By Denise Méthé
When you want to break into the market to sell hops plants to commercial growers across Canada and the United States, you know that the biggest challenge is to provide clean plants to your buyers. Nothing is more upsetting to the commercial grower than the prospect of introducing plants that carry any one of numerous viral, fungal or bacterial pathogens that could ruin their investments. When my husband Robert and I started Northeast Plants Inc. in eastern Canada a few years ago, we were especially aware of that. I was a scientist and he came from generations of horticultural professionals. We knew the risk and we knew what we had to do to solve it. We knew that not only did we have to grow clean plants, but we had to be able to convince our buyers as a newcomer in the industry that we were doing it right. That is why we opted to propagate our plants in vitro to allow them to stay perfectly clean through the propagation progress. We combined 80 years of horticultural experience with modern science to use the process scientists called micro-propagation or “tissue culture” to grow plants in our specially equipped facilities. Tissue culture is essentially an alternative way to propagate plants as opposed to the traditional vegetative way. The advantage is that in vitro growing plants normally start life free from bacterial and fungal diseases. While the concept has been studied as far back as 1838, and tried (and failed) as early as 1902, it is only now gaining interest as an alternative propagation method to ensure clean plants. In Canada, there is growing interest in it and indeed, Robert has been asked to participate in a national clean plants group to help other growers learn more about this option that is being studied with great interest by growers of forest and fruit trees as well. The in vitro growing technique of micro propagation has additional advantages to the grower, besides yielding clean plants. It requires a much smaller space than traditional vegetative propagation. There is a higher multiplication rate. As well, by being able to conduct the process and grow in soilless sterile potting mix in a temperature and humidity controlled greenhouse environment as we do, you are free from depending on the seasons, you have controlled culture conditions and freedom from microbes. We have found that once a plant tissue culture line is established, it can give a continuous supply of young plants throughout the entire year. The time required to grow is shortened considerably because you do not have to wait through the entire life cycle of seed development. We can see this science working for other growers of different kinds of plants as well. Taking an explant does not usually destroy the mother plant, so it is possible using this method to safely clone a rare or endangered plant. From the beginning we also planned to sell our plants both in Canada and the United States, and we have found that being able to produce plants in a virus free state also facilitates movement of plants across borders. Denise Méthé and her husband Robert own and operate Northeast Plants Inc., supplier of healthy, clean hops plants to commercial growers across Canada and the United States. Based in New Brunswick in eastern Canada, they can be reached by calling 506-856-0049 or emailing [email protected]. Learn more about varieties sold at www.northeastplants.ca.
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By Denise Méthé
January marks the month when many people start to focus on resolutions for the New Year, promise to rid themselves of a few excess pounds, and gently recover from the holiday season. It is a period of unwinding and re-focusing. But at Northeast Plants, our family-owned business where we grow and supply healthy, clean hops plants to commercial growers across Canada and the United States, it is our peak season for processing orders. It is a revving up, not down season. That surprises our friends who imagine that the last days of summer and the early days of autumn would be our busiest time of the year at our New Brunswick facility on Canada’s east coast. But in the hops growing business, order-taking season generally starts in September and goes right through to the end of January. There are orders that come in after that of course, but our regular clients come early to get their choices of variety and quantity. We require a 30 percent deposit when the order is placed, and the balance is to be paid one week prior to shipping. We grow our live, clean plants that are propagated in vitro and then transferred to mycorrhizae enriched soilless sterile potting mix in our temperature and humidity controlled greenhouse environment. We only sell plants that are fully established, ready to be transplanted into the fields of commercial growers. The plants are grown and then shipped in standard 55-cell flats. Cells are 40mm (1.6") by 55mm (21/4") deep. Plant height, including root mass is 15cm (6”) to 30cm (12”). Two trays are carefully packed into our custom-made (insulated) shipping boxes. We apply a $8 fee per shipping box and $20 for a pallet when needed. From the beginning to the end of the process, we take exceptional care of our plants. It is a point of pride that our better, healthier hops plants grown with my background as a scientist and my husband Robert’s heritage of generations of horticultural know-how combine to instill confidence in our clients. We want our buyers to be able to plant with confidence, and this is the guiding principle of everything we do. So many people go through life wishing they could do work that they enjoy, and from which they can see growth and change and progress. As each order comes in and we look over our greenhouse and watch our dream of creating this business become a reality, we know that satisfaction and it is exciting to see things develop. Growing and nurturing plants is an exacting science and a tireless task. But producing good, clean plants that help commercial growers succeed in their own businesses is always satisfying to us. We encourage regular and new clients to contact us now to ensure they get exactly what they want. Denise Méthé and her husband Robert own and operate Northeast Plants Inc., supplier of healthy, clean hops plants to commercial growers across Canada and the United States. Based in New Brunswick in eastern Canada, they can be reached by calling 506-856-0049 or emailing [email protected]. Learn more about varieties sold at www.northeastplants.ca. |
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Denise Méthé and her husband Robert own and operate Northeast Plants Inc., supplier of healthy, clean hops plants to commercial growers across Canada and the United States. Based in New Brunswick in eastern Canada, they can be reached by calling 506-856-0049 or emailing [email protected] Archives
April 2022
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