Name: Gillian Limebeer
Company: Redecan
Title: Master Grower
Location: HEXO’s Fenwick, Ontario facility
Cannabis Business Times: Indoor, outdoor, greenhouse or a combination?
Gillian Limebeer: Greenhouse
CBT: Can you share a bit of your background and how you and your company got to the present day?
GL: Previously, I was a research technician at Vineland Research & Innovation Centre cultivating non-traditional vegetables as part of the World Crops project to replace imported vegetables with local-grown alternatives.
I entered the cannabis industry when the medical market expanded into the recreational market [in Canada]. Redecan was already producing for medical. When they expanded to the recreational market, they required more growing space and growers. I got in right at the beginning, as the 20th employee hired by the Redekop family. (Editor's note: HEXO acquired Redecan in 2021.)
CBT: What tool or software in your cultivation space can you not live without?
GL: I cannot live without my Hoogendoorn ISII. It is the greenhouse software system we use at HEXO. It is precise, I love the complexity of adding influences remotely and the ability to dial in my settings.
CBT: What purchase of $100 or less has most positively impacted your business in the past six months?
GL: Blue lens filter for greenhouse photography under HPS lighting. HPS light is on the orange/red spectrum. The blue lens filters out the orange, allowing the bud to be viewed as if it is under natural lighting. The true colour of the bud shines through with HPS lighting.
CBT: What cultivation technique are you most interested in right now, and what are you actively studying (the most)?
GL: I am invested in integrated pest management (IPM), through relying on biological controls to control greenhouse pests. We have a bio-program that we are always trying to improve upon. Our aim is to reduce the use of chemical applications for reactive sprays by having a rigorous preventative bio release program to control pests as they come in.
CBT: How has a failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success? Do you have a “favorite failure” of yours?
GL: I was tasked to cultivate CBD bud in the greenhouse for CBD flower for jars. It was supposed to test below 1% THC, as it had never tested higher than that at our outdoor cultivation fields in Cayuga, Ontario where it is traditionally produced. When we brought the plant indoors the THC tested too high to be categorized as a CBD flower and we had to select a different cultivar that did not perform as well indoors. This was a learning curve for us as we discovered some of our CBD plants produce higher THC under our HPS lights when grown under a greenhouse structure. It was a great lesson to improve from.
CBT: What advice would you give to a smart, driven grower about to enter the legal, regulated industry?
GL: I would tell someone about to enter the legal, regulated industry to get a jump on learning the greenhouse computer systems; Hoogendoorn, Priva, Argus, etc. As soon as you know how your system functions then you can use the tools to effectively control your climates.
CBT: What advice can they ignore?
GL: I would ignore the advice to keep pushing nutrients until the point of tip burn, then dial back. Save the effort, money, and your root health by measuring your leach and ensure your plants are eating what you are feeding. Find the point of uptake so you are maximizing your plant performance without causing injury and then responding to that stressor.
CBT: How do you deal with burnout?
GL: Very poorly. I tend to start projects on holidays and vacations because I can’t seem to help my passion for the business. I admit I have reduced my garden size at home in the summertime, so I am not compounding my efforts at work and home.
CBT: How do you motivate your employees/team?
GL: I join in and set the pace for my team. By doing the job you have a better understanding of the limitations or unproductivity, and this provides an opportunity to make changes for efficiency.
CBT: What keeps you awake at night?
GL: Rainstorms, windstorms, and heavy snowstorms. Worrying about the greenhouse system and structural failures during inclement weather that is out of our control.
CBT: What helps you sleep at night?
GL: My TeamViewer. This system gives us remote access to the greenhouse which allows me to check in before I check out for the night.
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