The PotCast - Syngenta's Professional Horticulture Podcast

In this episode, we are going into detail on the different types of biopesticdes and how you can get the most from them. A biopesticide has to be authorised as a plant protection product and carry a unique product registration number known as the MAPP (which stands for Ministerially Approved Pesticide Product) number. Spraying is an area where Syngenta has a long history of expertise – visit our A...

One pest that seems to have generated more than its fair share of enquiries is Tetranychus urticae, glasshouse red spider mite which is also known as two-spotted spider mite. Outbreaks are usually worst at the end of summer but this year the spell of hot dry weather we saw in spring may well have triggered some infestations. It’s a pest favoured by warm, dry conditions either under protection or,...

Understanding how fungicides work ­– their mode of action ­– not only helps in the design of spray programmes when new diseases or resistant strains of pathogen appear, it helps you minimise the risk of fungicide resistance evolving in the first place. Have a look at my earlier blogs on insecticide resistance, as the principles behind resistance management are similar for insecticides and fungicid...

While plants can respond to protect themselves, at least in the short term, those responses take energy and can shut down some important parts of their metabolism, inevitably taking their toll on growth and development. Even when the stress is eliminated, the crop may never catch up so quality suffers with consequences for plant performance in the garden or landscape. An element of the stress resp...

Daniel Lightfoot Business Manager at Syngenta Ornamentals interviews Fargro's Ant Surridge and Chris Dart about the product Subdue. How it works, what it controls and how to get the best out of it. Want to know more about Syngenta Ornamentals - visit us at www.syngentaornamentals.co.uk or on Instagram (syngenta_ornamentals), Facebook (Synegnta Ornamentals UK) or Twitter @SyngentaOCUK or follow the...

A relatively new type of plant health product which complements both crop protection and nutrition, biostimulants are set to play an increasing role in integrated pest and disease management programmes for ornamentals. Because they have no direct effect on pests or diseases they fall outside the scope of plant protection legislation, but you still need to take care to source products from manufact...

Controlling root diseases is something not to be forgotten. This gives you more detail into the "behind the scenes" Root diseases caused by species of the oomycete pathogens Pythium and Phytophthora are particularly difficult to manage. Although they share some characteristics with fungi, some aspects of their biology and biochemistry are dissimilar meaning only certain fungicides, such as Subdue,...

Ornamental crops can come under stress of one kind or another at any time but spring is arguably when it’s most likely. Tender young shoots and buds will still be at risk from cold damage at that point in the year whether plants are on the nursery or in transit in the supply chain. It’s the stress caused by overheating, lack of water and too much or too little light, however, that can be more diff...