Day 1 Program

Day 1: Wednesday, October 7

Speakers from across Canada and around the world bring expertise to our forum.

Note: sessions and speakers are subject to change.

Download the detailed program overview for both days (available early October)

Ballrooms are located on the main level.

Meeting rooms are located on the second floor.

Please refer to the floor map for room location.

Program Overview

MORNING SESSIONS

IPM Bits and Bites: Spores & Equipment

9:30 am - 11 am | Room TBD

Practical IPM session for greenhouse vegetable and floriculture growers covering fogging equipment, microbial insecticide and fungicide applications, and spore trapper use. Topics include equipment selection, troubleshooting, application best practices, and real-world tips to improve pest and disease management success.

Sponsored by:

Speakers:

9:30am - Tricks & troubleshooting foggers Louis Damm | Dramm Corp This topic session discusses the differences between Cold Fogging and Thermal Fogging and the maintenance required for each. Learn about many considerations including the application of available chemistries & bio control products. This session will certainly help you be successful with your fogging equipment. 10:00am - Best application techniques for microbials Mathew Krause | Lallemand Plant Care Microbial biopesticide and biostimulant products can be excellent tools for growers. This presentation will focus on considerations when selecting microbial products and best practices for using them effectively in your operation. 10:30am - Do Spore Traps Fit in Greenhouse IPM? Katie Goldenhar | Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Agribusiness Spore trapping is a simple idea to detect spores in air samples before disease is present in your crop. There are multiple Canadian companies that sell this technology to growers, we’ll review the pros and cons to spore trapping and the potential fit for your operation.

Effective Mechanization: Not Every Shoe Fits Every Foot

9:30 am - 11 am | Room TBD

Get ready for an unplugged session—no scripted presentations, no slides, just a panel of growers sharing what works, what doesn’t, and the lessons they've learned along the way. The best part? Audience participation is encouraged. Discover why there’s no one-size-fits-all approach and why what works for one operation may not work for another.

Speakers:

Aaron Hoff | Meyers Fruit Farms Benjamin Alkema | Linwell Gardens Thomas Alkema | Linwell Gardens Paul Vos Rodney

Little Plants, Big Profits - Fruit & Vegetable Propagation

9:30 am - 11 am | Room TBD

This session will focus on strawberry propagation and the use of lighting technologies to improve both fruit and vegetable propagation success under certain lighting systems. Designed for propagators and greenhouse growers, the discussion will cover practical insights and experience with lighting strategies, environmental management, and production techniques that support healthy, efficient propagation.

Speakers:

9:30am - Strawberry Propagation Ricardo Hernandez | North Carolina State University This presentation will summarize plant physiology research on strawberry propagation in controlled environments, focusing on how photoperiod, light intensity, CO₂ enrichment, and light spectrum influence runner development, daughter plant quality, and propagation efficiency. The session will highlight key findings and practical implications for improving commercial strawberry plant production systems. 10:00am - Technology to grow seedlings under 100% artificial light tech Alvaro Fernandes | Planteva Farms Propagation is a logical, high-impact application of indoor cultivation technology. We explore how combining agronomic knowledge with sole-source dynamic lighting and fully automated precision cultivation systems enables next-generation nurseries to de-risk final production across greenhouses, indoor farms, and field farms. Tailored protocols maximize seedling vigour, accelerating transitions and boosting results. 10:30am - Dynamic LED lighting in vegetables propagation Sam Soltaninejad | Mechatronix Inc. Tailoring light conditions throughout the dynamic LED lighting system

Organic Vegetable Production

9:30 am - 11 am | Room TBD

This session covers organic greenhouse production in Canada, including Canadian Organic Regime (COR) requirements, what qualifies as organic, and recent standard updates for greenhouse growers. It also explores reducing peat use, improving growing media and soil health, and managing fertility with approved organic inputs, along with practical insights into the challenges and opportunities of commercial organic production.

Speakers:

9:30am - Keeping organic rooted in the soil Nicole Boudreau | Organic Federation of Canada Under the last review of the Canadian Organic Standards, the greenhouse clauses have been passionately discussed. Soil volume, artificial lighting, hydroponics, vertical agriculture, fertilization, and use of liquid nutrients were back for discussion. Nicole Boudreau presents the behind-the-scenes of the review process and the main modifications to the greenhouse production. 10:00am - Organic Growing: Challenges and Benefits Marco de Leonardi | Freeman Herbs Inc. Organic Growing is a commitment to establish and respect the natural processes of Mother Nature, where pest and diseases are kept under control by their natural antagonists, enduring the bumps on the road. 10:30am - Organic Greenhouse Production: Linking Media, Fertilizers, Soil and Plant Health Martine Dorais | Laval University Optimizing nutrient availability in synchrony with crop demand remains a major challenge in organic greenhouse production. Research conducted through the Université Laval Research Chair in Organic Greenhouses and Controlled Environment Horticulture has investigated sustainable growing media, irrigation management, fertilization strategies, and biostimulants. The impacts of these practices on soil health, plant resilience, productivity, and soil microbiome dynamics will be presented.

AFTERNOON SESSIONS

Sanitation in Practice

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Room TBD

Learn practical sanitation and cleaning techniques, in-house water testing procedures, and greenhouse water management strategies. This session showcases how minimal sanitation combined with microbial inoculation can shape the water microbiome, supporting plant health and improving tolerance to pathogens such as Fusarium, Pythium, and Phytophthora in vegetable crops.

Speakers:

2:00pm - Tips & Tricks, Do's & Don'ts George Jeffery | Retired Biosecurity Consultant - DCL Will discuss ways to get your best results when cleaning and disinfecting your Greenhouse, carts & equipment. Why it is so important to clean with a heavy duty soap prior to disinfecting. 2:30pm - What's in your water? Hands on monitoring tools - a recap Ann Huber | The Soil Resource Group Routine hands-on monitoring can help growers identify when/where things might be going wrong before they really go wrong, but it needs to be simple, fast and inexpensive. This session is about how growers can use 3M Petrifilms and other in-house tools to monitor their irrigation systems. 3:00pm - Greenhouse Water Sanitation, Plant Health, and Biology Daniel Chan | BEVO Greenhouses Topic showcases how Bevo Farms Ltd. treated greenhouse water using a methodology based on minimum sanitation and microbial inoculation, and how these treatments shaped the water microbiome, contributing to overall plant health and increased tolerance to plant pathogens such as Fusarium sp., Pythium sp., and Phytophthora sp. for veggies.

Flower Propagation

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Room TBD

This session covers the benefits and risks of tissue culture, the role of lighting in floriculture propagation, and key monitoring techniques to identify and troubleshoot production issues. Participants will gain practical insights to improve plant quality, propagation success, and problem-solving in growing operations.

Speakers:

2:00pm - A Better Start for Tissue-Cultured Plants: Introduction to Vertical Indoor Propagation Systems Celina Gomez | Purdue University Successful acclimation of tissue-cultured plants in dynamic greenhouse environments is often challenging. This presentation will explore how vertical indoor propagation systems can reduce shrinkage while improving rooting, growth, and liner quality. Drawing on recent research, attendees will learn practical strategies to improve the quality and consistency of tissue-cultured plants. 2:30pm - Light Before Roots: Why Supplemental Lighting Matters During Propagation Roberto Lopez | Michigan State University Successful cutting propagation begins with root initiation and development. In this presentation, Dr. Roberto Lopez will share his team’s latest research on the use of supplemental LED lighting during propagation to reduce rooting time, improve liner quality, and avoid undesirable foliage purpling. Attendees will gain practical insights into supplemental lighting intensity, duration, and spectrum management for propagation success. 3:00pm - The ABC's of Floriculture Propagation: A Primer For Success Matthew Terlouw | Orchard Park Growers This session will cover some of the basic terms and principles of propagation from seed and cuttings and describe the general techniques used at Orchard Park.

Economics - Business Development in Uncertain Times

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Room TBD

Discover how greenhouse growers can use the SR&ED program to recover R&D costs and support innovation. This session covers project eligibility, documentation requirements, and how everyday testing and experimentation can solve production challenges while generating valuable tax credits.

Speakers:

2:00pm - Unlocking SR&ED Funding for Greenhouse Innovation Shannon Fraser | Henderson Consulting & Associates 2:30pm - Rewarding Innovation: How Greenhouse Growers Can Benefit from SR&ED Jamie Aalbers | Northern Horticultural Consultants Inc Discover how greenhouse growers can leverage SR&ED to recover a significant portion of eligible R&D costs. This session will cover project eligibility, documentation requirements, and partnership models for long term success. Learn how systematic testing, experimentation and analysis—already common in most greenhouses —can solve production challenges and generate tax credits. 3:00pm - Agricultural Economic & Market Development Peter Hall | Econosphere Inc.

Lettuce Learn

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Room TBD

Learn why successful greenhouse production depends on skilled growers and strong fundamentals—irrigation, climate, pest control, and people. This session also covers hydroponic lettuce health, focusing on root decay prevention, water treatment, irrigation, and IPM practices.

Speakers:

2:00pm - Invest in Tech — But Grow Your People First Lucas Chapdelaine | Whole Leaf Drones, sensors tracking harvest speed, AI tuning climate—the pitches dazzle. But the grower is the most important part of any greenhouse system. Without the training to use these tools, and a focus on the four fundamentals—irrigation and nutrition, climate, pest control, and people—no technology saves your crop. 2:30pm - Problem & solution: How to keep crops healthy in hydroponic systems Sonny Moerenhout | Cultivators The problem of lettuce root decay in your growing system. Water treatment and irrigation in recirculating systems and additional steps as prevention. 3:00pm - Hydroponic Lettuce IPM Greg Bryant | Beneficial Insectary Hydroponic lettuce presents unique IPM challenges, including limited access to the crop, algae growth, and its exceptional attractiveness to pests—especially aphids. This presentation will discuss practical strategies for monitoring and managing key pests while maximizing the effectiveness of biological control and other integrated pest management tools.

Mite Murder Mystery Workshop

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm | Ballroom A

Not sure what pest mites you have in your greenhouse, or which of your predators are establishing? Join us for Mite Murder Mystery to help you identify the victim and the perpetrator! You’ll learn different sampling methods for mites and how to identify important mites in Ontario greenhouses using a simple illustrated key. We’ll also cover strategies for managing mite pests.