Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

Resource Available for Integrated Pest Management

Pest management plays a big role in keeping floriculture businesses running smoothly. Without it, practitioners struggle with reduced quality, inadequate production, and disease. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a strategy that allows growers to handle effective pest control in a comprehensive manner, incorporating biological, chemical, cultural, and physical control methods.. Sustainabloom has called upon the expertise of researchers to help growers learn to implement IPM effectively in their practices. Through a detailed guide and supplemental resources, researchers Amanda Solliday and Dr. Melinda Knuth of the Department of Horticultural Sciences at North Carolina State University not only provide valuable guidance about IPM to growers but also explain how an effective strategy can lead to improved product quality and a more sustainable-friendly…

Jan 28, 2026

Progress Powered by Partnerships

Since its launch, Sustainabloom has become the go-to sustainability education resource for the floral community, uniting industry members and businesses to advance environmental, social, and economic progress. Together, in collaboration with researchers at North Carolina State University, Sustainabloom has created a foundation of knowledge, tools, and inspiration that’s transforming how floriculture businesses think about sustainability. With the help from industry experts, researchers, and industry partners, Sustainabloom has grown into a thriving hub for sustainability education. Our Founding Supporters helped pave the way for this work, and now we are calling on all floral businesses to help support future Sustainabloom efforts. Every dollar contributed to Sustainabloom goes directly toward creating free, high-quality, research-backed resources accessible to everyone, and we’ve already made…

Nov 13, 2025

IPM at Metrolina Greenhouses (from Integrated Pest Management Guide)

Think IPM is a fringe idea in pest management? One of the largest ornamental producers in the country, Metrolina Greenhouses, practices integrated pest management to maintain crop health and sustainability. Dr. Mark Yelanich, director of research at Metrolina, emphasizes the importance of monitoring the major insect pests, such as thrips, white fly, fungus gnats, shore fly, spider mites, and aphids. At Metrolina, they do weekly 24-hour counts with sticky cards, which enable the growers to find hot spots in the more than 200 acres of greenhouses. “We want to avoid simply scheduling chemical sprays without understanding the pest pressures,” Dr. Yelanich says. “And over time, our pesticide usage is going down, so we’re heading in the right direction.” Metrolina employees…

May 15, 2025

Sustainabloom Releases Four New Guides for Floriculture Sustainability

Sustainabloom, a leading resource for sustainability in the floriculture industry, has released four new industry guides to help businesses support their sustainability journey. These comprehensive guides offer insights and practical advice on Energy Efficiency, Carbon Accounting, and Inventory Management.Developed by Sustainabloom program researchers at NC State University, these guides provide industry members with the tools and knowledge they need to reduce their environmental impact and improve their business operations. The new guides released include: Carbon Accounting: The Carbon Accounting guide offers a comprehensive overview of this essential practice and helps businesses understand the greenhouse gas emissions associated with their operations, measure their carbon footprint, and begin to think about strategies for reduction and offsetting. By implementing carbon accounting, florists and growers can make informed…

Oct 10, 2024

Growing Greener Together

AFE Connects the Floriculture Industry with Sustainability Through Comprehensive Research Guides, Expert Resources For over six decades, the American Floral Endowment (AFE) has represented the entire floral community, providing and sharing free resources to everyone, thanks to the generosity of donors. As the industry’s leading charitable organization, AFE receives and collects donations to invest them, generating funding that advances floriculture through research, education, and special programming. Recently, the Endowment began a new project that aims to further that growth, this time focusing on helping industry members approach and become more actionable with sustainability. Sustainabloom is a research-driven program created to provide in-depth guides and resources about sustainability developed by top researchers in the field. The information is housed efficiently within our…

May 30, 2024