In The Mix

Why do CO₂ levels rise after the lights turn off in a sealed grow room? Many commercial cultivators notice CO₂ climbing overnight, even when CO₂ injection is disabled. In this episode, Tyler Simmons explains why this happens, what plant respiration has to do with it, and why elevated nighttime CO₂ is usually normal in sealed environments. You'll also learn when high CO₂ readings may indicate a...

Most fertilizer companies stop at product delivery. At Front Row Ag, that's where the work begins. In this episode, we discuss how commercial customer onboarding helps identify operational challenges before they become expensive problems. From water chemistry and sanitation to irrigation infrastructure and facility workflows, our team works to establish a clean baseline before implementing a n...

In this episode, Matthew breaks down an upstream supply chain issue that many growers may not realize is affecting fertilizer manufacturing worldwide: sulfuric acid availability. Sulfuric acid plays a critical role in producing many of the raw materials used throughout the fertilizer industry, including phosphoric acid, potassium sulfate, mono potassium phosphate, and other key ingredients. As glo...

Two facilities. Same canopy size. Same yield target. Completely different electrical bills. In this episode, we break down the lighting math most growers skip: watts per square foot PPFD and uniformity fixture spacing mounting height PPE efficiency under canopy lighting why some facilities massively overspend on LEDs This conversation explores how modern lighting design affects yield, operational...

What happens when you stress plants on purpose? In this video, we break down university research from Dr. Jose Leme’s lab on plant stress, trichomes, water deficit, and biostimulants. Topics covered: Stress signals vs real stress Trichome development and plant defense Water deficit strategies (dry back vs dry out) Biostimulants like seaweed, humic acid, chitosan, and silica How timing, environment...

Most facilities make the same hiring mistake: choosing a head cultivator based on plant knowledge instead of leadership ability. In modern controlled environments, success depends less on hands-on growing and more on managing systems, people, and performance. This video breaks down: Why designing around one cultivator is risky What actually matters in a lead role How to avoid costly hiring mistake...

Light interruption is one of the most overlooked risks in indoor facilities—and it often shows up after a build is “complete.” In this breakdown, Egan O’Keefe (Co-Founder of Front Row Ag, VP of Cultivation at Story of Maryland) explains: Why commissioning doesn’t end when the building is handed over Where light leaks actually come from (doors, ductwork, equipment) How even small LEDs can impact se...

In this video, we break down the VPD ranges we use from veg through late flower, why plant posture is one of the most underrated metrics in the room, and the exact reason your humidity spikes every time your CO2 runs out. What's covered: VPD targets for veg (and why 0.9–1.0 is the sweet spot) Whether to use leaf surface temp or ambient air temp and why it matters Week 1–3 flower VPD and day/ni...

Purple expression is one of the most misunderstood traits in cultivation. In this conversation, we break down why plants turn purple , when it’s genetically driven, and what actually happens when growers try to force purple expression through environmental stress. Lower air temperatures, cold root zones, spectrum manipulation, nitrogen tapering—these strategies can increase anthocyanin expression,...

High-performing commercial cultivation teams don’t improvise the day. They start with a master production calendar, translate it into a short list of priority tasks, and use structured morning and end-of-day meetings to keep labor aligned and prevent drift. This conversation breaks down how top-performing teams organize the day—from calendar to canopy—so work stays efficient, predictable, and repe...

Most growers treat this crop as biologically unique. That assumption breaks more things than it fixes. In this conversation, John Sokolik explains how well-studied crops like hops, tomatoes, hackberry, and lima beans reveal practical lessons about canopy density, light penetration, pest pressure, and plant defense signaling. Topics include leaf area index, under-canopy lighting, plant communicatio...

Every time a plant is touched, there’s risk—and cost. In this conversation, we break down why plant “touchpoints” matter more than most facilities realize. From disease pressure to labor efficiency, excessive handling quietly inflates costs and introduces variability across a crop cycle. We walk through a simple exercise: counting planned plant touches from transplant to harvest—and show why many...

Improper mixing equipment is one of the most common hidden causes of inconsistent feeds, validation failures, and wasted labor. In this episode, Front Row Ag formulator Matt Curran breaks down four levels of mixing equipment - from basic barrels and drills to fully integrated cone-bottom systems - and explain how each impacts solution quality, labor time, and feed accuracy. You’ll learn: Why drill...

Outdoor growers are rethinking the seed vs clone decision—and not for the reasons you might expect. In this conversation, Front Row Ag’s technical team breaks down how modern seed genetics, crop scheduling, and early environmental exposure are changing what’s possible outdoors. We cover: Why seed-grown plants are now far more uniform than they used to be The real logistical difference between seed...

Front Row Ag Technical Specialist Tyler Simmons chats with founders Matt Curran and Egan O’Keefe about what’s actually working in outdoor cultivation at commercial scale. In this conversation, the team breaks down real-world trends they’re seeing across commercial outdoor and mixed-light operations, including why many greenhouses end up costing nearly as much as indoor grows, how poor planning aro...

Front Row Ag formulator explains why our fertilizer is made with purified, prilled calcium nitrate. It provides stable nitrate nitrogen in “exceedingly high abundance,” supports protein formation, improves metabolic consistency, and avoids the volatility that can derail steering and crop uniformity. Ammonium isn’t “bad” - it’s just less predictable for high-value crop production. Purified CalNit l...

Most irrigation problems we troubleshoot trace back to one thing: pH management mistakes. The most common? Trusting an inline meter and ignoring what’s happening in the batch tank. When pH Up hasn’t finished reacting, the real pH continues to drift upward—pushing the solution past 6.2, triggering calcium-phosphate precipitation, and eventually clogging filters and emitters. In this episode, Matt a...

At the heart of every successful facility is a cleaning SOP. In this episode, Tyler Simmons and Mike Harnos break down why even the most advanced setups fail when sanitation slips. From floor drains and biofilm to HVAC and mini-split nightmares, we explore how simple cleaning habits can prevent six-figure losses and burnout across your entire team. 💡 Topics covered: • Commonly ignored contaminati...

If you had 3 minutes to explain Vapor Pressure Deficit (VPD), where would you start? In this short video, Front Row Ag’s Tyler Simmons breaks down VPD in plain language. What it is, how it connects to relative humidity, and why there’s a “Goldilocks zone” that maximizes plant water and nutrient uptake. You’ll learn how air moisture levels create suction forces that pull water through the plant, ho...

When you’re cultivating in a sealed environment like a grow room or a grow tent, running high CO₂ without enough humidity can trigger what Tyler calls the VPD Death Spiral — a feedback loop where humidity drops, stomata close, and growth grinds to a halt. This episode breaks down: Why high CO₂ lowers stomatal conductance How sealed rooms create extreme VPD conditions How to fix it fast with humidi...

Why do some hydroponic grows see great yields in winter… then slow growth, yellowing, or strange pH problems in summer? In this video, Front Row Ag’s Matt and Tyler share real cases from commercial facilities where: Water temperature rose seasonally, dissolved oxygen crashed, and yields dropped. Root zones got too cold on concrete floors, bottlenecking growth even with perfect nutrients. Runoff pH...

Front Row technical expert Tyler Simmons breaks down the cloning practices that separate thriving facilities from the rest. In this video, he covers: Why keeping mothers too long increases pathogen risk Sanitation practices that actually stop pathogen spread Adjusting to Stronger Lighting Tyler also explains how to reset declining strains in just a few cycles, plus practical tips for clone hydrati...

Managing a commercial cultivation facility means keeping track of hundreds of moving parts—propagation, transplanting, sanitizing, plant training, and more. In this episode, Egan O’Keefe breaks down how ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems can bring order to the chaos. Topics covered: • How ERP software like Canix, Dutchie, BioTrack, and others help with compliance and plant tracking • Sched...

Uneven watering wrecks consistency. In this episode, Omar from Rivulis joins Tyler from Front Row Ag to break down the most common mistakes in irrigation system design, from pressure regulation to clogged emitters, and how to fix them with real-world setups and smarter components. 💡 Learn: The truth about pressure vs. flow Why your “perfect” crop steering protocol fails if irrigation is off What...

Join Tyler and Egan as they break down the science and strategy behind defoliation in commercial cultivation. Are you removing too much? Too little? Learn how to balance airflow, light penetration, and plant energy reserves for optimal yield. 00:00 – Why Overdefoliation Happens 00:41 – Leaves = Energy: What You Lose When You Strip 02:47 – Balancing Light Penetration vs. Storage 03:37 – How to Read...