A dive into peat-free growing – via a series of new trials, ICL Hort Science Live (HSL 2024) will explore the latest technologies and management practices growers need to produce quality resilient plants in sustainable media.
Andrew Wilson, ICL's Technical Manager for the UK and Ireland, will lead the 'How to rethink plant nutrition' workstation. Taking growers through ICL's 2024 peat-free Osmocote 5 trials, exploring different rates and longevities, he will highlight the specific nutrition challenges of peat-free growing media and explain how the latest generation of water-soluble and CRFs can address any issues.
'Building the future of Osmocote'– led by Lianne van Wijk, ICL's International Technical Manager – will explore the practical uses of biodegradable coatings and differences between 'current Osmocote' and new 'biodegradable Osmocote'. Exploring changes from the grower's perspective, she will outline the performance of these new biodegradable coatings in sustainable substrates and the part they can play in the future reducing leaching, via a new trial.
The 'Breakthroughs in wood fibre - sustainable alternatives for the future' workstation will feature the latest developments in Fibagro Advance, including two finer grades. Led by ICL's Steve Chapman, the session will report on ICL's new peat-free mixes trial – which includes 100% wood fibre – before addressing water management with H2Gro and how to tailor watering regimes to specific crops.
The 'New Dawn for biostimulants' workstation, led by Sam Rivers - ICL controls manager for the UK and Ireland - will update growers on new product registration regulations and recent trials, showing improvements in rooting, establishment, and nutrient uptake - as well as reductions in the impact of N drawdown.
HSL 2024 will be held at the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB), at Cambridge. This one-day, grower-focused event will be repeated on two consecutive days - July 3 and 4 (10 am-2.30). To register go to hort-science.info/2024
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