Wholesale Nurseries Research Articles

Socioeconomic Characteristics of Owners and Operators of Wholesale Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Southern United States

Socioeconomic Characteristics of Owners and Operators of Wholesale Nurseries and Greenhouses in the Southern United States

Socioeconomic determinants of the level of mechanization of nurseries and greenhouses in the southern United States

As horticulture production increases over time, growers are expected to improve efficiency, adopt appropriate technologies, improve working conditions and workers’ safety, and enhance markets. Mechanization decisions are made to maximize production under a least-cost combination of inputs including mechanization. The objective of this paper is to determine the socioeconomic factors influencing the level of mechanization among nurseries and greenhouses. The results will provide more profound insights into the empirical relationships between the level of mechanization and the economic and technical characteristics of nurseries or greenhouses. Results will also describe the influences of owners or operators’ characteristics on mechanizations decisions. The level of mechanization shows the extent by which nurseries or greenhouses have currently mechanized each of the significant workers’ tasks involved in the production of horticulture products. A regression equation was estimated using the socioeconomic database collected from a survey of 215 randomly selected wholesale nurseries and greenhouses in eight Southern states. The regression results explained 69% of the variation in the level of mechanization among participating nurseries or greenhouses. Younger owners or operators tend to approve of higher mechanization in horticulture operations. Significant differences in the levels of mechanization were observed among owners or operators with different levels of formal educational attainment. Workers’ tasks in greenhouse-only operations tend to be more mechanized than nursery-only operations. Workers’ tasks in operations with higher annual gross sales were more mechanized than smaller operations. The shortage of permanent or part-time workers would encourage owners or operators to shift to more mechanized horticulture production activities. Corporate-run horticulture organizations provided more mechanization options for their workers than the other business operations.

Bemisia tabaciMED (Q biotype) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in Florida is on the Move to Residential Landscapes and May Impact Open-Field Agriculture

For the first time in the United States, Bemisia tabaci MED (Q biotype of B. tabaci [Gennadius]; Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) was detected outside of greenhouse or nursery environments when it was collected from 10 residential landscape and 2 open field environments in Florida. Bemisia tabaci MED was also detected in 8 wholesale nurseries from 4 counties and 17 retail nurseries from 8 counties in Florida. Hibiscus was the host plant driver for B. tabaci MED whitefly infestations in retail and wholesale nurseries and in Florida residential landscapes. One mint sample from a retail nursery contained a single New World whitefly and represents the first detection of New World B. tabaci in Florida since it was displaced by B. tabaci Middle Eastern Asia Minor 1 in the mid-1980s.

Hiring Preferences of Nurseries and Greenhouses in U.S. Southern States

This work describes workers’ socioeconomic characteristics and evaluates the determinants of workers hiring decisions among 215 randomly selected wholesale nurseries and greenhouses located in eight selected southern states in the United States. The participating nurseries and greenhouses employed on average 5.40 permanent workers per horticulture operation or 2.27 permanent workers per acre under cultivation. Participating nurseries and greenhouses hired an average 2.38 part-time workers per horticulture operation or 0.80 part-time workers per acre placed under production. Empirical models were estimated to determine the significant factors affecting hiring decisions by this industry. Hiring decision models covered age groups, racial backgrounds, formal education levels, and gender. Analysis of the decision-making process involving the employment of hired workers among the participating wholesale nurseries and greenhouses provided insights into the hiring decisions in the industry. The hiring decisions by demographic characteristics serve as benchmarks for assessing impacts of regulations affecting the industry in the near future. About 1.9% of all the establishments employed more than 50 permanent and part-time workers and 1.4% employed more than 50 permanent workers.

Phytophthora nicotianae Can Cause Both Crown Rot and Foliage Blight on Phlox paniculata in South Carolina

Phytophthora nicotianae is a common pathogen of many herbaceous perennial plants, and this pathogen has been found causing disease on garden phlox (Phlox paniculata) in wholesale nurseries in South Carolina for a number of years. However, the relationship between P. nicotianae and garden phlox has not been studied or reported previously. Using Koch's postulates and standard inoculation methods for Phytophthora spp., P. nicotianae was found to cause crown rot on P. paniculata when potting medium was infested with colonized vermiculite and to cause foliage blight when aerial parts of the plant were inoculated with an aqueous suspension of zoospores. Foliage blight was more similar to symptoms we observed on garden phlox plants in wholesale nurseries, but crown rot also has been observed previously on plants in these nurseries. The cause of these two diseases was confirmed, but reproduction of Phytophthora foliage blight under experimental conditions was inconsistent. Thus, other factors not yet identified may play a role in the development of Phytophthora foliage blight on garden phlox in nurseries in South Carolina. Accepted for publication 1 September 2014. Published 1 November 2014.

Propagation of Four Underused Native Species from Softwood Cuttings

Interest in native plants for landscaping is increasing and nursery growers must expand their product offerings by adding new native species. Softwood stem cutting propagation of four underused northeastern U.S. native species [Ceanothus americanus (L.), Corylus cornuta (Marsh.), Lonicera canadensis (Bartr.), Viburnum acerifolium (L.)] was studied. V. acerifolium cuttings containing two nodes taken mid-June to mid-August rooted at nearly 100% with at least 15 roots per cutting. Exogenous auxin application did not enhance rooting of two-node V. acerifolium cuttings. Single-node V. acerifolium cutting success and quality of rooting increased with increasing concentration of auxin applied and reached a maximum of 80% rooting, whereas untreated cuttings only rooted at 53%. C. cornuta cuttings taken mid-June to mid-August rooted at greater than 85%. Hormone concentration did not affect rooting percentage for C. cornuta; however, cuttings treated with 3000 and 8000 ppm indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) had more and longer roots than untreated cuttings. June was the optimal time to collect cuttings of C. americanus (57% rooting) and L. canadensis (49% rooting), and rooting hormone did not significantly impact propagation success. C. cornuta and V. acerifolium could be propagated at a level necessary for consideration as a new commercial crop by general wholesale nurseries looking to add select native shrubs to their product lines. All four species evaluated could be viable commercial crops for nurseries that specialize in native plants.

First Report of Box Blight Caused by Cylindrocladium pseudonaviculatum (C. buxicola) in British Columbia, Canada.

Boxwoods (Buxus spp.) are common woody ornamental hedging plants in Europe and North America, typically propagated by cuttings. In October 2011, shoot dieback and defoliation was observed on Buxus sempervirens 'Suffruticosa' (dwarf English boxwood) and 'Green Balloon' in outdoor, 10-cm pots at a wholesale nursery in Chilliwack, British Columbia. Circular leaf spots with black rings occurred on leaves and black, water-soaked, cankers girdled the stems and petioles. Leaf and stem samples were collected on November 21, 2011, and incubated for 48 h in a moist chamber at room temperature. In addition to Volutella buxi, a Cylindrocladium species producing conidia on white sporodochia was observed on host tissue under the microscope. Leaves with lesions were surface-sterilized in 10% bleach for 30 to 60 s, rinsed in sterile water, and lesions were cut out and plated on PDA and carnation leaf media. The species was identified as Cylindrocladium pseudonaviculatum Crous, J.Z. Groenew. & C.F. Hill 2002 by comparison of conidia and phialide morphology to published descriptions. Conidia were hyaline, one-septate, cylindrical with rounded ends and 38 to 76 μm (mean 51 μm) × 4 to 6 μm on carnation leaf media and 41 to 66 μm (mean 52 μm) × 4 to 6 μm on B. sempervirens 'Suffruticosa' leaves, comparable to the reported range of 40 to 75 × 4 to 6 μm (1,2,3,4). Conidia were produced in clusters on terminal, ellipsoid vesicles at the tips of penicillate conidiophores. Vesicles were 10.2 (7.6 to 12.8 μm) at the widest point, consistent with the 6 to 11 μm reported in (2,3) and tapered to a rounded point; stipe extensions were septate and measured an average of 130 μm (107 to 163 μm) in length to the tip of the vesicle, consistent with the 95 to 155 μm reported in (1), 89 to 170 μm reported in (2), and 95 to 165 μm in (3). Chlamydospores were not observed on host tissue but appeared in older PDA cultures as dark brown microsclerotia. DNA was extracted from single-spore colonies on PDA and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA was amplified with primers ITS1 and ITS4. The ITS sequence (GenBank Accession No. KC291613) was 100% identical to C. buxicola strain CB-KR001 (HM749646.1) and Calonectria pseudonaviculata strain ATCC MYA-4891 (JX174050.1). In early December 2011, box blight was identified on container-grown B. sinica var. insularis × B. sempervirens 'Green Velvet,' 'Green Gem', and 'Green Mountain' and B. sempervirens L. (common or American boxwood). The pathogen was identified by microscopic examination at three wholesale nurseries in the eastern Fraser Valley and one landscape planting. The isolate has been deposited in the Canadian Collection of Fungal Cultures in Ottawa, Canada (DAOM 242242).

First report of Hop stunt viroid in Hibiscus rosa‐sinensis in Italy

Hop stunt viroid (HSVd), type member of the Hostuviroid genus in the Pospiviroidae family, has a very wide host range that includes trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. In grapevine and almond, HSVd infection may be latent, whereas in other plants it causes various specific disorders; these include stunt on hop, dapple fruit on peach and plum, fruit deformation and rugosity on apricot and plum, pale fruits on cucumber and cachexia on citrus. All these symptoms can lead to very high economic impact. In the past, Hibiscus spp. amongst ornamental plants were also reported as natural host of HSVd (Sänger, 6), but further information on this has been lacking. Recently, a survey of the phytosanitary status of ornamental hibiscus was conducted in wholesale nurseries in Central Italy (Manglli et al., 5). Plants of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis showing symptoms resembling virus infection were first examined for the presence of Hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus (HCRSV), Hibiscus latent Singapore virus (HLSV) and Hibiscus latent Fort Pierce virus (HLFPV). However, several plants belonging to two different cultivars, showing both severe symptoms of reduction in plant growth and upward curling and deformation of leaves (Fig. 1), tested negative for these viruses. Moreover, the observed symptoms did not resemble those of known viruses in hibiscus. Consequently, the same plants were tested for HSVd using a RT-PCR protocol by Faggioli et al. (2) employing two primer pairs (VP-19 and VP-20; HSVFL1 and HSVFL2) designed respectively by Astruc et al. (1) and Kofalvi et al. (4). Out of 17 plants showing the aforementioned symptoms, four samples gave positive results. By contrast, HSVd was not detected in any of the 60 leaf samples showing only yellow spots and chlorotic mottle on leaves that tested positive for HCRSV, HLSV and/or HLFPV. The four amplification products were cloned (pGem-T vector, Promega, WI, USA) and sequenced. Sequence analysis of different clones for each isolate (GenBank Accession Nos. KC137256 to KC137266) revealed that two isolates showed the same size (296 nt) and that both had a high homology amongst clones and between the two isolates. Furthermore, both isolates were closely related to a Turkish plum isolate (EF523829, Gazel et al., 3) belonging to the Hop-group, as shown by the HSVd phylogenetic tree (Fig. 2; Kofalvi et al., 4). The sequences of the other two isolates were 299 nt long and also showed a high homology amongst clones and between the two isolates. They were practically identical to an apricot isolate (Y08437, Kofalvi et al., 4), thus grouping in the recombinant Plum-Citrus phylogenetic group (Fig. 2). These results suggest a different origin of infection in the vegetative propagation and cultivation of hibiscus plants. This study confirms that Hibiscus rosa-sinensis is a natural host of HSVd as reported by Sänger in 1988. However, to our knowledge, this is the first report of HSVd in H. rosa-sinensis in Italy.

Economic Impacts of Mechanization or Automation on Horticulture Production Firms Sales, Employment, and Workers’ Earnings, Safety, and Retention

Using a socioeconomic database collected by face-to-face interviews of nurseries and greenhouses, empirical models were estimated to measure the economic impacts of mechanization or automation on annual gross sales, annual employment, and workers’ earnings, safety and retention. The survey was conducted among 215 randomly selected wholesale nurseries and greenhouses located in eight southern states from Dec. 2003 to Nov. 2009. The level of mechanization or automation (LOAM) observed among the participating wholesale nurseries and greenhouses averaged 20% of the major tasks performed by workers. Nurseries and greenhouses that reported greater annual gross sales demonstrated higher levels of mechanization, implying economies of scale associated with technology adoption by these wholesale horticulture production firms. The increase in total workers’ earnings associated with improved mechanization indicated that nurseries and greenhouses were able to pay their workers higher wages and salaries. The increased levels of mechanization produced neutral effects on employment and raised the value of the marginal productivity (VMP) of labor, implying that technology adoption by wholesale nurseries and greenhouses did not displace any worker but instead improved total workers’ earnings. Growers that reported higher levels of mechanization hired fewer new workers with basic horticultural skills, especially among horticultural firms which operated both nursery and greenhouse enterprises. The length of training period for basic horticultural skills was not influenced by the level of mechanization, but was significantly extended when nurseries or greenhouses hired more new workers without basic horticultural skills. The number of work-related injuries increased as a result of improvements in mechanization, which primarily consisted of back strains, cut fingers, shoulder and ankle strains, and eye injury. The workers’ retention impact (WRI) of the level of mechanization turned out to be neutral or indeterminate since almost all of their workers were with them during the past 2 years before conducting the interviews. Overall, advances in mechanization or automation generated enhancing effects on the annual gross sales of horticultural production firms, enabled them to retain and pay better wages for their workers, hired fewer new skilled workers, and reported more work-related injuries.

Survey of Wholesale Production Nurseries Indicates Need for More Education on the Importance of Plant Species Diversity

Recent pest outbreaks, such as emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle, have renewed concerns about the lack of genetic and species diversity in landscapes across the United States. However, the level of understanding of these issues by people in the green industry is not known. A survey on the knowledge of plant species diversity issues was distributed to Washington, U.S., wholesale nurseries. Respondents indicated a general awareness of the issue, but they had insufficient understanding of why the lack of species diversity is a problem. Respondents who had learned about plant species diversity in educational settings beyond high school were more likely than others to understand the issues. These results indicate the need for increased, in-depth education on why plant species diversity among landscape plants is important.

Uredo rangelii, a taxon in the guava rust complex, newly recorded on Myrtaceae in Australia

Uredo rangelii (myrtle rust) is reported for the first time in Australia — detected on 22 April 2010 &#x2014 from Agonis flexuosa, Callistemon viminalis and Syncarpia glomulifera. This taxon is morphologically distinct from Puccinia psidii, the cause of guava rust, but DNA sequence data place it in the P. psidii complex. Surveys up to the end of May 2010 have detected U. rangelii on cultivated shrubs and trees at four properties (two cut flower farms and two wholesale nurseries) on the Central Coast of New South Wales, with no records in native forest thus far. Containment operations are currently underway on infected properties.

Honeybee-mediated Controlled Pollinations in Cornus florida and C. kousa Intra- and Interspecific Crosses

Flowering (Cornus florida L.) and kousa (C. kousa Hance) dogwoods are ornamental trees valued for their four-season appeal, but also for their importance to retail and wholesale nurseries. The popularity of kousa dogwood has increased in recent years as a result of its resistance to dogwood anthracnose and powdery mildew as compared with flowering dogwood, which is typically susceptible to those diseases. This range of resistance allows the development of intra- and interspecific cultivars with multiple disease resistance or a combination of disease resistance and specific ornamental traits. Breeding requires controlled crosses that are usually done manually, which is a labor-intensive process. Cornus florida and C. kousa have generally been found to be self-incompatible allowing for the breeding process to be made more efficient by not having to emasculate flowers. We have capitalized on the natural ability of honeybees and the self-incompatible nature of dogwood to perform self- and crosspollinations of flowering and kousa dogwood. Self-pollinations were conducted in 2006 and 2007 with C. florida ‘Appalachian Spring’ and ‘Cherokee Brave’ and with C. kousa ‘Blue Shadow’ and Galilean®. The flowering dogwood self-pollinations resulted in no seed production, whereas the kousa dogwood self-pollinations resulted in low seed production, indicating self-incompatibility. Intra- and interspecific crosses of flowering and kousa dogwood cultivars and breeding lines were conducted in 2006 to 2008. Honeybees were effective in facilitating seed production for all intraspecific crosses conducted. Seedling phenotypes of putative intra- and interspecific hybrids are similar and practically indistinguishable, so dogwood-specific simple sequence repeats were used to verify a sample of the putative hybrids. The results demonstrated that honeybees were effective in performing controlled pollinations and that honeybee-mediated pollinations provide an alternative to time-consuming hand pollinations for flowering and kousa dogwood.

Growth and Challenges in Florida's Environmental Horticulture Industry

Total Florida environmental horticulture industry sales in 2005 were $15.24 billion (B), whereas total industry output amounted to $10.39 B with $3.01 B for wholesale nurseries, $5.25 B for landscape services, and $2.13 B for horticultural retailers, which reflects the average gross margin on retail sales. Direct employment in the industry was 190,000 full-time jobs plus nearly 104,000 temporary, part-time, or seasonal jobs. Total employment impacts were 319,000 full-time and part-time/seasonal jobs, including 24,000 jobs created in other sectors of the economy. Total value-added or income impacts of $8.65 B included $5.19 B in labor income for employee wages, salaries, and business owner (proprietor) income. Fiscal impacts included $549 million (M) in indirect business taxes paid to local and state governments. Results for 2005 compared with previous studies performed for 1997 and 2000 indicate that growth in the industry has been dramatic over this time period. Industry sales increased from $8.35 B in 1997 to $15.24 B in 2005, representing a 7.8% average annual compound growth rate, whereas employment impacts grew at a 9.2% annual rate, and value-added impacts grew by 4.7%. The study also evaluated the impacts to the industry from eight hurricanes that struck Florida during 2004 and 2005. Nearly 80% of surveyed firms were adversely impacted by at least one hurricane. Total damages and losses resulting from hurricanes were estimated at $2.12 B, including product (crop) losses of $1.05 B, structural damages of $465 M, and cleanup costs of $605 M. Product losses of at least $100,000 were sustained by 22% of firms, whereas structural damages and cleanup costs of this level were suffered by 12% and 8% of firms, respectively. Nearly half (48%) of the firms had their business interrupted for 3 weeks or more. Despite these large losses, the industry continues to thrive.

Occurrence of Arabis mosaic virus in Hostas in the United States.

Hostas (Hosta spp.) are one of the most widely grown and economically important landscape perennials in the nursery industry in North America. Several viruses including Hosta virus X (HVX), Tobacco rattle virus (TRV), Tobacco ringspot virus (ToRSV), Tomato ringspot virus (TomRSV), Impatiens necrotic spot virus (INSV), and Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) are known to occur in hostas (4). This report confirms the occurrence of an additional virus, Arabis mosaic virus (ArMV), in hostas in North America. This virus was first identified during the summer of 2004 in Hosta fortunei 'Sharmon' in several garden centers in Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN. Entire lots of this variety, numbering several dozen plants, showed symptoms consisting of blanching of the foliage similar to those caused by ToRSV and TomRSV infection (4). Symptoms persisted throughout the growing season. Virus-like particles, 28 to 30 nm in diameter, were observed by electron microscopy in partially purified extracts of symptomatic leaf tissue following fixation with 5% glutaraldehyde and negative staining with 2% sodium phosphotungstate, pH 7.0. Particles had an angular outline and some were penetrated by stain. No other virus-like particles were observed in these extracts. The particles were identified as those of ArMV. Identification was made using double antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) and immunosorbent electron microscopy (ISEM) with antiserum to ArMV (PVAS-587) obtained from the American Type Culture Collection, Manassas, VA. In the spring and summer of 2005, ArMV was again identified as described above in 'Sharmon', H. undulata 'Albomarginata' samples from Minnesota, Michigan, and Nebraska, and H. 'Marion Bachman' and H. 'Touch of Class' from two wholesale nurseries in Minnesota. Symptoms in these hosta cultivars were similar to those observed in 'Sharmon' and were accompanied by stunting and leaf deformation. A portion of the coat protein (CP) gene of the ArMV isolate from 'Sharmon', designated ArMV-H, was amplified using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) with ArMV-specific CP primers (3) and total RNA extracted with a RNeasy Plant Mini Kit (Qiagen Inc., Valencia, CA). Amplicons of the expected size (220 bp) were cloned and five clones were sequenced. Nucleotide sequence identities of the ArMV-H CP sequence to corresponding ArMV databank entries varied from 94 to 88% (Genbank Accession Nos. AY017339 and D10086 and X55460 and X81815, respectively). Interestingly, the hosta ArMV isolate was not transmitted by mechanical inoculation to diagnostically susceptible indicator plants (cucumber, tobacco, and petunia) (2) or to hosta (H. undulata 'Albormarginata', H. 'Honeybells', and H. 'Royal Standard'). Testing by using ELISA and ISEM showed that 'Sharmon' source plants contained high levels of ArMV antigen and virions, and a high percentage of virions were not penetrated by negative stain, indicating that they were not empty (i.e., devoid of RNA). It appears that ArMV-H may be transmitted only vertically, (i.e., clonal propagation) and this raises some interesting questions about the molecular basis of this anomaly. An isolate of ArMV from hops was similarly reported to have a very restricted host range (1) suggesting a possibility of a common mechanism of host range restriction.

Marketing Trends and Business Management Practices for the Wholesale Nursery Industry in California

A survey of wholesale nurseries in the United States was conducted in 1999, with 169 of the 806 nurseries surveyed responding from the state of California. The survey, consisting of 29 questions related to production practices, products, sales, and marketing, was sent to a random group of nurseries. Based on these results, over 50% of the new nursery businesses in California have been established within the last two decades. While most of the nurseries have computerized business practices, only 21% have implemented the use of computers or other automation in their production practices. Horticulturally, containerized plant production (80% of the industry) is still the primary method of growing and shipping plants in California, and most (90%) of these products are sold within the state. Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, and Texas are the primary destinations for plant material that is exported out of state. The factors that nursery owners feel influence sales the most include market demand, weather unpredictability, and water supply, while governmental and environmental regulations are perceived to have the least impact. The factors that influence product price include cost of production, market demand, and product uniqueness.

Analysis of Employment in the Illinois Nursery Industry

Horticulture crops are a multimillion dollar industry in Illinois, providing employment opportunities as well as strengthening many local economies. In February 1998, about 300 surveys were mailed to members of the Illinois Nurserymen's Association, including owners and operation managers of retail and wholesale nurseries, greenhouses and garden centers. Questions included the pool of available labor, the total number of persons employed, including full and part-time workers, starting and average salaries for employees, retention rates and training procedures. Questions were also asked regarding employees' education and experience level, average compensation for various levels of employment and demographics of the employee pool. A 48% response rate was achieved with 147 surveys returned and analyzed. Respondents reported an average of 70 employees including sales staff, office staff and seasonal employees. Those businesses responding employed an average of 2.5 managers with an approximate annual salary of $48,000, and an average of 15 laborers with an approximate annual salary of $21,000. Correlations provided insight into which areas of the industry hired persons with horticulture degrees and the types of experience most valued by the respondents.

The Ornamental Prickly Pear Industry in the Southwestern United States

Several species of prickly pear cacti are grown as ornamental plants in public, private, residential, and commercial landscapes throughout the more arid areas of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Texas. Several commercial nurseries, ranging in size from small family-owned specialty operations to large diversified wholesale nurseries, produce and sell prickly pear cacti. The greatest nursery production occurs in Arizona, followed by southern California. In Arizona, there are over 40 small commercial operations in the Phoenix area alone. A survey of Arizona nurseries revealed an inventory of 550,000 prickly pear plants on hand with wholesale and retail values of $4.5 million and $9.5 million, respectively. If prickly pear cacti were lost as a viable nursery crop, small specialized nursery operations would be more likely to suffer than large diversified nurseries.

Fusarium Root and Crown Rot: A Disease of Container-Grown Hostas.

A previously unreported disease was observed on 11 cultivars of container-grown hosta plants at five wholesale nurseries in South Carolina between 1997 and 1999. Symptoms included leaf yellowing, plant stunting, rotting of and vascular discoloration in roots, and necrosis in the crowns. Fusarium spp. consistently were isolated from symptomatic hosta plants. Four species were recovered: F. solani, F. oxysporum, F. proliferatum, and an undescribed species designated Fusarium sp.; F. solani and Fusarium sp. were recovered most frequently. To demonstrate pathogenicity, four methods were used to inoculate hosta plants with representative isolates of F. solani, F. oxysporum, and Fusarium sp. Two types of inoculum, colonized oat seeds and conidium suspensions, were used to inoculate wounded and nonwounded plants. Disease symptoms occurred consistently only on hosta plants inoculated by dipping wounded roots and crowns into suspensions of conidia. Symptoms were most severe on plants inoculated with Fusarium sp. and much less severe on plants inoculated with F. solani or F. oxysporum. Disease severity increased and fresh weight of inoculated plants decreased when the concentration of inoculum of Fusarium sp. was increased over the range of 1 × 103 to 1 × 107 conidia per ml. Isolates of Fusarium sp., F. solani, and F. oxysporum varied in virulence when Hosta 'Francee' plants were inoculated. This study demonstrated that Fusarium root and crown rot of container-grown hostas is caused primarily by Fusarium sp. but that it also can be caused by F. solani and F. oxysporum. Fusarium sp. appears to be taxonomically distinct from other species, and its identity currently is under investigation.

386 Employment Trends Within the Illinois Horticultural Industry

Horticulture crops are a multi-million dollar industry in Illinois, providing employment opportunities as well as strengthening many local economies. To help establish a “green-goods” industry basis for Illinois, ≈300 surveys were mailed to members of the Illinois Nurserymen's Association, including owners and operation managers of retail and wholesale nurseries, greenhouses and garden centers. The focus of the questionnaire was on the horticultural products and services provided and the value of these sales and services to residents of Illinois. Questions were included regarding the pool of available labor, the total number of industry employees, including full and part-time employees, and the starting and average salaries for employees. A 25% response rate was achieved with 76 surveys returned and analyzed. Results examined fundamental predictors in gaining industry employment such as education and experience, employee demographics and average compensation for those employed at various levels. Provided that survey responses were indicative of the overall Illinois horticulture industry, responses provided evidence that the horticulture industry contributes approximately $67 million in salary and wages to the Illinois economy. While universities are reporting an increase in the number of female horticulture graduates, respondents indicated that 74.8% of their employees were male. Businesses reported an average of 28 employees including sales and office staff. However, very few businesses had hired people with disabilities or were aware of the services the state can provide to businesses hiring people with disabilities. Businesses employed an average of 2.5 managers with an approximate annual salary of $48,000, and an average of 15 laborers with an approximate annual salary of $21,000. Correlations provided insight into which areas of the industry hired persons with horticulture degrees and the types of experience most valued by the industry.

First Reports of Aphelenchoides fragariae on Royal Fern and on Hosta and Other Hosts in South Carolina.

In September 1999, royal ferns (Osmunda regalis L.) at a South Carolina wholesale nursery were found to be infected by foliar nematodes. Lesions were brown, vein-limited, and often fan shaped. As severity increased, affected leaflets became totally necrotic. Nematodes were extracted by excising and dicing symptomatic leaf sections and placing them in water for up to 24 h. Ten adult nematodes from each of two fern plants were examined microscopically and determined to be Aphelenchoides fragariae (Ritzema Bos) Christie. This is the first report of this nematode infecting royal fern. In August 1996, leaves from several cultivars of Hosta spp. with yellow to tan, vein-limited lesions were submitted from The South Carolina Botanical Garden (Clemson, SC) to the Clemson University Plant Problem Clinic for diagnosis. Nematodes were extracted and examined as described above and identified as A. fragariae. This is the first report of this nematode infecting Hosta spp. in South Carolina. Since 1996, foliar nematodes have been recovered from hostas at several wholesale nurseries in South Carolina. Aphelenchoides spp. also have been detected previously in commercially produced ornamental plants in South Carolina, including a Begonia sp. in 1988; Polygonum bistorta L. 'Super-bum' (snakeweed) in 1997; and a Polystichum sp. (holly fern) in 1997. All plants exhibited angular or vein-limited, necrotic lesions typical of foliar nematode infections.