Ariana Torres

6 articles by this author

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This publication is the first of a series of articles aiming to assess the economic feasibility of growing sod. Publications can be found at the Purdue Education Store. This publication assesses the economic feasibility of growing Kentucky bluegrass in the Midwest by determining the financial costs and returns associated with one year of production. This…Read more about Projected Costs and Returns Associated with the Production of Kentucky Bluegrass: A Study of Economic Feasibility in Indiana and Iowa[Read More]


Along with many other industries, the green industry experienced changes in the last few years. Since the 2008-2009 recession, the industry has shown signs of recovery, especially for some sectors. More recently, mitigation measures due to COVID-19 and mandatory business shutdowns are expected to contract revenues from landscaping services slightly until 2021; yet revenues are…Read more about The Economic Contribution of the Indiana Green Industry, 2020 Report[Read More]


Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs) have been proposed as a management tool for reducing the labor needs in the Green Industry. Although PGRs are widely accepted in the ornamental plant production, their adoption among landscape maintenance companies is limited. The cost of PGRs and the lack of economic feasibility analyses are likely to undermine their adoption….Read more about A tool to understand shrub maintenance and PGRs[Read More]


Labor is one of the largest expenses in the landscape services industry, and maintenance services, such as pruning, is one of the most labor-intensive tasks. While plant growth regulators (PGRs) can be a cost-effective tool to control growth in shrubs and reduce labor expenses, lack of information on the economic feasibility of PGRs has limited…Read more about Are PGRs worth it? A sensitivity analysis using Paclobutrazol for shrub maintenance[Read More]


Labor is one of the largest expenses in the landscape services industry, and maintenance services, such as pruning, are one of the most labor-intensive tasks. While plant growth regulators (PGRs) can be a cost-effective tool to control growth in shrubs and reduce labor expenses, a lack of information on the economic feasibility of PGRs has…Read more about Costs of applying plant growth regulators (PGRs) for shrub maintenance[Read More]


In a survey of Indiana produce growers conducted on April 2020, we found that 72% of them are planning to sell online. Their online strategy ranges from sales through emails, texts, e-commerce enabled websites, or online platforms that aggregate food vendors and buyers. The other 28% felt they lack the technical knowledge to transition online…Read more about Managing your social media during Covid-19[Read More]