Practical Tips for Productive Growing

Practical Tips for Productive Growing

From Hort Culture by Plant People

May 3, 2026 · 50 min · Season 4 · Episode 18

About this episode

The episode discusses practical, budget-friendly strategies for growers, focusing on weed management, irrigation, production efficiency, and marketing.

This episode of Hort Culture features special guest Sarah Geurkink from the Organic Association of Kentucky and focuses on practical, budget-friendly strategies for growers, with discussions centered around weed management, irrigation, production efficiency, and marketing. The conversation begins with a lighthearted discussion about favorite spring blooming trees before shifting into grower advice. A major topic is weed management, emphasizing the importance of understanding which weeds are most problematic, how quickly they go to seed, and how large the weed seed bank is in the soil. The group explains how tilling can expose dormant weed seeds and why preventing weeds from reaching maturity is one of the best long-term management strategies. They also discuss how using mulch, weed barriers, and consistent maintenance can significantly reduce weed pressure over time. Another useful production tip involves planting in black plastic mulch, where using potting soil instead of field soil around transplants helps reduce heat stress and prevents weeds from growing directly around young plants. The episode also highlights challenges growers face when scaling up from home gardening to…

People in this episode

Guest: Sarah Geurkink

Topics covered

  • weed management
  • irrigation
  • production efficiency
  • marketing
  • budget-friendly strategies

Keywords

  • weed management
  • irrigation
  • production efficiency
  • marketing
  • mulch
  • group purchasing
  • heat stress

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Organic Association of Kentucky

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