General News
4 April, 2023
Students learn ins and outs of soil
TIMBOON P-12 Year 9/10 AgHort students have continued their studies into what makes soil healthy.
TIMBOON P-12 Year 9/10 AgHort students have continued their studies into what makes soil healthy.
Timboon Agriculture Project co-ordinator Andrea Vallance said the class recently undertook a field trip to Timboon Wholesale Nursery.
She said the visit allowed the students to observe how healthy soils impacts growing conditions and the real life impacts in an actual horticultural /agricultural businesses.
“Owner, Danny Li, described the history of the business that started in 1974 as Bullen’s Nursery, a small retail nursery in Timboon before Trevor and Cherolyn Bullen established it as a specialist wholesale nursery producing quality potted cyclamen, hydrangeas and lisianthus that are sold to retail nurseries and florists in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia,” Mrs Vallance said.
“Danny, who graduated with a degree in Computer Science, previously worked as web designer and was a sales consultant in real estate before he saw the nursery for sale in 2021 and realised his passion to work with plants.
“Danny stressed the importance of good quality soil for the potting mix and then described the business’ use of technology including sensors to monitor and maintain optimum conditions in the nursery.”
As part of the visit students toured the potted shed, control room, greenhouse, and propagation sheds to see how they were all designed with optimum plant growth in mind.
“They learnt that although Timboon was a great location to crop these flower crops, the weather, humidity, light, pests, temperature, moisture and soil chemistry had to all be carefully curated and controlled in the automated greenhouses to ensure that the best quality plants were produced for retailers to sell to consumers,” Mrs Vallance said.