Impact of Selected Sustainable Production Practices On Poinsettia Quality and Consumer Preferences

As more greenhouse producers look into using sustainable practices, information is lacking about how these practices impact crop performance or consumer preferences. Poinsettias produced using organic media, clay additives that provide wetting agent and water retention characteristics, and bioplastics were compared to conventionally-produced plants.  The first objective of this experiment was to determine how Mg-mica addition influences poinsettia growth and quality, use of nutrient management tools (pH and EC), and water use (irrigation frequency and quantity) compared to plants produced in standard organic and conventional media.  The second specific objective was to compare consumer preference and price-willing-to pay for poinsettias that are of equal quality, but produced using conventional versus sustainable production practices. A split plot design where poinsettia cultivars were the main plot and sustainable treatments were the subplots was used for this experiment. Sustainable treatments consisted of  1) Fafard # 2 without Mg-Mica in plastic 6” azalea pots (Control), 2) Fafard #2 with Mg-Mica in plastic 6” azalea pots, 3) Fafard Organic without Mg-Mica in OP47 6” bioplastic pots, or 4) Fafard Organic with Mg-Mica in OP47 6” bioplastic pots. All other production practices were consistent across treatments. Data collected during production included the number of irrigation events per treatment, pH and EC of leachates, plant growth parameters, and plant quality. Upon maturation, plants from treatment 1 (conventional) and 4 (sustainable) were placed in a consumer preference survey. The number of irrigation events varied by treatment early in production with the Mg-Mica treatments being irrigated less often than those without the supplement. Leachate measures remained relatively flat for pH with a trend downward for EC across all treatments during the production cycle. Plants in Fafard #2 were slightly larger than those in Fafard Organic media. When given the choice of a sustainably produced plant or conventionally produced plant, consumers chose the sustainably produced plant 70% of the time.  While 3 % of consumers surveyed indicted that they would not pay more for a sustainably produced plant, 32, 49, 8, 4, and 3% of consumers indicated a willingness to pay the same, up to 15, 30, 45, or 60% more for a sustainably produced plant, respectively. Consumers surveyed indicated a willingness to pay higher prices for plants that were organically produced, locally produced, used biodegradable pots, or had efficient water use during production.  The use of sustainable production practices is gaining momentum with producers and clients.