Geneva Greenhouse Standard Operating Procedures
The greenhouses at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station operate under a set of Best Management Practices. Those practices have been implemented in specific ways. This site provides information that makes it easy for all users to find out how to do things properly. Following these practices will make your experiments more successful, will keep your neighbors happier, will make your interaction with staff easier, and will help you avoid breaking the many laws and regulations that apply to greenhouse operations.
The links below all lead to PDF files for printing. They open in a new window. Go here for the HTML version
Policies that set out specific rules and responsibilities.
Pesticide selection policy
What is allowed in Geneva houses and who decides.Pesticide application policy
Read this before planting. If you ever need a pesticide application, you will need to have followed this procedure from the start.Best Managment Practices Implementation Committee's charge
Who is doing this stuff, and how they got the authority.Geneva Best Managment Practices
The practices that we are to follow to be legal. 1. Pesticide and Fertilizer storage. 2. Nutrient Mangament. 3. Greenhouse pest control. 4. Greenhouse weed control. 5. Greenhouse maintenance. 6. New greenhouse construction.
How-to's that make it easy to follow the prescribed policy.
Scouting
Scouting is at the heart of pest management and is required in our houses. This is a concise and complete guide to scouting our research greenhouses. This Scouting Form has proved helpful for record keeping.Pesticide Spills
Mishandling a spill has serious consequences. Know you are doing the right thing.Transgenic plants
We have an obligation to be meticulous in our handling of transgenics.Spot treatment with pesticide
There are a few materials that can be applied as soon as an infestation is found, even outside normal spray hours, if this procedure is used.Lighting
How to get light times set and bad bulbs replaced.Visitor communications
Short-term visitors can cause havoc in the greenhouse. This is the minimum of what they need to know.
How-to's for common activities. These convey the art of horticultural practice. They are useful both for trainining new staff and as guidance to experienced users.
Sanitation
How clean does a greenhouse need to be, and how to you keep it that way?Obtaining Cornell Mix
Whom to ask, what you get.Wetting Cornell mix
Get good seedlings without making a mess.Starting seedlings in flats
Small cell volumes are efficient but unforgiving. This is how the pros do it.Watering
The pro's say, "The person with their hand on the hose has their hand on your wallet." A simple job that requires close attention.Fertilizer
Keeping plants well fed without overfeeding and polluting.Disinfecting
The most efficient way to disinfect the greenhouse between uses.Security
Station security personnel check on the greenhouses regularly during the night and weekends. Here is what they are expected to do.
Rules of the greenhouse to prevent conflicts and misunderstandings.
Autoclave (Barton)