Controlling Pests and Diseases

It is a fact of life that chemical usage is becoming more and more regulated. Methyl Bromide which has been a main stay in fumigation of media is on the way out. We have been advised that in a few years we will need to have alternative ways in place. Alternative treatments have to do the same job at least as well if not better than our present treatment.

We want to eliminate all soil borne diseases and also weed seeds to control these problems before they begin.

After investigation we have installed and are using an electric powered steam generator. This is indeed a clean environmentally friendly system and is giving us good results.

Essentially we steam the media in a vault which can hold four commercial pallets packed with propagation media or pots up to 2m high. The steam is forced in with a large recirculating fan and the vault is brought up to 60oC. This temperature is held for 30 minutes followed by a switch to exhaust the steam and bring the temperature quickly down to normal.

We are pleased in that we can straight away use the material steamed with absolute safety.

All of us in business today know we have to be adaptable to government regulation and community concern. There is always another way to do most jobs.

We at Redlands have solved this problem of the future and are pleased to pass on our experience to you.