Fall Fertilization for June-bearing Strawberries

There are two important goals for optimum strawberry production, the first is setting a high fruit load potential, and the second is harvesting the maximum amount of the potential fruit set … maintaining both fruit size and flavor.  June bearing strawberries set next year’s fruiting potential in the late summer and early fall.  In addition, … Read more…

Foliar Applications on Alfalfa to Increase Yield and Quality

Hay Quality can be easily improved with foliar nutrients following each cutting At ISP, the first step in assembling a crop recommendation is to study the crop and how it grows.  From standing alfalfa, we’ve identified several key aspects of plant physiology that will have a significant impact on both tonnage and quality.  First, is … Read more…

Using Plant Tissue Analysis for Maximum Yields

After preplant soil testing, proper application of granular nutrients and variety selection, timely plant tissue analysis is a tool with the potential to help you maximize yields of tomatoes, peppers, and other high value produce crops.  Unlocking high plant yields and fruit quality requires up to date information on major and minor plant nutrient levels … Read more…

2016 Horse Progress Review

ISP has enjoyed the opportunity to work with many Amish communities across the past several decades, and the Amish remain one of our most important growth areas.  Many have embraced the opportunity of vegetable production, and have become very good at growing high quality tomatoes, peppers and other important vegetable crops.  Yields are often impressive … Read more…

Growing With ISP Summer ’16

Summer has arrived, and fortunately the longer day length gives us almost enough time to get our daily tasks completed.  Unfortunately, the important word in the first sentence is “almost”.  Caring for our crops is a never-ending task … watering, ensuring nutrient is available at optimum levels, checking and preparing for potential disease and pest … Read more…

MetaboliK Seed Boost – Ensuring Early Vigor

Gary Shafer, Research Director MetaboliK SB showed a very strong response in the 2016 outside peppers and tomatoes trials at Howe, Indiana.  (Data published in the Winter issue of this newsletter.)  Seeing this, we decided to do further experimentation this spring, and are performing a couple of research projects with MetaboliK SB, studying emergence and … Read more…

Soil Solarization: Using the Sun as the Ultimate Biofumigant

Steve Bogash, Vegetable Crop Advisor Are you growing more intensively, but soil-borne diseases seem to keep getting ahead of you?  If the answer to this question is “yes”, please read on.  Diseases, insects, nematodes and other pests have many methods of finding their way into your soils.  Sometimes the plants or media on transplants is … Read more…