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Avoiding ethylene in the greenhouse: e-GRO Alert

March 5, 2015  By Dr. Neil S. Mattson Cornell University


March 5, 2015 – Heater maintenance and proper ventilation will help you avoid this common spring problem.

What do the following grower observations have in common?

1. Geraniums in hanging baskets near a natural gas furnace had yellow lower leaves and flowers that did not fully open.

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2. New Guinea impatiens in a double poly house did not come into  2015 Sponsors flower until June.

3. Fibrous begonias did not flower until several  weeks after their counterparts in a neighbouring  greenhouse.

4. On a cold night, tomatoes in a high tunnel were kept from freezing  with a portable ventless  propane heater. By morning, leaves on plants near the heater were bending  down and had yellow leaf edges.

The cause of all four problems was exposure to ethylene.

Click here for this latest e-GRO Alert: 

Click here for the e-GRO Alert website.


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