Organic Seedling Production for Small Farms

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Event Date
Enero 01, 2020

Join UCSC Farm Garden Manager Christof Bernau for a webinar on organic seedling production and greenhouse efficiencies for small farms. 

This session will focus on the management of environmental conditions to optimize germination and development of high-quality transplants, with an emphasis on system efficiencies that can improve seedling quality and your bottom line. From sowing, through germination, seedling development, to hardening off and holding strategies, all seedlings life stages will be explored.  

The session will begin with an examination of a typical seedling life cycle and an overview of how crop development informs environmental management and water delivery from germination to transplant. Next, Christof will give an overview of how to use greenhouse/hoop house structures and other facilities to create ideal growing conditions for annual crops throughout their life cycles, highlighting low cost tools for environmental controls in diverse seedling production systems.

The role of containers, soil media, supplemental fertility, and water delivery methods in transplant production will be discussed, with a focus on system design, materials flow and decision-making elements that increase efficiency and improve seedling health. 

Finally, the complementary roles of prevention, monitoring, and intervention tools in managing pest and disease issues will be examined. Christof will also introduce a template for managing a pest, such as aphids, as a framework for thinking about and carrying out management decisions for other common greenhouse pest and pathogen issues. 

About Our Speaker:

UCSC Farm Garden Manager Christof Bernau has been an Apprenticeship instructor since 1999. Christof has extensive experience in greenhouse and nursery management, propagation, vegetables, and specialty cut flower production. He is especially interested in nutritionally dense crops, small-scale grain production, the cultivation of small fruits, and creating a learning/growing environment where everyone can thrive. He holds a BA in Asian History from Reed College and an MA in Equity and Social Justice in Adult Education from San Francisco State University

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