Plant Purple - Grow Hope Campaign for 2013

MVG's Plant Purple - Grow Hope Campaign is returning for 2013. Here are the MVG participants for this year:

Barrow's Greenhouse Bench Farms Bench's Greenhouse & Nursery Black Diamond Nursery Bostdorff Greenhouse Acres Creque's Greenhouse

Hoen's Greenhouse & Garden Center Louis Keil & Sons Ohlman Sautter's Food Center The Andersons Tom Strain & Sons & Daughter Too Wardell's Garden Center

Plant Purple - Grow Hope has garnered much attention during the past few years. The May 1, 2013 Toledo City Paper spotlighted the the campaign's efforts. In 2011 the Toledo Blade highlighted the efforts of Kelly Kinney, local organizer of the campaign, to raise awareness about pancreatic cancer after her brother died from the disease.

According to the American Cancer Society, pancreatic cancer is the 4th leading cause of cancer-related death in the U.S., claiming over 37,000 lives every year, including many famous individuals.

TGen, a Phoenix, Arizona non-profit biomedical research organization dedicated to helping patients with diseases such as cancer, neurological disorders and diabetes, is partnering with MVGA to combat pancreatic cancer.

Purple is the Awareness color of Pancreatic Cancer. In May and June Maumee Valley Growers will be selling designated purple plants in support of Pancreatic Cancer Research. "How to Landscape With Purple" shows how purple can be used to help create a desirable mood in the garden.

Update on Downy Mildew Affecting Ohio Impatiens - 2013

Impatiens in northwest Ohio have fallen prey to a pathogen that can wilt them within days: Downey Mildew. "Downy mildew symptoms begin as a light-green yellowing or stippling of infected leaves," said Nancy Taylor of the Ohio Plant Diagnostic Network. "Look for subtle gray lines on top of the leaves and their edges may curl down. Look under the leaves for another sign. This pathogen will create a white, almost fuzzy growth under the leaves, giving it its name."

MVGA is working closely with growers, suppliers and researchers to learn more about this pathogen. Below are links to articles offering more details and strategies for dealing with it as well as alternative plants to Impatiens.

• Downey Mildew Affecting Ohio Impatiens (Toledo Blade)
• Greenhouse Grower - Downy Mildew
• Growers Look To Limit Downy Mildew Losses

"In addition to many articles being written and available on-line, signage is now available from several suppliers," says Joe Perlaky, MVGA Consultant. "We encourage retail growers to train their staff this coming year to the challenges downy mildew may present. It's a perfect opportunity to talk to your customers and offer options and recommendations. The use of signage and 'bag stuffers' are all tools that can best assist your customers." Below are just a couple of signage examples.

• Waldo
• Ball

In cooperation with MVGA and Beth Scheckelhoff at OSU Extension, "bag stuffers" can be downloaded FREE (click here for a copy of a Word Document "bag stuffer").

Nature Gets a Helping Hand

Lakeside Greenhouse and it's owner Walt Krueger were featured in the Sunday February 3^rd Toledo Blade:

At Lakewood Greenhouse in Northwood, floral development under seven acres of glass is wrangled by three generations of the Krueger family. They're wholesalers, growing plants for holidays and selling to 500 florists, garden centers including Black Diamond and The Andersons, and grocery stores such as Kroger, within a 200-mile radius.

"It has to do with timing more than anything," said Walter Krueger, Jr., who's run the show for 24 years.

• Read more ...

Maumee Valley Grower Specials

Maumee Valley Growers is an industry-based association committed to working together to strengthen our local greenhouse industry. The industry includes more than fifty individual Maumee Valley growers, alike in offering top-quality local plants but distinct in location, product mix, and focus. Learn more about what you can find at these individual locations by visiting our specials page.

USDA 2012 Plant Hardiness Zone Map

[Click the map to go to the USDA Plant Hardiness Interactive Map]

The USDA has updated their Plant Hardiness Zone Map for 2012 with new data and have made it interactive. According to the USDA, the map is "the standard by which gardeners and growers can determine which plants are most likely to thrive at a location. The map is based on the average annual minimum winter temperature, divided into 10-degree F zones." This map updates the 1990 version, using data from 1976 to 2005: there are 13 hardiness zones in this map, from 1 (coldest) to 13 (hottest).

In the previous map, Ohio was mostly zone 5 and is now mostly zone 6.

The USDA's Plant Hardiness Zone Map site also offers an interactive map of the entire U.S. that can be clicked-and-dragged, or zoomed to view zip codes; click the "Interactive Map" menu tab.

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About the Maumee Valley Growers

Maumee Valley Growers (MVGA) is an industry-based agriculture producer group committed to working together to strengthen our local greenhouse industry. The industry includes more than seventy individual growers, alike in offering top-quality local plants but distinct in location, product mix, and focus. MVGA is committed to sustaining and growing the local economy. Through a collaborative process of sharing resources and knowledge, we identify solutions to commonly shared problems.