Photo courtesy of University of Florida
A new online course for growers from the University of Florida, Substrates for Container-Grown Plants, will train nursery, greenhouse and CEA staff to understand the science of substrates on factors that improve water and air availability for plants.
The course is taught by Loren Oki, Ph.D., professor emeritus at the University of California, and Jeb Fields, Ph.D., assistant professor at the University of Florida.
The course is offered by the University of Florida IFAS Extension Greenhouse Online Training and is a requirement for the new Root Zone Expert Program.
Substrates for Container-Grown Plants is designed for people with some experience or entry-university level who are in production, technical or sales roles for greenhouse and nursery crops.
The course presents and discusses principles of soil science and practices applied to managing container substrates, emphasizing the appropriate use of substrates, amendments, fertilizers and irrigation to grow plants in containers. The skills learned can be applied to the growth, maintenance and management of container-grown plants in nursery and greenhouse production in commercial and urban agriculture, research and commercial landscapes.
The course is offered in English and Spanish and runs for four weeks, from Oct. 6 to 31, 2025. The cost is $285 per participant.
All course material is completely online, available at any time of the day and includes pre-recorded videos, quizzes and an interactive discussion board with Oki and Fields. Two new modules are activated each week during the course, for a total of eight learning modules. Instruction is at attendees' own pace and time within the four weeks of the course, with a typical time commitment of about five hours per week.
There is also a 20% discount for registrations of five or more. For more information, including discounts for multiple registrations, email greenhousetraining@ifas.ufl.edu.
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