Specialty Cut Flower Production and Pollinator Visitation in Protected Environments

ISBN-10
ISBN-13
9798515257125
Category
Cut flowers
Pages
126
Language
English
Published
2021
Author
Samantha Nobes

Description

The objectives of these studies were to determine best production practices for five different specialty cut flower cultivars and assess pollinator visitation inside of high tunnels. We grew five specialty cut flower cultivars year-round in the greenhouse and late spring through fall in the high tunnels. We tested the effects of cultivar, growing environment, and pinching on the days from sowing to harvest, stem length, number of stems cut per plant, and marketable yield. The cultivars for production included Calendula officinalis Princess Golden, Matthiola incana Lucinda Mix, Helichrysum bracteatum Double Mix, Daucus carota Dara, and Celosia argentea Celway Mix. Results showed significant cultivar by environment and season interactions. This study concludes that careful cultivar selection for season and growing environment is essential for the successful integration of these niche cut flowers into current or future greenhouse and high tunnel production in Wyoming. The pollinator aspect of this study also included Zinnia elegans and Zinnia hybrid. The flower species attracted diverse pollinator groups including Hymenoptera, Diptera, Coleoptera, and Lepidoptera. C. officinalis and H. bracteatum performed well as cut flowers and were the most visited species by native bees. D. carota attracted the most Diptera visitors across the season including many syrphids. The Zinnias had the highest wasp visitation. All of the flower species hosted multiple pollinator functional groups. The mixture of cut flower species were able to offer season-long support for insect pollinators. This work was made possible by a Specialty Crop Grant from the Wyoming Department of Agriculture.

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