EFFECTIVE STOCK KEEPING

IN A PLANT NURSERY
 IMPORTANCE OF STOCK KEEPING IN A PLANT NURSERY
Effective Stock management is a critical process for plant growers to ensure Healthy, Importance of
Stock, customer satisfaction, and efficient operations. When done correctly, it can help reduce costs
and maximize profits. In this guide to inventory management for Growers, Nurseries, and related
sector, we will discuss the importance of inventory management in the plant grower industry as well
as the benefits of using nursery management. By the end of this guide, you will have a better
understanding of how inventory management can help your plant-growing succeed.
Inventory management, while not necessarily a fun topic, is a crucial element in determining a
nursery profitability. If a nursery cannot make a profit, it will soon cease to be able to produce more
plants. Therefore, inventory management is very important for our industry.
Accurate Tracking of Stock Levels
A proper inventory management system enables commercial plant growers
to accurately estimate potential sales inventory and track stock levels,
ensuring that they never run out of product. This is crucial for ensuring
that customer orders are fulfilled on time and making sure there is enough
product in stock to meet demand.
Increased Efficiency
A properly managed inventory system means that there is no unnecessary waste, as products are
only ordered when needed and supplies are never overstocked. This increased efficiency leads to
cost savings and higher customer satisfaction levels.
Reduced Costs
As mentioned, effective inventory management reduces
the costs associated with excess inventory, such as
storage and handling costs. It also reduces the costs
associated with stock shortages, such as rush
shipping fees and lost sales.
Maximized Profits
Effective inventory management helps greenhouses
nurseries, and commercial plant growers maximize
their profits by ensuring that they have the right
products in stock to meet customer demand.
It also helps growers minimize waste by reducing
the amount of unsold inventory that must be discarded.
Improved Customer Satisfaction
Having the right products in stock ensures that customers can purchase what they need when they
need it. This increases customer satisfaction, which leads to repeat business and positive word-of-
mouth marketing.
 The Process of Inventory Management for Commercial
Plant Growers
Inventory management is an essential part of any commercial plant grower’s business. It helps to
ensure that there is enough product in stock to meet customer demand and minimize the costs
associated with excess inventory or stock shortages. In this section, we will look at the process of
inventory management for commercial plant growers, from determining your inventory needs to
monitoring and adjusting your plant materials and inventory management strategies.

1. Determine Your Inventory Needs.

Before you can effectively set up inventory systems to manage your inventory, it is important to first
determine your inventory needs. This includes understanding the size of your customer base, predicting
customer demand, estimating the quantity of stock needed to meet that demand, and the frequency of
orders required.
2. Monitor Your Inventory
Once you have determined how many plants your inventory needs, it is important to regularly
monitor your stock levels. This involves keeping track of the stock you have on hand, the stock
that is on order, and the stock that has been sold but not yet delivered. This helps to ensure
that you are able to quickly identify any stock shortages and address them in a timely manner.
It’s also important to monitor your equipment inventory such as pots, trays, labels, and other
materials needed for your operation.
3. Analyse Your Inventory Data
In order to effectively manage your inventory, it is important to analyse the data associated
with your inventory levels. This includes understanding customer buying trends and identifying
any potential problems or issues that may arise due to changes in demand or supply. Look for
trends in sales, identify slow-moving items, and forecast demand to ensure that you have
accurate sales inventory and the right products in stock to meet customer demand.
4. Implement Inventory Management Strategies
After analysing your inventory data, you should implement strategies to ensure that your
inventory is managed effectively. This could include automating ordering processes such as
setting up automatic inventory replenishment to ensure that you always have the right
products in stock. Alternatively, consider setting up your inventory control system to provide
alerts when stock levels reach a certain threshold. Depending on the situation, it could also
mean ordering inventory in bulk to take advantage of volume discounts.
5. Monitor and Adjust Your Inventory Management Strategies
Finally, it is essential to monitor, maintain control, and adjust your inventory management
strategies regularly. This involves reviewing your inventory data, identifying areas for
improvement, and implementing changes to optimize your inventory management processes
continually.
With the right inventory management strategies and tools, commercial plant growers can
maximize their profits, improve customer satisfaction, and reduce the costs associated with
stock shortages.
Role of Stock Keepers

• Nursery workers have a wide range of responsibilities, which can include:

• Maintaining records of plant care including watering schedules, fertilization requirements, pest
control measures, and other pertinent information.
• Preparing seedlings for planting by sponging off excess water with a mist sprayer or gently
shaking them in trays with screens or perforated trays to allow excess water to drain away.
• Observing plants for signs of insect infestation or disease and reporting these conditions to the
appropriate staff member for treatment.
• Planting seedlings into planter boxes or bags of soil, using a hand fork or other tools.
• Inspecting nursery stock for signs of insect infestation, disease, or other damage.
• Providing technical support to customers regarding plant care and maintenance.
• Planting seedlings in greenhouses or flower beds, using hand tools such as shovels and trowels.
• Transplanting small plants into larger pots or flats to promote growth and ensure survival of the
plant.
• Keeping records on plant care and maintenance activities performed throughout the growing cycle
Record keeping
Objective: Maintain records that help verify that inputs are clean and nursery workers are complying
with clean production practices and facilitate traceability of materials used for the production
process.
What you should know: Well-documented, consistent records are a key element of any inventory
system. Accrediting organizations or clients may require that records documenting the nursery’s
compliance with clean production practices be made available upon request. Even if you are not
selling to clients that require this documentation, adequate records and documentation are a key
tool for any nursery following a clean production system. Where multiple workers are involved,
records show who did what and when. This information helps the nursery manager monitor working
practices, and also provides a way to trace back problems that may arise in one or more batches of
plants. Having good records can mean the difference between a quarantine of the entire nursery to
track down a Phytophthora infestation and focusing on a small group of plants that may have been
exposed to a particular lapse or exception.
Some areas of record keeping to consider are listed below. The types of records that apply to
different nurseries will vary somewhat, but all records should be clear, with dates/times and worker
initials as appropriate. A useful way to organize much of this information is to maintain planting-to-
delivery records for each separate batch of plants that allows you to quickly review all of the inputs
and cultural practices during production as well as plant health issues that have been observed.
Planting materials:
Maintain dated logs noting collectors; species; collection locations or sources; propagule types;
notes on environmental conditions and any exceptional circumstances during collection; storage
conditions (e.g., dates, location, temperature); and treatment (e.g., dips, heat treatment) parameters.
Containers:
For each batch of plants, record whether new or reused containers, racks, and flats are used. For
reused containers, maintain logs documenting cleaning and sanitation details (when treated, by
whom, how).
Potting media:
For each batch of potting media, maintain records indicating the media source and how and when it
was treated (method, time, temperature data, etc.).
Water:
Document the water supply used, including practices used for maintaining wellhead integrity, if
applicable. Make note of plumbing system maintenance that could introduce contamination into the
irrigation system, such as repair of broken pipes, etc. Record procedures used to sanitize pipes
which may have been contaminated.
Production practices:
Compliance with phytosanitary procedures should be documented to the degree possible with dated
log sheets. Dated logs should include records for testing or refreshing disinfectant solutions (post a
log sheet near the site), plant health inspections, checklists, and other records used to emphasize
and maintain clean production practices.
Testing:
Keep track of which batches or individual plants have been tested,
where they were located in the nursery, and dated results. Document
further actions taken based on test results (retesting or scheduled
retesting, plants destroyed, moved to quarantine area, etc.) and any
follow-up or determinations as to the source of identified detections.
Plant batches:
Use pot labels to identify each plant batch. The batch number should
allow you to identify the type and source of plant propagules used,
dates of potting and repotting, container types used, types of potting
media used and how/when it was treated, testing, and other
production inputs and handling. Complete information on production
inputs, handling, and testing is critical for tracing potential sources of
contamination if plants in a given batch are found to be infected.
Worker training:
For all workers, keep track of training that was conducted (when, by
whom, topics). Make sure nursery workers have read these BMPs
and other related materials and have enough training to follow
them. Keep copies of BMPs and related references available for
quick reference in the nursery. Where appropriate, post relevant
procedures in work areas where they will be used.
Managing Plant Material Inventory
• In order to maintain control of plant materials, equipment, tools, and supplies, an inventory control
system is needed. Business management experts often classify inventor systems according to the
usage of the item in inventory. Following this line of thought, a greenhouse inventory can be
categorized into three groups including plant material inventory, equipment inventory, and
supplies. Last month, we discussed an inventory system for equipment and supplies. This month,
we will discuss the basics of maintaining a plant material inventory control system.
• A plant material inventory system is designed to provide management with information for making
managerial decisions regarding production, sales, and dema nd trends. By maintaining a current,
up-to-date plant material inventory, problems arising from overselling or leaving plants unsold
can be minimized. A knowledge of plant inventory can provide the basis for planning work
schedules, labor needs, space requirements, and supplies needed. Inventory data are also needed
when planning production programs, calculating costs of production, and developing pricing
strategies. Cultural practices and their impact on inventory turns may also be evaluated.
• To talk about the benefits of plant material inventory control systems is one thing, but actually
developing a system that indicates (at all times) how many plants of each variety or cultivar are
available, in what size, and where are they located within the greenhouse operation, is another.
The actual system of plant inventory control will tend to vary with the size and type of each
individual greenhouse operation and the level of sophistication desired by the greenhouse
manager. For relatively small “Mom and Pop” operations, the plant material inventory system may
be quite simple, needing infrequent updating. But for larger, more commercial greenhouses, a
rather complex system that must be updated daily may be required.
• Numerous computer software companies have developed computerized plant material inventory
systems that will fit the need for most any sized operation.Taking the physical plant material
inventory is facilitated by developing an integrated layout of the greenhouse operation using plant
blocks and labeling benches or rows. The count is made by trained individuals using plant
inventory schedule sheets or electronic recorders. Electronic recorders are expensive, but offer
the advantage of transferring data directly into computer memory storage. In some of the larger,
commercial greenhouse operations, physical plant inventory is combined with data regarding new
potted/seeded plant material and sales data. By continuously tracking these data, it is possible to
determine fairly accurately the status of all plant material within the greenhouse by type and
location. From a production management standpoint, if accurate data are collected and maintained
over time, it is possible to determine plant losses, estimate growth rates, pinpoint problem areas,
and check on cultural practices.
• Maintaining an accurate sales inventory may be the most import ant attribute of an inventory
control system. However, this data must be accumulated in a timely manner to be most effective.
This means updating sales data on a daily, or at least weekly basis. The sales inventory can also
be posted with current price information as an aid in quoting prices to customers. Each
greenhouse manager must adjust the plant inventory system to the situation and develop it to
provide the control and information necessary to make sound managerial decisions. Computers
can be used to provide an immediate update of sales inventory and can be programmed to provide
an analysis of sales by variety, customer, geographic region, or by salesperson. In addition, the
computer may be used to update sales records, prepare price schedules, and with the input of
inventory data, can be programmed to estimate potential sales inventory. Several commercial
vendors currently provide inventory control software for the greenhouse and nursery industry.
TYPES OF PLANT INVENTORY
The value of inventory field checks cannot be overstated. failure to maintain these at their fullest can
result in an incomplete and inaccurate inventory. This may in turn jeopardize the future preservation
of the accession in question.
In order to maintain control of plant materials, equipment, tools, and supplies, an inventory control
system is needed. Business management experts often classify inventor systems according to the
usage of the item in inventory. Following this line of thought, a greenhouse inventory can be
categorized into three groups including plant material inventory, equipment inventory, and supplies.
Production Process Tracking
Nursery and Greenhouse growers have their own specific production processes. An inventory
control system should track your product from seed to sale, no production changes required. The
inventory tracking system should track each product at every stage so you and your sales team have
full visibility over what is currently available and will be in the future.
•Seeds
•Young plants (Seedlings)
•Mature plants
•Pots, containers, and other nursery supplies.
A plant material inventory system is designed to provide management with information for making
managerial decisions regarding production, sales, and dema nd trends.
By maintaining a current, up-to-date plant material inventory, problems arising from overselling or
leaving plants unsold can be minimized.
A knowledge of plant inventory can provide the basis for planning work schedules, labor needs,
space requirements, and supplies needed.
Inventory data are also needed when planning production programs, calculating costs of production,
and developing pricing strategies.
Cultural practices and their impact on inventory turns may also be evaluated.
To talk about the benefits of plant material inventory control systems is one thing, but actually
developing a system that indicates (at all times)
1) how many plants of each variety or cultivar are available.
2) in what size
3) where are they located within the greenhouse operation
For relatively small “Mom and Pop” operations, the plant material inventory system may be quite
simple, needing infrequent updating. But for larger, more commercial greenhouses, a rather
complex system that must be updated daily may be required.
In some of the larger, commercial greenhouse operations, physical plant inventory is combined with
data regarding new potted/seeded plant material and sales data. By continuously tracking these
data, it is possible to determine fairly accurately the status of all plant material within the
greenhouse by type and location. From a production management standpoint, if accurate data are
collected and maintained over time, it is possible to determine plant losses, estimate growth rates,
pinpoint problem areas, and check on cultural practices.
Inventory Management Techniques

First-In-First-Out (FIFO) method

Last-In-First-Out (LIFO) method
Minimum stock levels
FIFO stands for "first-in, first-out," and assumes that the costs of the first goods
purchased are charged to cost of goods sold.
• This method assumes the first goods purchased are the first goods sold. In some
companies, the first units in (bought) must be the first units out (sold) to avoid large
losses from spoilage.
• In periods of rising prices (Inflation) FIFO has higher value of inventory and lower
cost of goods sold; in periods of falling prices (deflation) it has lower value of
inventory and higher cost of goods sold.
• Because a company using FIFO assumes the older units are sold first and the newer
units are still on hand, the ending inventory consists of the most recent purchases.
• FIFO stands for "first-in, first-out", and is a method of inventory costing which assumes that the
costs of the first goods purchased are those charged to cost of goods sold when the company
actually sells goods.
• FIFO and LIFO methods are accounting techniques used in managing inventory and financial
matters involving the amount of money a company has tied up within inventory of produced goods,
raw materials, parts, components, or feed stocks. These methods are used to manage
assumptions of cost flows related to inventory, stock repurchases (if purchased at different
prices), and various other accounting purposes
Assumptions of FIFO
• This method assumes the first goods purchased are the first goods sold. In some companies, the
first units in (bought) must be the first units out (sold) to avoid large losses from spoilage.
• Because a company using FIFO assumes the older units are sold first and the newer units are still
on hand, the ending inventory consists of the most recent purchases. When using periodic
inventory procedure to determine the cost of the ending inventory at the end of the period under
FIFO, you would begin by listing the cost of the most recent purchase. If the ending inventory
contains more units than acquired in the most recent purchase, it also includes units from the
next-to-the-latest purchase at the unit cost incurred, and so on. You would list these units from
the latest purchases until that number agrees with the units in the ending inventory
How to Calculate Ending Inventory Using FIFO
Ending inventory = beginning inventory + net purchases – cost of goods sold
LIFO Method
LIFO stands for last-in, first-out, meaning that the most recently produced items are recorded as
sold first.

he following is an example of the LIFO inventory costing method (assume the following inventory of
Product XX is on hand and purchased on the following dates).

Purchase date 10/1/12: 10 units at a cost of USD 5

Purchase date 10/5/12: 5 units at a cost of USD 6
On 12/30/12, 11 units of Product XX are sold. When the sale is made, it is assumed that the 5 units
purchased on 10/5/12 (the sale eliminates this inventory layer) and 6 units purchased on 10/1/12 were
sold.
The ending inventory balance on 12/31/12 balance sheet is 4 units ⋅$5=$20
and the cost of goods sold on the income statement is 5 units ⋅$6+6 units ⋅$5=$60
• There are a few reasons why it’s important to be aware of your minimum inventory levels. First, as
we mentioned, it helps you avoid running out of stock. Second, it can help you save money on
storage costs.
• If you have too much stock on hand, you may have to pay for storage space that you don’t need.
• By keeping your minimum inventory levels in mind, you can avoid the costs of overstocking.
Finally, knowing your minimum inventory levels can help you make better decisions about how
much stock to order.
To calculate your minimum inventory level, you need to know two things:
• The average amount of time it takes to sell a product
• The average daily demand for a product
Once you have this information, you can use the following formula:
Minimum Inventory Level = Average Daily Demand x Average Time to Sell
• Let’s look at an example to see how this works.
• Suppose that you own a small business that sells coffee mugs. You know that on average, it takes
you two days to sell a mug, and your average daily demand is five mugs.
• Minimum Inventory Level = five mugs x two days
• Minimum Inventory Level = ten mugs
• This means that you should always have at least ten coffee mugs in stock.
Receiving Stock
1. Match the delivery to a purchase order
First, ensure the delivery has come to the right place by matching the details on the Consignment Note to
the Purchase Order raised by your business.The Purchase Order should also be used to check that each
item matches the description and quantities ordered.
Ensure you record the following for each new delivery:
• The date and time goods arrived
• The name of the delivery partner and driver
• Check off quantities and description of goods against purchase order
• Note any discrepancies
• Names of the personnel who performed these checks
• Maintaining accurate reports is essential for accurate bookkeeping as well as resolving any disputes
that may arise in the future regarding the items or supplier.
• If there is no purchase order or record of the order, check with your supervisor or purchasing
department before rejecting the goods.
2. Check products are not damaged
• Before accepting the delivery, it’s important to conduct a quality check to ensure the items are not
damaged or malfunctioning.
• It’s not always feasible to open each carton and check every single item, particularly for large
shipments. So in these cases you may wish to complete a spot check rather than open each and every
carton.
• Check for signs of breakage or faults, and ensure all items are as described on the purchase order.
• If any damaged items are found in the delivery, record the extent of the damage on the consignment
note and immediately notify the supplier with details of the issue to discuss the next steps.
3. Log received items into your inventory
Enter the items you have received into your warehouse management system as soon as possible,
including the date and quantities received. This will allow the stock to be allocated to new orders
right away.
4. Allocate storage space for goods
It’s important to pack away a new delivery promptly to ensure no items become lost or damaged.
Supplies should be distributed to the appropriate person in the business, or packed away in the
usual space to be accessed when required.
For goods received in as stock, these items will need to be allocated a space in the warehouse for
storage until ready to be picked for an order.
5. Notify your accounts payable department
Send a copy of the signed and dated consignment note to your accounts payable team. This
information can then be matched with the invoice from the supplier to ensure payments are only
made for items that were actually received.
Organizing Stock

Each and every corner of the nursery should well be connected with a road or path.
Roads should be wide enough, minimum 3 m wide to ply trucks, tractors, bullock drivenboggies
etc.
Paths should be wide enough, minimum 2 m wide to ply the wheel barrows, hand charts, small
hand tractor, and trolleys and for leisure walks of customers who come for making purchases.
The area of the nursery should be divided into different sections/ sectors/ portions like timber
section, rose section, annual flower section, indoor plant section, vegetable section,
fruit/grapevine plant section and main sections may further be divided in to sub-sections like
ornamental and flowering tree’s section, creeper section, shrub’s section, bougainvillea
section, succulents and cactus section and so on.
This type of division will facilitate better supervision, specialization of staff and better
accounting besides high impression on the mind of customer, nursery being run by qualified
person on scientific lines.
Proper office of the manager and staff with proper seating arrangement, sale counter attached
with modern seed store, chemical room, fertilizer room etc. should be located at the main
entrance of the nursery with a spacious well protected, shady parking lot.
This area should be beautifully landscaped and there should be an area for displaying sample
plant material put for sale, at the entrance. However, there should be different stores for tools
and implements, stationary and other items of day to day use, in different sections/ sector.
Mother Block is the primary source of commercial propagating materials to be used in the
production of certified(true-to-type, pathogen-free, standard quality) materials/plants.
Mother block is originated from basic category plants (white label) which are strictly true-to-
type as variety/clone, pathogen-free and properly labeled that indicates botanical name, family
name, local name etc. for proper identification.
40-50 % of the total nursery area should be kept reserved under mother plants.
Mother Block is maintained permanently under rigid sanitary control.
Criteria for Selection of Mother(Base) Plants
1. Mother plants should be vigorous, healthy and high yielding. It should have a regular bearing
habit.
2.Itshouldbe free from pests, diseases and viruses.
3. The mother plants must necessarily be genetically pure and superior in quality. They must be
obtained from Registered Farms, Agriculture Universities or Government Nurseries.
4. The purchase receipt of mother plant shouldbe preserved to prove the origin and authenticity
of the mother plants.
5. Mother plants should be selected corresponding to the regional demand of the nursery
plants.
6.Ornamental mother plants are planted under protected conditions either under shade net or
semi-shade conditions.
Packing area should be near to office to enable better supervision while packing the plants for
dispatch. An open area and an underground water tank is a must, besides the adequate space
for storing empty cartons, baskets and other packing materials.
 Stock Rotation

Well managed stock plants help meet the demand for reliable and timely supplies of high quality
propagation material and enable nurserymen to exercise quality control from the start of the
production process. This factsheet considers the main elements of successful stock plant
management.

Ensuring older stock is sold first

Preventing stock from becoming outdated
Minimizing waste
Stock taking and Auditing
An inventory audit cross-checks a company’s financial records against its inventory records and ensures these
records match its physical inventory count. It is a vital process to ensure inventory accuracy and identify any
discrepancies in stock counting or financial records.
In physical counting, you will go through every item in the nursery to record the number of available products,
usually with the assistance of technology. Audits take it a step further to confirm the correct quantity, as well as
the quality and condition of your stock.
Stock audit is crucial in plant nursery due to multiple reasons:
Identify discrepancies. If there are differences between the actual stock quantity and the accounting records, you
can spot where to investigate further to resolve the issue.
Reveal overstocking or understocking situations and help with asset management and inventory forecasting.
Auditing stock informs you of which items are hanging over nursery for too long, and which items are running
low in stock. From there, you can take proper actions, such as offering a discount to push stale products faster
and purchasing more items that generate higher revenue and profit margin.
Detect losses resulting from theft, damage, and obsolescence. The losses often lead to a root cause of poor
management procedure. For instance, your high-value products are placed too close to an unmonitored exit, or
some fraudulent activities happened.
Determine the efficiency of your logistics and nursery workflows. Inventory shortage can occur in the logistic
process, such as missing items during transferring from the container to the warehouse.
Regular stock taking practices
Conducting periodic audits
Addressing discrepancies
9 procedures to audit inventory
1. Physical inventory count
The inventory count audit procedure is to take physical counts of inventory in your warehouse and
compare the numbers to what is shown in your system. You can use a barcode scanner to support
you count the items physically. This is convenient for businesses that follow a just-in-time inventory
method or regularly compute their economic order quantity.
2. Cutoff analysis
Cutoff analysis means halting all operations during the physical inventory count. There will be no
receiving or shipment of products during this process to avoid mistakes from uncontrolled variables.
At the cutoff time, all transactions before that shall be reported properly in the financial period.
Auditors will check the documents of receipt and shipment to verify the recorded stock movement is
accurate.
3. Finished goods inventory analysis
Analysis of finished goods cost is ideal for manufacturers and producers. When inventory goes
through the production process, it becomes a “finished good” to be sold. Then, you can calculate the
inventory value of the finished products to make sure the financial statements are correct and better
control inventory.
For example, you create 100 T-shirts with $600 cost of fabrics, embroidery, T-shirt buttons, etc. It
means each T-shirt costs $6 for raw materials to produce.
4. Freight cost analysis
Analysis of freight cost measures the shipping costs to transport products from one location to
another, and instances of items getting lost or damaged during transit. It also accounts for losses
and damage incurred during transit.
For example, you transfer the products from your warehouse to your stores and monitor how much
it costs, such as carrier by truck.
5. Overhead analysis
Overheads are the business expenses that exclude the direct materials and labor required for
production, such as rent, electricity, or other “hidden” costs associated with inventory. When
analyzing overhead costs, you want to see how they affect the overall inventory cost so that you can
plan your budget properly.
For example, your indirect costs are $5,000 per month with the capability of producing 2,000 T-shirts
per month. If you want to scale up to produce 4,000 T-shirts, your overhead will be $7,000 per
month. Together with the variable cost, you can use the economics of scale to find the optimal point.
6. Inventory in transit analysis
When transmitting materials between different locations, you need to track the lead time for the
products to arrive. This audit analysis will ensure nothing is lost or damaged during transportation.
Inventory auditors will review the transfer documentation to identify any problems.
For example, you need 1.5 days to transport your products from your warehouse to 3 different
locations. Monitoring the time can help you define when you should prepare to get the products to
the store on time.
7. High-value stock tests
The high-value inventory item tests, also known as the ABC analysis, involve classifying your
products based on their profitability. Group A consists of high-value items, group B is the mid-tier,
and group C is the low-value products. If some products in group C have a high selling volume, you
can place them near the entrance to speed up trips to the sales floor. In contrast, the high-value,
low-volume items in group A should be secure safely to prevent costly theft.
For example, you can divide your products into the 3 groups like this: the top 20% of high-value
products belong to group A, the next 50% is to group B, and the last 30% is to group C.
8. Direct labor analysis
Direct labor is the cost of labor needed to manufacture a specific product. It can be considered as
the cost of working hours, shift differentials, and overtime hours of employees. In addition, you can
add in payroll taxes, bonuses, or other benefits costs that are spent for employees to get the full
picture.
9. Inventory count reconciliation
At the end of the process, you need to check the physical count matches your company’s
books. Inventory reconciliation is an essential part of cycle counting. If you detect issues during your
inventory count, investigate further to reconcile products. This way allows you to track any SKU
numbers which are error-prone in the future.
If there are differences between the inventory records and the actual number on your warehouse
shelves, you must figure out the reason and modify the records to reflect this analysis.
Pest Management in the Nurseries

Pests and diseases occur on nurseries because cultivated plants are more susceptible than their
wild relatives. Growing large numbers of the same species close together can encourage disease-
causing organisms and pests to establish and spread rapidly.
Many plants are specifically bred for their foliage and flowers rather than disease resistance, and
commercial crop production can create environmental conditions that favour particular pathogens
and/or pests.
Infectious organisms are part of the environment. The management of some crops, particularly
those for same season sales, can lead to stress and susceptibility. Understanding the crop that you
are growing — the normal growth habits and the normal variability of plants — will help you to
recognise unusual conditions as early as possible.
An effective hygiene programme is important to succeed in growing plants profitably. Successful
hygiene management is based on accurately diagnosing any problem that may occur and its cause
as well as having some knowledge of the pest/pathogen and its life cycle.
Understanding the effects of the environment on crops and their potential pest/pathogen is essential.
Being able to evaluate the cost and practicability of any actions taken is also important.
Reducing problems on-site
Nursery hygiene is the principal means of reducing pest/pathogen introduction and has the ability to
reduce the most difficult-to-control problems. It is more cost-effective to prevent pathogens from
being introduced into the production cycle than attempting to suppress diseases in infected plants.
All activities should be aimed at eliminating or reducing the amount of disease/pest present in the
environment and preventing their spread to healthy plants. An effective programme needs to fit well
with your nursery situation and has the ability to change through the entire production cycle
according to environmental conditions.

Following good nursery hygiene advice will help to reduce:

• Physical disorders.
• Pathogen build-up on dead or dying plants.
• Carry-over and spread of pests/pathogens on tools, benches, pots and hoses.
• Carry-over and spread of pests/pathogens from one crop to another.
• Contamination of healthy plants with infested soil/water and contamination of clean pots, growing
media and so on.Well-spaced crops in appropriately ventilated protected structures can reduce
Botrytis, downy mildew, leaf spot and rust infections. This is also true of subirrigation, where
possible.
• Clean trays, pots, benches and floors can reduce weed seedling re-emergence as well as
Rhizoctonia, Pythium, Phytophthora, Fusarium and Sclerotinia. Clean water, well-drained growing
media, healthy stock plants and removing debris will reduce the risk of
Pythium, Phytophthora, Fusarium, viruses, Rhizoctonia, Sclerotinia, mildews, rust and Botrytis.
Five key control methods

Exclusion Making sure plants, seeds and cuttings are free from pests and pathogens; maintaining a
disinfection regime; limiting the number of people handling stock; taking strong healthy cuttings;
avoiding water splash; treating irrigation water; controlling weeds around growing areas; checking
new plant sources thoroughly — set up a quarantine area if unsure. Take the time to learn what a
real plant passport should look like and what information it should contain.
Protection Uniform, timely applications of pesticides, ringing the changes to avoid resistance;
knowing when a pest/pathogen is likely to attack; growing resistant cultivars where possible and
biological controls where appropriate.

Prevention Prevent conditions that favour infection, disease development and pest attack; keep leaf
surfaces dry, avoid over-watering; use growing media with good drainage; clean up growing areas
and keep a routine going even if no pest/pathogen is present.

Eradication Through chemical application. Observe techniques and timing when applying products;
remove dead/diseased plant parts; rotate crops; plant green manures. Monitoring Conduct this
throughout the year and step it up to three-day intervals during the growing season to enable the
designated crop walker/spray team member to stay in touch with what is happening on the nursery
and identify problems early on. Check systems — irrigation, fertiliser regimes, etc — and carry out
an environmental assessment to record weather, temperatures, irrigation applications, etc.
Train staff to be able to easily identify the key pests and diseases that can attack the crops you
grow. Use a combination of experienced staff and BASIS-registered advisers to carry out this
training. When an issue arises, approach it in this order and ask: "What can we do to change
things culturally, environmentally, biologically — predators, parasitoids, biorationals — and,
lastly, chemically using selective pesticides?"
• A large number of weed types can act as alternative hosts when a vulnerable crop is not
present, particularly for aphids, whitefly, rusts and powdery mildews.
• Use a hand lens to accurately identify the pests and diseases attacking a crop. This is
particularly important when checking for spider mites and the life stages present on foliage,
where successful control depends on applying the right predators and/or the right selective
pesticides to target the right life stages for successful control.
• For fungicides applied to control diseases such as powdery mildew, a check must be carried
out a few days post-spraying to see whether the product is working well. This cannot be
done accurately enough with the naked eye, especially where the disease is attacking plants
that have tight foliage.
• All corrective actions need to be quickly implemented to minimise plant damage and losses.
A timely programme is always better than a knee-jerk reaction.
Stock Management Best Practices

a number of operations are required to get the stock to the planting site or to the interim
storage facilities. These operations are critical to the success of the project and must be
carried out carefully not only to ensure that the planting stock arrives in excellent condition but
also to ensure that the contract itself runs as smoothly as possible. The following sections
outline the procedures for thawing, storage, handling, and transportation of stock.

The goal of handling, storage, and transportation is to ensure that the growth potential, present
when a seedling is lifted at the nursery, is maintained until it is planted in the field.

Regular maintenance of stock areas

Communication with other nursery departments
Continuous improvement suggestions
Safety and Security

Just as in other workplaces, those employees who work in a garden centre face risks to their health
and safety from numerous different sources.
A garden centre will typically not be thought of as a particularly high risk environment in which to
work; that is, when considered against other workplaces such as chemical plants . It is easy for
managers - and the employees themselves - to think that risks to their health do not exist, or do not
need to be taken as seriously.
MANUAL HANDLING
Just like the checkout operators at a nursery who have to handle loads, or those moving stock
around from the storage area to the shelves, garden centre workers will also encounter manual
handling issues.
Not only do garden centres sell plants and flowers, but they will also sell a whole range of other
equipment, accessories, large bags of compost etc. Many of these items will be heavy and
awkward to move and manipulate, meaning there is a high risk of manual handling injuries such as
pulled muscles, sprains, strains, possible dislocation, and back problems, which is one of the most
common reasons for sickness absence from the workplace.
A combination of manual handling training and the provision of equipment such as trolleys and lifting
aids will help to reduce the chances of workers suffering from one of these conditions and having to
take time off work.
A comprehensive risk assessment may also show the need for making changes to the workplace or
certain processes, for example situating heavy equipment nearer to the stockroom so that staff do
not have to move it so far, or locate it on a lower shelf rather than having to lift it up to a higher one.

HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES - COSHH

A garden centre is also likely to sell and use chemical products, particularly fertilisers. These
hazardous substances can, in mild cases cause slight irritation to a worker's skin if it comes into
contact with it, right through to death if somehow accidentally ingested in large quantities.
These products also pose a risk to the environment if an accident causes a release into the
surrounding waterways. Employees may therefore benefit from COSHH (Control of Substances
Hazardous to Health) training, particularly bespoke COSHH courses which are tailored to
incorporate the specific substances that they use and may encounter in the garden centre.
FIRE SAFETY
Like any building, whether a workplace or residential, a garden centre will also need to pay careful
consideration to fire safety and prevention. A fire risk assessment will identify potential causes of
fire - sources of heat and ignition, presence of combustible materials, sources of fuel and sources of
oxygen - along with identifying those who are at significant risk.
The garden centre will also require emergency fire escape doors, assembly points, fire alarm
activation buttons (as well as regular testing of the fire alarm) and appropriate fire extinguishers.
SLIPS
The plants and flowers in the garden centre will need watering, often either by hand or by automated
sprinklers. They will also typically have stone tiled floors which are easy to clean. It is highly likely
that some of the water will find its way onto the floor, and presents a genuine slipping hazard for
unwary and/or infirm members of the public, as well as other members of staff.
Steps need to be taken to reduce this risk as far as is reasonably practical. After this, sufficient
signs need to be put up warning everybody (customers and staff members) that the floor is wet and
poses a slip hazard.
HEATSTROKE
Many garden centres are built in whole or in part as a giant greenhouse in order to keep the plants
on display healthy. Whilst good for the plants, these hot conditions can be uncomfortable for workers
in the summer, as well as some customers (particularly the elderly), who may be overcome with the
heat and faint, with the potential for serious head injury on the hard floor or nearby objects.
Along with elderly customers, garden centre employees may also be more susceptible to the heat if
they have to work long hours in this heat. Hot temperatures and heat is a health and safety
issue that can occur in all sorts of different industries and workplaces, which makes it an important
consideration for any health and safety risk assessment.

CONCLUSION
The examples mentioned above are just some of the many risks to health that are present in a
garden centre and highlight that, whilst it may not be the first workplace that springs to mind when
thinking of dangerous jobs, there are still numerous health and safety issues that need to be
considered. These considerations are both a legal requirement and from the viewpoint of the
welfare/morale of employees.
A combination of risk assessments, common sense, and increased awareness through health and
safety courses for managers and for employees can help to tackle those issues, and create a safe
working environment for staff and customers alike.
1. Be aware of biosecurity threats Make sure you and your production nursery workers are familiar
with the most important exotic production nursery pest threats. Conduct a biosecurity induction
session to explain required hygiene practices for people, equipment and vehicles on your property.

2. Use only clean, pest-free and preferably certified, production nursery inputs Ensure pests and
other contaminants do not enter your property with production nursery inputs, such as growing
media, fertiliser and propagation material. Purchase these only from reputable suppliers, preferably
with NIASA accreditation or Bio Secure HACCP certification. Keep records of all nursery inputs.
3. Keep it clean Practicing good sanitation and hygiene will help prevent the entry and movement of
pests onto your property. Workers, visitors, vehicles, raw material and equipment can spread pests,
so make sure they are decontaminated, or have come from a clean source, before entering and
leaving your property. Have a designated visitor’s area and provide vehicle and personnel
disinfecting facilities.

4. Check your production nursery Monitor your crops and raw materials frequently. Knowing the
usual appearance of the plants in your production nursery will help you recognise new or unusual
events and pests. Keep written and photographic records of all unusual observations. Constant
vigilance is vital for early detection of any exotic plant pest threat.
5. Abide by the law Respect and be aware of laws and regulations established to protect the nursery
production industry, Australian agriculture and your region.
6. Report anything unusual If you suspect a new pest – report it immediately.
 Plant Security

Protecting your garden with fencing, hostile hedging, security lighting, cameras and locked gates will
help to keep your plants safe but you may to wish to give additional protection to especially
treasured plants. Plant anchors can be used to protect valuable specimens. Also try putting a layer
of chicken wire under the surface of the soil when planting to prevent plants from being removed.
Plant pots can be chained and padlocked through the drainage hole.

THE END