tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-100215304709991402012-02-16T08:44:57.600ZNico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.comBlogger361100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-2662565833010342622009-08-11T15:40:00.023+01:002011-12-23T22:07:44.706Z

Here's an overview of the greenhouse with most of the plants just gone into the different systems. The humidifiers are going to play an important role in the early establishment stages as there will be less demand for water to be uptaken by the roots and will allow the plant to spend energy in root growth. A young plant with a healthy mass of roots will be more hardy and have a much higher

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-53021893741837693252009-05-14T16:15:00.010+01:002009-08-11T15:38:27.987+01:00

These are some of the young plants i will be growing, sweet peppers on the right, tomatoes in the middle and chillies to the right. There are also some plants called Pepino at the far right which are nicknamed melon pears because of their sweet soft fleshed fruits.The plants have recently been inserted into the larger 4" rockwool blocks and have been kept under a gentle fluorescent light to let

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-61372226006561492332009-05-14T14:51:00.006+01:002009-05-14T16:12:23.174+01:00

With seeds sown i can concentrate on the layout of the greenhouse. Once i put a plant into a system it will be a nightmare to move it so it's best getting it right from the start. I found it took longer planning the greenhouse layout than it did moving all the systems back in.To tackle things methodically i looked at things i would use most often. Starting off with the 350l waterbutt that i use

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-89510673980260370042009-04-29T16:36:00.010+01:002009-05-14T14:51:19.482+01:00

It took longer to clean down all the systems and paint the floor than expected, in a heated greenhouse i would have liked to have started my seeds off earlier to give them a head start to the season.I'm propagating more seeds than whats needed just incase some of the seeds aren't viable and so i can pick and choose the better plants later on.I've also used a selection of different propagation

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-40815614480093641942009-04-29T15:49:00.006+01:002009-04-29T17:35:19.071+01:00

Last year's grow was a steep learning curve for me. It ended well with lots of fruit and veg for staff at aquaculture and most of the customers who came to visit.However there were a few problem issues such as god damn mealy bugs, it was near impossible to control these fluffly sacs of goo. They appear to be imobile but managed to get into all nooks and crannys they could find and laid hundreds

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-71222956909422705492008-09-04T16:03:00.020+01:002011-12-23T22:13:47.497Z

The banana plant has reached maturity and is bearing large well formed fruit. It looks very impressive in our greenhouse standing at around two and half meters with broad fan like leaves. As you can see the bananas have begun to ripen on the plant, time to cut down. The bunch has quite a few bannanas on it

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-35332581210489824362008-09-04T15:15:00.004+01:002008-09-04T16:02:18.795+01:00

To all that follow this blog, i am sorry that i haven't been able to update my posts for a hell of a long time. This summer has been a busy time for the company with hollidays and staff change. Lots has happened in the greenhouse but i will try and update you with some of the more important stuff.I will be allocated more time, more frequently to spend updating the blog too keep you more up to

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-28812946506771503252008-05-23T16:39:00.031+01:002011-12-23T22:04:33.650Z

I have chosen to grow a variety of beetroot called Pablo for its uniform shape, smooth skin, great taste and high yield. As you can see i have germinated the seeds in jiffy peat pellets. I like these because they retain moisture well and contain slow releasing nutrients that are vital for early growth. I have brought them on until they are well established and about 10 - 15cm in height. Their

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-75513935407591859732008-05-23T13:57:00.027+01:002008-05-23T16:11:22.738+01:00

The amazon took two years of development by company Nutriculture to bring to the market a reliable product of top quality that gives high end aeroponic results at an affordable price. Aeroponics offers an optimal ratio of oxygen, water and nutrient to the plants roots which allows for rapid growth, promoting high yields. It is simple to set up and i will show you how.Lets begin with the base.

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-24341461075820843592008-05-09T17:23:00.004+01:002008-05-23T16:36:03.384+01:00

The chilli plants have grown real tall now, so tall infact that the upper leaves are in the direct pathway of one of the circulatory fans at the top of the greenhouse. The force of the air movement causes an extreme case of evaporation of water from the leaves. Transpirational pull cannot keep up with the moisture loss and so cells in the leaf dry out. At such a level of water evaporation from

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-88481058531136086982008-05-09T12:31:00.019+01:002008-05-09T17:12:51.952+01:00

I have noticed some curling and deformities in the new growth leaves of the chilli plants. These deformities have come from toxins in aphid saliva that cause mutations of plant cells, they cells around these mutated cells grow and expand, resulting in a curling effect.When the leaf matures it fully expands and flattens out, where the mutated cells were there is now a hole because the imbalance of

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-54018383113901401392008-05-09T11:05:00.006+01:002008-05-09T12:31:00.559+01:00

The tomatoes have begun to ripen, the green chlorophyl in the fruit begins to dissipate allowing the red pigments to show through. As well as red pigments coming through, i noticed some yellow speckaling. It is not well understood why this occurrs but it is known that increasing the difference between potassium (K) and phosphorous (P) from nitrogen (N) will reduce the speckaling. I added a bloom

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-52584156375571923582008-04-23T13:14:00.011+01:002008-04-23T14:55:11.849+01:00

The chillies and peppers have grown to a decent height now and will need to be supported. The reason most chillies and peppers need supporting is because they have been selectively bred for the heaviest fruits despite not being able to support themselves naturally. When supporting chillies and peppers i use string made from polythene as it doesn't absorb or hold any moisture. This quality

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-10848243247219309822008-04-23T10:33:00.018+01:002008-04-24T23:54:24.992+01:00

With day length, sun light radiation and warmth increasing as the season moves into spring, the plants in the greenhouse have had explosive growth rate to say the least.The picture of the floridity tomatoes in the NFT system shows how vigorous the growth has been. In order to cope with the rate of growth from the plants they need to be maintained and trained.When the tomatoes have grown too tall

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-82124937055082042792008-03-12T13:26:00.010Z2008-04-04T17:35:54.790+01:00

This 'Flood and Drain' system is very popular with hydroponic growers who like the flexibility of growing in pots with the added benefit of an automated irrigation system that recirculates the nutrient solution. The system is made up of 4 main components, the reservoir, the 'brain', the timer and the pots. The system works by periodically filling and draining the pots from the bottom with

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-20116147787397589902008-03-06T15:22:00.006Z2008-10-02T16:02:50.455+01:00

This hydroponic system is one of my favorite systems to use in the greenhouse because its so easy to set up and takes very little care and attention to maintain it. 'Autopot's' come in 2 variations, the 1 pot system (pictured left) and the 2 pot system (i will set up later this month). The 1 pot can be set up to one small reservoir or you can link up multiple pots to one larger reservoir as i

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-2109844210149136982008-03-06T14:11:00.004Z2008-03-06T15:24:01.302Z

I have been growing this pineapple plant for nearly 2 years and in November it finally started to produce a fruit. it has taken another 4 months for it to extend out from the center and mature on its stem. Its has been quite an effort to get it to this stage because its so difficult to tend to as the spikes on the edges of the leaves rip my hands to shreds. It is growing in a small 'Flo-Gro'

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-87444882888736881972008-03-06T13:51:00.004Z2008-03-06T14:04:07.479Z

In 11 days these cucumbers on the NFT Gro-Tank have more than doubled in height. They are well established onto the system are i have emptied the reservoir and replaced the nutrient solution with an increase in strength up to and EC 1.8. I think I'll be picking my first cucumber in about 25-30 days!This picture of the roots shows how well they are extending from the rockwool block. Soon there

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-12163990088398492382008-03-06T12:31:00.004Z2008-03-06T13:46:03.612Z

This hydroponic system is a low pressure recirculating drip system and is named the 'Wilma'. This is made my Nutriculture and comes in 5 sizes from 4 pots to 20 pots. This one is the most popular amongst growers, the Wilma 8 pots system. This system has a reservoir as the base on which the tray is placed to support the 8 pots. A submersible pump (maxijet 1000) sits in the reservoir which is

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-75505634337570412022008-03-06T11:22:00.004Z2008-03-06T13:47:26.810Z

This Hydroponic system is a large NFT 'table' made by Nutriculture and is know as the 601 Multi Duct. These systems come in various sizes and configurations, this 601 is about 2m x 1m with a 125L reservoir. With this system a submersible pump (maxijet 500) is positioned in the tank at the drainage end and pumps nutrient solution up the middle of the tray through 1/2" supply tube where it splits

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-34419024811372339032008-03-06T10:46:00.005Z2008-03-14T10:56:42.906Z

The tomato plants are now firmly rooted in, a light twist of the 4" block shows they strongly held to the slab. I have removed the canes and strung the vines up with the roller hooks. Now the plants are ready the drippers are inserted into the block and i set the digital timer for the irrigation pump to come on for 3 minutes every 2 hours while the lights are on or sun is up. I set the first

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-68805950457794288382008-02-21T18:39:00.008Z2008-02-21T19:58:10.827Z

3 days since planting onto the slab and the tomatoes are doing very well. At this point I give them each 300ml of nutrient solution at EC 2.2 and pH 5.8. A small amount of run-off drained out the slab on doing this.I have placed a support cane in the block to prevent any plants from falling over. I will get round to using the roller hooks over the next few days. With the roller hooks the string

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-53317671622138825022008-02-21T17:24:00.012Z2008-02-23T13:37:19.031Z

Setting up the pipe work for the drip system is fairly quick and easy. Make sure you have a kettle on standby as every barbed fitting you push over rigid plastic pipe needs to be heated in hot water first. This makes the pipe hot and so expands allowing the barbed fitting easily slide over, when the pipe cools it sets around the barbs making it a good water tight fitting. With the compression

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-38512431307602386892008-02-21T14:48:00.011Z2008-02-23T13:40:41.471Z

Now my 'Cedrico' tomato plants are up to size and have a good root system showing out the bottom of the block is time to set up my high pressure drip system where I'll be growing the plants on 1m rockwool slabs. I have 20 healthy 'Cedrico' plants all of which I'll be choosing the best 14 for the system.To start with I have placed the 1m grodan 'expert' slabs in their plastic trays (know as aqua

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-72805995726747736772008-02-21T13:48:00.005Z2008-02-21T14:45:43.778Z

Once I know the flow is perfect down the tray its time to cut out the planting holes in the corriboard cover. The corriboard prevents any light reaching your roots and can help all a bit of support for your plants. I am using 4 plants in the 604 and 1 plant in the 205i.After cutting holes in the corriboard i cover the top of the tank with black and white plastic sheeting white side up. This helps

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-26958612654419886282008-02-21T12:30:00.011Z2008-02-23T13:42:48.477Z

These cucumber plants are now just over 3 weeks old and are ready to go onto their final system which use the Nutrient Film Technique or NFT.The most important thing about getting plants ready for any hydroponic system is that they are well established in their propagation block having loads of healthy white roots.These are the Gro-tanks I will be using, the small one is the 205i and the other is

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-78948559669613989332008-02-21T12:11:00.003Z2008-02-21T12:29:50.367Z

The tomatoes are up to their 5th set of true leaf's and have loads of healthy roots on the bottom of the cube so they are ready for planting out. I will plant the salad variety 'Cedrico' tomorrow into a rockwool slab drip system and allow the cherry varieties to grow on a week or so more before planting into a large NFT system.The cucumbers are also ready and need planting tomorrow too. These

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-37532328688976555822008-02-21T11:40:00.009Z2008-02-23T13:43:28.704Z

The cucumbers are now needing to be watered with nutrient solution (EC 1.5) every 2 days. The roots are doing really well and can be seen on the top of the block. Without the block covers the roots would not be growing on the block surface. These plants should be ready for their NFT system in about 1 week.The cabbage are also coming along nicely, they are getting watered from the top (canna coco

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-20901599024761153982008-02-21T10:01:00.009Z2008-02-23T19:54:18.613Z

10 days after transplanting the tomatoes and cucumbers the chillies and peppers start to show their roots through the small roockwool cubes and so are moved into the larger 4" rockwool cubes.To make some space for all the new seedlings I have moved the tomato plants onto a 1m squared flood and drain table. I have made a mesh tray to fit inside the table for the blocks to sit on. This mesh allows

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-53369318996931271832008-01-29T17:06:00.001Z2008-02-21T10:09:17.600Z

I plan to grow my cabbage plants this year in a hydroponic drip systems know as the 'wilma'. The plants will be grown in a mix of coco coir (80%) and perlite (20%) so I prepare enough of the growing media to fill 10 small square pots. Once the pots are filled the seedlings are planted in and water through with a coco coir specific nutrient solution (I use vita link coir or canna coco) at an EC

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-16067699201397264312008-01-29T15:28:00.001Z2008-02-21T10:09:58.214Z

Now the rockwool blocks have been soaked I get the planting area prepared. When propagating my plants i keep the temperature in the growing area between 22-25c and the relative humidity between 65-75%. Young plants respond and grow very well in humid environments. I use 110w fluorescent lamp on for 18 hours a day to supplement the natural light entering the greenhouse.After the transplant blocks

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-41004848515246027582008-01-28T12:43:00.001Z2008-02-21T10:10:52.198Z

The seedlings have been in the propagator for 2 weeks and have established well into their propagation cubes. Now they are ready for planting into larger rockwool blocks, jiffy coco coir blocks or pots. I usually decide to transplant the seedlings when the first 'true' leaves are through (after the first 2 round dicotyledons) and/or the propagation cube has roots growing out of it. Notice how the

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-5937270057772051242008-01-28T12:15:00.001Z2008-02-21T10:14:26.036Z

After 4-5 days the tomato, cucumber, cabbage and melon seeds started to pop up. After 10 days so did the chilli peppers , sweet peppers and onions. Before I used a heated propagator germination rates were allot slower with chillies and peppers taking up to 3 weeks, I'm very pleased with how quick they've all come up this year.Now most of the seedlings have germinated i open the vents on the

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-53756806245149311442008-01-24T20:56:00.002Z2008-02-21T10:13:01.220Z

January's the time I sow the seeds of my main crops which are tomatoes, chillies, peppers and cucumbers. For propagating my seedlings I use Grodan Rockwool cubes and 'Fleximix'.'Fleximix' is a peat/pine bark based spongy cube bound together using a plant based polymer. It has a great air to water ratio suitable for seeds and cuttings. These cubes are taken straight out the bag, put into small

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-41446626732487034802008-01-24T20:46:00.000Z2008-01-25T10:45:07.769Z

This year I decided to give the greenhouse a thorough clean down. The polycarbonate panes were cleaned inside and out to improve light transmission and the floor was given a new lick of paint. This had not been done for a few years and looks allot better, it will also kill off any plant pests that may have be lingering or hiding from last years crops.

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10021530470999140.post-76757281192337445382008-01-15T22:52:00.000Z2008-01-25T10:37:00.336Z

The greenhouse we have at Aquaculture is a 'Venlo' design by Cambridge Greenhouses. It is fully heated via hot water pipes and is ventilated through vents on the roof. The computer system installed controls the roof vents and the heating pipes. It's Size it is approximately 5m x 15m which is big enough to display all the products we sell as well producing an abundance of fruits and vegetables.

Nico - Manager of Aquaculture's hydroponic greenhouse.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03474640920256151982noreply@blogger.com0