stuff happens

Last week, my son, Nick and I toured Ball Seed Company's "Ball Premier Line" , seed prepping department.  Raw seed is graded and then placed in cyclones.  The cyclones allow the seed to fly through the air.  At the bottom of the cyclone are three spray nozzles that spray a special coating on the raw seed.

In photo, one raw seed has received the first coating. The second photo shows the seeds almost finished as they have received a yellow coating.  Ball coats seeds in order to make them slick.  Reducing drag on the seed allows growers to singulate the seed easier when running the seed through a seed sewing machine (you can view an earlier story on our in-house germination)

Raw Seed receiving a first layer of coating

Coated Seed completed

Nick, scraping the cyclone to agitate the seed 

Cyclones

Pelletizing the seed makes the seed round.  Round, larger seed is easier to sew.

Pelletizing the seed.  Different from coating

Ball Seed tech explaining pelletizing to Nick

Pre-germinated seed receiving pelletization

Ball Teck prepping seed

June 19, marked the beginning of poinsettia season.  Temps were in the high 80's the day we stuck these cutttings in Oasis rooting wedges.  We ran mist every 10 minutes intervals for 16 second duration.  Also, 400 ppm of SOAX, wetting agent was injected through the mist lines.

June 19, 2013.  We stuck 3000 unrooted poinsettia cuttings

Camille and Casey working in the greenhouse on a hot day. Note the poinsettias were stressed.