Nursery – Pod 3

Pod #3 – Plant Rationalisation

• Weeding – Removing unwanted plants from the trays and tubes etc.
• Feeding – Adding a fertiliser (liquid form) to the plants.
• Pruning – Trimming away dead or overgrown foliage/stems/branches/flower heads etc from the plants to encourage correct growing form, maintain a healthy plant and for visual appeal.
• Rationalising – Auditing/re organising the racks of plants to ensure dead/unhealthy plants are removed and arrange the tubes in the racks in as complete rows as possible
• PPE – Personal Protective Equipment such as gloves, face mask, eye protection.

Rationalising

Rationalising – The Process

During the first months after Tubing Up or Pricking Out, some of the seedlings/cuttings die.  Racks should be checked regularly, and tubes with no live seedling/cuttings should be removed.

Tubes that have been removed from their rack are put on a designated bench to be returned to the media preparation area of the nursery. 

To assist with stock audits (counting tubes in the racks) spaces that occur scattered around the rack need to be re ordered. Move a healthy plant from an end row to fill any gaps. All empty spaces (if there are any) should be at one end of the rack.

Rationalising – Tips for getting it right

• Walk around the nursery tables and familiarise yourself with the quantity of racks that you will be rationalising for a species
• Look at the plants in the racks at their foliage and structure that you will be rationalising to be able to spot a ‘foreigner’
• Ensure labels for plant species are clear. if not, replace them and if you are not sure what the species is and what information needs to be on the label, ask a Team Leader.

Rationalising – What can go wrong

• Plant species labels are missing or cannot be read and you may incorrectly cluster/rack plants
• Moving racks of plants around the nursery, without guidance from a Team Leader. Racks can be positioned around the nursery for many different reasons.

Weeding

Weeding – The Process

Every week, tubes and trays in the yard/igloos need to be checked for weeds (grasses, mosses, liverworts, thistles).  It is important to be familiar (what do they look like) with the plant that is to grow and the weed to remove. Sometimes the ‘weed’ is actually one of the species that we grow, as seed may have blown from one species growing in one location in the nursery to another. Also it is worthwhile becoming familiar with the typical weeds that pop up in our nursery stock. For example the State Coal Mine mullock heaps behind the nursery, often get an inundated with thistle. The thistle seed often blows into the plants that we are growing and this weed needs to be removed from our stock.

What tools do you need

• Knitting needle or similar fine tool to assist you to gently tweeze out the weed from the foliage and roots.
• Container of potting media (from the concrete bay outside).
• Container for the weeds you remove.
• Ask a Team Leader where the pruned bits and pieces go when it is pack-up time – usually there is one larger container in the nursery that your container can be emptied into and a Team Member will dispose of this weekly.

Weeding – Tips for getting it right

• Using a pointed object such as a knitting needle to remove the weed from the tube.
• Take care to dig out the roots of the weed without disturbing the roots of the plant.
• Top up tubes with media if required.
• If you need to remove the plant from the tube to remove a stubborn weed, avoid pulling on the plants stem to remove it. Turn the tube on its side or upside down with the stem of the plant in between two fingers to support the soil structure. Give the bottom of the tube a few firm taps and a light squeeze around all sides at the base to help loosen the root ball from the sides of the tube. Give the tube a shake up and down while still holding the stem in between your fingers and the plant should slide away from the tube. if the plant remains wedged, try tapping the top edge of the tube on a solid surface.

Weeding – What can go wrong

• Plants roots are disturbed/damaged when weeds are being removed.
• Weed foliage is only removed leaving the weed roots behind.
• Missing weeds hiding within dense plant growth or at the rear of the tube rack.
• Not removing/poisoning the creatures that eat the seedlings and tubestock (snails & other crawlies). If you notice any infestation or significant presence of snails/bugs/moths/ants etc when you are weeding, please tell a Team Leader.

Feeding

Feeding – The Process

Tubestock needs to be fed with liquid fertiliser every few weeks during the plants active growing season. Plants absorb the nutrients in the fertiliser through their leaves rather than their root system. Before this is done, the tubestock must be well watered the day before to avoid burning the leaves and roots

What tools do you need

• Check with a Team Leader to ensure the plants that are to be fertilised have been pre-prepared – have they been watered before the fertiliser is to be added as they will not be watered immediately or for some time after.
• Appropriate watering can with nozzle/spraying/misting wand – check with Team Leader which vessels can be used as some are used specifically for weeding chemicals and should not be used for the fertilising/watering tasks.
• Appropriate fertiliser and quantity mix – the fertilisers are stored in the shed chemical cupboard.

Safety

• PPE (eye protection and gloves please) and advise other Volunteers to keep clear from your activity – check that conditions are not windy if you are doing this task to avoid wasting the fertiliser and inappropriate/unsafe dispersal.
• Wash/rinse thoroughly your hands after handling any fertiliser.
• If any fertiliser splashes into your eye – Hold your face under running water for 15 to 20 minutes and allow the water stream to flood into your eyes. Use your fingers to hold your eyelids apart (make sure there is no trace of the chemical on your fingers). If you wear contact lenses, remove them as soon as possible. Inform a Team Leader for assistance with managing your first aid.

Feeding – Tips for getting it right

• Use a water can, sprinkling over the plant or using a sprayer to spray the entire plant making the nutrients from the fertiliser available almost immediately. 
• Follow the mixing instructions carefully
• Ensure you are wearing appropriate PPE when applying fertiliser

Feeding – What can go wrong

• Watering right after the fertiliser application – tell the team when fertilising is happening so that no-one inadvertently waters the nursery plants
• Too much fertiliser can burn plants, so look at plants carefully in the days following fertilising to ensure the application is appropriate – too much of a good thing is bad.
• Not selecting the right fertiliser for our indigenous plants
• Poorly timed fertilisation application – apply during the plants growth and blooming stages

Pruning

Pruning – The Process

Some tubestock may need to be pruned. Plants that have become too ‘leggy’ are pruned to promote a bushier habit and more flowers. This should be done under the direction of one of the Team Leaders with plant/botanical/nursery experience.

Most of the pruning tasks for our nursery Volunteers is about pruning to remove damaged, dead or diseased parts of the plant (infected stems/leaves).

What tools do you need

• Clean sharp pruning shears/ or similar
• Container for offcuts of stems and foliage
• Ask a Team Leader where the pruned bits and pieces go when it is pack-up time – usually there is one larger container in the nursery that your container can be emptied into and a Team Member will dispose of this weekly.

Pruning – Tips for getting it right

• Remove scrappy, unhealthy looking foliage/stems/dangling roots.
• Use clean (the blades should be wiped with methylated spirits before you start if you are not sure if they have been cleaned) pruning tools.
• Sometimes it is easier and safer for the plant to be removed from the rack for pruning – you can hold it in one hand and prune with the other, turning the plant around to see what needs to be done.

Pruning – What can go wrong

• Pruning with blunt tools as this damages stems and foliage.
• Excessive pruning depletes the plants ability to actually grow.
• Damaging other parts of the plants foliage or stems with overly rough pruning techniques

Pest Control

Pest Control – The Process

Pest Control – Tips for getting it right

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Pest Control – What can go wrong

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