One of the most common questions we get here at Oasis Grower Solutions is how our new “next generation” substrates, like OASIS® RhizoPlug™ Tray, are different from the OASIS® substrates you’ve come to know and trust through the years.
Before we go any further, let us make this clear: Your favorites in that previous generation, including OASIS® Wedge® propagation substrate, aren’t going anywhere.
However, for many of you, the crops you grow and how you grow them have changed a lot since the first time the predecessors to our next-generation substrates landed on your dock. Young plant production with today’s growing environments, new genetics and production technologies — from climate controls and supplemental LED lighting to automation and sticking robots — looks a lot different than it did just a few years ago.
If you’ve been following the narrative on our new OASIS® RhizoPlug™ Tray — aka The Ultimate Propagation Experience — you know this new generation of foam substrates came about because we believed that industry changes demanded a new approach. OASIS® RhizoPlug™ was the result. Is it the substrate for you? We’ll let you decide. But understanding the generational differences between our substrates can help.
Bulk Density and Crop Considerations
OASIS® Wedge® is an exceptional propagation media for poinsettias and similar crops. Known as The Poinsettia Propagator’s Dream, it was designed with poinsettias in mind. The bulk density and corresponding resistance of OASIS® Wedge® suits sturdy cuttings well. But soft, fragile annuals and Stage III tissue culture crops are a different story.
One of the drivers behind the development of OASIS® RhizoPlug™ substrates was a request from floriculture growers for an engineered substrate that could handle tender cuttings without breakage, tip damage and cutting loss. In OASIS® RhizoPlug™ substrates, we decreased the foam’s density and resistance. The result is fast, easy, damage-free sticking — even with fragile varieties.
Porosity and Cutting Hydration and Recovery
One of things poinsettia propagators love about OASIS® Wedge® is the ability to mist cuttings as needed, without worrying about overwatering — the No. 1 error in poinsettia propagation. The higher air porosity of OASIS® Wedge® ensures poinsettias and similar cuttings stay well aerated and well hydrated during critical root initiation.
When our Research, Innovation & Development team designed OASIS® RhizoPlug™, we took rehydration and recovery up a notch, with a broader range of floriculture crops in mind. With this new substrate generation and its advanced surfactant technology, cuttings rehydrate and recover faster. That translates to an earlier reduction in misting frequency, reduced pest and pathogen pressures, and less labor, too.
Cell Structure and Capillary Action
As poinsettia breeders and propagators regularly tell us, the water holding capacity and capillarity of OASIS® Wedge® is ideal for poinsettia propagation. At transplant, the substrate interfaces well with inorganic growing media. But in some cases, organic media can rapidly draw water away from the plugs, causing them to dry out if growers aren’t vigilant.
At the request of propagators of other floriculture crops, we developed the ultrafine cell structure you experience with OASIS® RhizoPlug™. The result is higher water holding capacity, improved capillarity and an outstanding transplant interface with both non-organic and organic growing media, including peat, coco, wood fiber and other blends.
Ease of Extraction and Automation Readiness
OASIS® Wedge® has many benefits, but being automation-ready isn’t one of them. We don’t consider that a fault, simply a fact. This generation of substrates wasn’t designed for automated sticking or transplanting. Instead, the different configurations were designed for ease of manual handling, sorting, grading and spacing.
OASIS® RhizoPlug™ Tray represents our very first automation-ready engineered substrate. Every aspect of the product — from the labor-saving preloaded trays to the singulated plugs themselves — was designed for seamless integration with automation equipment. Easy sticking, no root tangling, no broken roots at transplant, no transplant shock. That goes for manual operators, too.
Research Trials and Young Plant Quality
As we write this, our next generation substrates are proving themselves with floriculture growers across the country, from border to border and coast to coast. The result confirm that OASIS® RhizoPlug™ substrates delivers significantly improved rooting performance, with faster establishment and root formation compared to its predecessor.
Before we brought OASIS® RhizoPlug™ Tray to market, we conducted rigorous trials against loose fill and specialty media, including stabilized plugs. This new generation of engineered substrate delivered faster, better, more consistent and more uniform rooting, plus profuse root and shoot growth for exceptional young plants — and cut down bench time by up to 20%.
As Dr. Vijay Rapaka, our Director of Global Grower Operations and Research, often tells us, Oasis Grower Solutions is here to solve problems that growers face. Do our OASIS® RhizoPlug™ substrates solve yours? Give us a call; we’ll help you decide. Don’t worry, there’s no hard sell here — just honest, solid advice from people who have your success foremost in mind.