Tomato training 20/03/08

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 for their support they are lowered by releasing the spool of string they are attatched to for support. A plastic clip is attatched to the string at the hinge and clips around the stem to support the plant without being too tight restricting the expansive growth of the stem.

As i lower individual plants i also move the support spool to the next hanging site. In effect this causes the plants to coil round at the base. With the lowering of the stem foliage at the bottom of the plant builds up at the base of the plant, this foliage is removed by cutting leaf stems as close to the main stem as possible, this will allow the plant to heal most efectively reducing the risk of infections.

NFT Cucumber Progress 16/02/08

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 will be a thick mat of roots all over the tray.

Setting up a Hydroponic NFT Multi Duct- 15/02/08

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 at the top through a tee piece into 4 outlet fittings (2 x tee's and 2 x elbows) where the solution enters the top of the tray. From here the solution flows down the tray and drains back into the tank. The tray is supported by a stand at the top end and the tank at the drainage end giving the table a slope of 1 in 50. This type of recirculating hydroponic system is great for growing all types of plants, I'll be using it this year to grow my favorite mini plum tomato called 'Floridity'.


After setting the system up and fitting all the pipe work i run through a solution of Hydrogen peroxide at a dilution rate of 50ml per 10L for about 4 hours. This will sterilise system killing any bad bacteria that may be lingering from last year. Once the system is clean i lay down the spreader mat which helps to keep the flow of nutrient solution even down the table.






Now i fill the tank with water and add Vita-Link 'Easy Grow' at a EC of 2.0 and pH of 5.8. Once the tank is well mixed i turn the irrigation pump on. The Nutrient solution will flow quite rapidly if you have the pump on full so it has to be adjusted down using an inline flow control tap which i position near the pump in the tank. I turn the tap to adjust the flow rate so the solution lands in the first channel as shown in the picture. Once the flow rate is set i leave the pump running 24/7.


Now the system is running i get it ready to be planted into. Using a black corriboard i cut holes out where i want my plants to be. Notice i stager the planting to allow good water flow down the table. Once the holes are cut i cover the whole table and tank with black and white sheeting (white side facing up) to help insulate by reflecting and light away from the root zone and tank. I cut an X on each hole to allow the plants to be planted through the black and white.





On planting i have tied the roller hook string around the 4" blocks like i have when i set up the 604 gro-tank with the cucumbers and hung the hook from the roof supports. This will allow me to train the vine up the string for support. Now the plants are in and the nutrient solution is flowing all i do now is monitor the solution in the tank every few days to keep the pH and EC in range. As the nutrient solution is recycled i expect to completely change the solution every 7-14 days. Cant wait for my first harvest which i expect will be in 8-10 weeks!

Setting up an NFT Gro-Tank Pt 2- 05/02/08

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 reflect back any light and heat helping to keep your roots and nutrient solution from getting to warm.


To support my cucumber plants i use roller hooks which are a spool of string on a wheel attached to a support hook. The vines are trained up the string and when they grow to up the wheel more string is let out lowering the vine. This support hook is then moved along so the excess vine at the bottom rests on the corriboard. Using this technique one my cucumber plants last year was over 12.5 metres long. Another popular way to support plants on NFT systems is using pea and bean support netting which is stretched out horizontally on a frame above the plants so when they grow into it the are supported by the net.

Once the roller hooks are in place I tie the string to around the rockwool block. The positioning of the blocks on the tray is important, you want to stagger you plants so solution can flow down the middle of the tray and around all side of the block. You also need to position the blocks so that the solution can flow trough the grooves on the bottom.

Now I place the corribaord and black and white sheeting back on the tray and lower the plants into their pre cut holes. I cut the black and white in a x so the folds can be repositioned over the top of the block to prevent algae growth.




Now that the plants are in the system I add nutrient to the reservoir at an EC 0f 1.5 and a pH of 5.8. The pump is plugged in and will be let constantly running 24/7. Some grower put their NFT pumps on a timer so it comes on for 15mins and off for 15mins to half and hour. This is not the way NFT should be run but some people growing plants with more sensitive root systems or use larger blocks to propagate the plants find it helps.

The plant in the smaller 205i system is also getting irrigated 24/7 with the same pH and EC of the 604 system. These cucumber plants should settle in and start growing vigorously in the next few days. Hopefully I should be picking my first fruits in around 6 weeks time.

Setting up an NFT Gro-Tank Pt 1- 05/02/08

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 a 604. They are made in UK by Nutriculture who make 5 different variations in size. The top tray is where the plants are placed and the reservoir underneath holds the nutrient solution. The 604 holds 60L and the 205i holds 20l. The idea behind NFT is that the plants on the top tray spread out their roots into a thin film of nutrient solution which is constantly flowing. The solution is recirculated from the reservoir, down the tray and back into reservoir at the other end. The roots eventually grow into a thick mat nourished by the nutrient solution and highly available oxygen all around them.

The NFT Gro-Tanks have one delivery tube where the nutrient solution is pumped onto the tray. To ensure even distribution of water on the tray capillary matting know as 'spreader mat' is rolled out. 1 layer is enough and a small over lap in the middle is fine. Once this has been laid out I fill the reservoir with water.

Once the tank is filled I submerse the pump and attach the delivery tube and turn it on. The pumps have an adjustable flow rate and need to be slowed down so the solution lands in the middle of the first diamond.


After a few mins all the spreader mat should be wet. If you find some dry spots then poke the spreader mat down into the channels to wick up the solution. If there is little or no solution flowing in any of the channels make sure the tank is on a level floor and the flow rate is right until the solution is reaching all parts of the tray.

If you flow rate is too high then you solution will puddle. This will cause the plants roots to get over watered which may cause them to be starved of oxygen. Too much flow will also cause the rockwool blocks to get completely saturated which will get you plants off to a poor start.