production.

The Canadian Greenhouse Vegetable Industry

The Canadian industry (1,600 acres total) is delineated provincially. Each province has its own characteristic (climate, cultural and market) that has to be addressed. Ontario has (904 acres) the largest area devoted to greenhouse vegetables in Canada, followed by British Columbia (363 acres) and Quebec (247 acres). Alberta has a small but strong industry.

The majority of the production area in the greenhouses is devoted to tomatoes. Most of this acreage is devoted to beefsteak tomato production, but there is a steadily expanding area devoted to TOV (Tomato on the Vine). The remaining portion of the acreage is devoted to cucumber and pepper production. The pepper area has increased steadily over the past 5 years with a dramatic increase in the area devoted to pepper production in Ontario over the past three years. Lettuce, herbs, oriental vegetables and medicinal plants continue to be developed at a slower rate in smaller greenhouses directed to sales to specific niche markets.

(B. Hochmuth, Vegetarian 99-06)

Starting a Community Garden

Many citizens have backyard gardens and have been gardening for many years. These backyard or family gardens are managed by individual family members. However, community gardens are neighborhood open spaces managed by and for the members are like a family. They need each other. They need to work on problems that might get in the way of their helping each other. But some of the hardest questions for community gardening have been about how to start a community garden, how to coordinate and work together to keep the garden growing and how to settle problems.

Organizing the gardeners is as important as choosing a site. The first step in starting a community garden is to bring together a group of interested people in the neighborhood. If there are not enough people to start with, distribute flyers around the community. Two or more persons are needed to start a community garden. Others will follow later.

The second step is an important one. It is to find a coordinator, or contact person. Establishing a community garden requires a leader who organizes and inspires the neighborhood to believe that together they really can create a garden. A good coordinator should have a working knowledge of vegetable gardening, a good relationship with the public, some communication skills and the ability to organize, handle and manage people. A Florida Master Gardener could serve as a coordinator.

The third step is to identify and select a garden site. Choosing the garden site is very important. The garden coordinator and other prospective gardeners should look for a private/public vacant lot nearby where they would like to start a community garden. The site should be near a water supply (fire hydrant), should receive at least 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight, although the more light the better, should be close enough to people who will be gardening for at least one year, should be well drained and free from rubble and bricks as much as possible, should be relatively free and away from possible sources of pollution, and should be visible to the neighbors. The more public a garden and closer it is to the people who work there, the better. Then take a soil sample and send it for a pH test to determine fertilizer requirements.

Then find out the owner of the lot and get permission to use it for gardening. A city may give the lot for gardening under some conditions.

After choosing the site and getting permission to use the lot for gardening, you are now ready for plot planning. The size of individual plots may vary depending on how many people want to participate and how much time they can spend for gardening. Usually a 10' x 25' plot can be conveniently managed by one person. Compost bins, water supply, garbage cans and other communal activities should be conveniently located to all gardeners. Walkways and pathways should be about 4 feet, for carts and the gardeners' convenience. The planners should determine the overall layout of the garden site in a thorough manner. They should discuss this among the group in a full meeting to make sure everyone is agreeable to everything that has been laid out.

Assign individual plots to members filling out an enrollment form. Set up communal utilities, such as compost bins, garbage cans, water drums, tables, benches, etc. Decide and collect membership fees, if any, to meet the expenses of communal utilities, water hose, fencing, etc. Set up a committee to take care of general maintenance, such as weeding, general cleaning, filling water drums, trash removal, etc., on a rotation basis. Encourage youths to join for community pride and as extension agents, you should help start these community gardens and help educate the gardeners, but not get too involved in running them.

To minimize vandalism. If needed, organize a community watch group among the gardeners.

Florida Cooperative Extension has free fact sheets on gardening as well as bulletins available for a small charge. Many counties conduct clinics and classes on gardening and many train Master Gardeners who can be called on for expertise. Some counties also publish gardening newsletters.

(Stephens, Vegetarian 99-06)

Prepared by Extension Vegetable Crops Specialists

Dr. D. J. Cantliffe, Chairman

Dr. D. N. Maynard, Professor

Dr. W. M. Stall, Professor

Dr. T. E. Crocker, Professor

Dr. S. M. Olson, Professor

Mr. J. M. Stephens, Professor

Dr. G. J. Hochmuth, Professor

Dr. S. A. Sargent, Professor