Woody Cut Stems for Growers and Florists: Production and Post-Harvest Handling of Branches for Flowers, Fruit, and Foliage By Lane Greer and John DolePublished in November 2008, Woody Cut Stems for Growers and Florists has been eagerly awaited for several years by cut flower growers. Woody ornamentals are the next frontier in floral materials, offering many benefits to the grower: they can be harvested earlier and later than field-grown flowers; they command high prices; many of them store well; they are generally long-lived plants that, once established, don’t require a lot of attention. Until now, there has been little guidance about growing and selling branches. Woody Cut Stems for Growers and Florists fills the information gap. This is an amazingly detailed book, 576 pages, with information on more than 100 genera. The trees and shrubs are divided into three categories: Proven Woody Cut Species, the biggest portion of the book at 300 pages; Species Worth Trying, with about 30 pages; and Species Best Avoided, which may be the most valuable three pages in the book for those who like to experiment. The book also provides an overview of production, including pruning and coppicing, harvest and postharvest, defoliating branches, forcing blossoms, and cutting from the wild. The authors are Lane Greer and John Dole. Greer may be familiar to many from her years as a horticulture specialist with ATTRA, during which time she also operated her own flower farm. She left ATTRA to get a PhD at North Carolina State, where she worked with Dole, a floriculture professor. Both have been extensively involved in research and education about cut flowers for more than a decade. They traveled to Holland while researching this book, and learned some interesting practices and strategies that were little-known in the U.S. For example, the Dutch grow their woody plants on extremely tight spacing and then cut the plants back to the ground every year, a practice known as coppicing. The book details species that should be coppiced and those that shouldn’t. The Dutch system proves that you don’t need a vast acreage for woody production; many can be grown in a field situation similar to that used for perennial plants. The book covers all the commonly grown woodies such as pussy willows, red-twig dogwoods, forsythia, hydrangeas and lilacs. It covers many unusual plants grown for their foliage, berries, and branches. And it provides the most up-to-date information on species often grown as perennials, such as Buddleia. The individual species accounts in the book follow a format that is clear and useful. Each is introduced with “Why you should grow it,” which of course describes its beauty, uses, and demands. That’s followed with “Why you shouldn’t,” which explains its shortcomings, such as nasty thorns or short vase life. Next comes a list of recommended cultivars, specific production advice, harvest and postharvest handling, marketing standards, common problems, and uses. Greer and Dole emphasize that success as a woody grower depends on choosing varieties that are appropriate for your climate. Chilling hours, winter hardiness, heat tolerance and other climate-related matters are all important factors regulating woody plants. This book will help the grower figure out which species will work. Even more important, it provides guidance about market expectations for woody cuts. It will eliminate a lot of the guesswork about how to harvest, handle, package and sell branches to florists and other floral buyers. If you have ever thought of forcing fruit branches for early spring sales, or growing berries for fall and winter sales, you need this book. It will help you succeed with the woodies you’ve been dreaming of, and may introduce you to many that you never even considered. It would be a terrific holiday gift for the flower grower. Woody Cut Stems is 6x9, 576 pages, 137 color photos, hardcover. GFM, PO Box 3747, Lawrence KS 66046.Phone toll-free 800-307-8949www.growingformarket.com/store
