Issue 22
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Table of Contents:
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1. Gilbert Davies of Johannesburg, South Africa, writes...
I received your publication on "How to start on a Shoestring and make a profit with Hydroponics" in March this year and was really impressed (by the book as well as the speedy response and delivery). Like your Web Site it was crammed with interesting and MOST helpful information, easy to read, simple and straight to the point (Well worth the R190.00) - I am now totally "hooked". I have built (in my driveway - mind you) a 24 square meter greenhouse, one hydroponics system using PVC pipes, one aeroponic box and I am currently experimenting with a gravity feed pyramid system for strawberries. I am also eyeing the top of my garage for the next greenhouse - much to my neighbours delight! :-)
I have grown Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Chillies, Paprika, Lettuce, Spinach, Peas, Pumpkin, Green Peppers and Strawberries all on a small scale and experimenting with nutrient mixes, pH values, TDS and EC values - great fun!!! The only problem I have is time!! My current occupation in IT takes up most of this. I am seriously thinking about going into Hydroponics on a large scale, using my IT technical background to automate the various critical functions (climate control etc.) and marketing via the Internet. I haven't made any money yet due to my experimenting, but there is definitely potential for this - the fun I've had so far is priceless and I owe you a BIG THANK YOU!!
Thank you also for all the "freebies" and keep up the good work. When I make my first Million I'll send you a donation as well as frame the "big cheque" with a copy of your book!! :-)
I promise that the very first link on my web site will be to.....
http://www.mayhillpress.com
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2. This and that
A. It's a very good idea to not spray plants in strong sunlight. Do it in the evening. The plants will then have time to dry safely without being burned. Once a week is enough. If there are flowers or a crop on the plants DON'T spray.
B. Plant diseases can adapt to successive spraying of a fungicide. So change to another product to do the same job.
C. If you want to know how many lights you need to grow a crop, find out what wattage the crop enjoys the most. Keep in mind if you want optimum lighting you will need twenty-five to fifty-eight watts for every square foot.
Figure it this way: Area of room x watts the crop needs = total watts needed.
D. Harvest your crop during the day when it is dry.
E. Too many people with greenhouses have fans which blow air into the house. This isn't good. It's better to use exhaust fans to get the circulation you need. In a word, don't let air blow directly on your plants.
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3. A new kind of greenhouse plastic film
If interested ask your supplier about this. Tell them the manufacturer is Werra Plastics in Germany. A dealer in Australia can also be of help. That address is Greenhouse Australia at mailto:greenhse@corplink.com.au
This new product is a plastic sheeting which is copper impregnated. Certain ultra-violet light spectrum are allowed to enter the greenhouse whereas the regular plastic sheeting doesn't allow these light waves to come through.
What does this all mean to you?
Well for one thing you will have stronger and better growing plants. Plants and crops (flowers and strawberries, for example) will have brighter and deeper colors.
Temperature and light levels around the crop will remain more constant.
According to the manufacturer, light spectrum in the far-red area will help plants fight stress and disease. The manufacturer also claims a grower won't need to harden his seedlings because the far-red light helps prevent shock.
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4. So what's new in Japan?
Not much - if you've read my book on "How to Start on a Shoestring and Make a Profit with Hydroponics" which can be found at http://www.mayhillpress.com
But there are some things of interest. Japan uses various forms of soillesss culture.
Hydroponics was introduced into Japan during World War II by the US Army. Starting off with gravel and sand beds, the Japanese graduated to water culture operations. But because of the transference of plant diseases problems in the field most growers are seriously looking at rockwool and other solid media to help solve their problems.
Farmers are not allowed to till the ground near the city limits because of their use of banned chemicals. That's why hydroponics has been able to take over those partciular areas for food cultivation.
Nevertheless Japan's hydroponic expansion has been almost nil since 980 when total hydroponic culture was at 280 hecacres.
This has been primarily due to the above mentioned disease transference occurring throughout an entire water bed or field. Also the use of "one formula fits all" fertilizer didn't set any spectacular production standards.
Aside from the novelty of water culture on an assembly line in a large grocery store in Northern Japan, the Japanese grower has yet to take full advantage of hydroponics even though he has used most if not all of those cultures.
But it won't be long before he does. The Japanese farmer faces severe problems growing in soil which is not only limited but can be easily infested or infected by pests and disease. It will soon be time to bite the bullet and get with it. And perhaps solid media will do the trick.
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5. Rooting Media
Here is the run-down on different media which can be used for rooting plant cuttings. None of these media contain food or nutrient to any measurable degree.
SAND drains fast and needs frequent watering to keep its moisture content at the right level for cuttings. The water's pH has to be checked because sand doesn't have a buffer for it.
VERMICULITE comes from mica which has been heated to where it makes flakes which when cooled hold lots of water. Though this material drains well it still holds a little water back and allows for lots of air in and around plant roots. Its pH will need to be tested as well as the pH of the water you use.
PEAT MOSS is an organic medium whose pH is in good shape. This medium also holds water to the point where you have to add perlite or vermiculite to keep roots from drowning.
PERLITE comes from the individual Styrofoam beads. This medium needs pH testing. The medium has good drainage but does not retain any water. Perlite is a very loose material which is good for washing off the roots of newly rooted cuttings before transfer.
ROCKWOOL has very good drainage and is good for propagation. But it's pH is a problem. Dry rockwool must be soaked in water whose pH is 4.5 for one full day before you use it. Always water and feed from the top.
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6. Ladybug - Beneficial Insect of the month - Part One
The following is from my chapter on ladybugs in my book: "Beneficial Insects - How to Mass-Rear for a Profit". Read more about this book at http://www.mayhillpress.com/insects.html
REARING LADYBUGS
Is the above a misnomer? Perhaps, but a few people are trying to rear ladybugs. If they prove successful, it will be a boon to the ladybug industry. Ladybugs sold today are from the wild where they cluster together by the thousands when the weather turns cold. They're brought in and sold to the public. Most of the time this is done in a slipshod manner.
Wild ladybugs are often infected with parasites - up to 20% of them. Also when they're sold without being "pre-conditioned" the ladybugs fly away from the release area and the customer has spent his money for nothing. This procedure doesn't bode well for good business relations.
Those who try to do better pre-condition the ladybugs with food and also weed out the parasitized ladybugs. Then the handler has a reasonably healthy crop to sell to the customer. Pre-conditioning helps satisfy the ladybug's instinct to fly away upon release. Even if heavy aphid populations are at hand, a recently released ladybug taken from the wild will immediately fly away.
Pre-conditioning entails surrounding the captured ladybugs with a large tent-like structure and feeding them well. The food is usually wheast or other preparations. Both of these activities satisfy the ladybugs' tendency to fly away and keeps them in good health where they are ready to lay eggs as soon as the customer buys them and applies them to his crops. Unless you get your ladybugs already pre-conditioned, this should be the procedure you should use if you also decide to deal in ladybugs.
ARE THEY WORTH ANYTHING?
The value of ladybugs to the customer is that each adult will consume as much as 5,000 aphids! They are voracious eaters and have a variety of pest insects upon which they will feed. These include the Colorado potato beetle larva as well as many kinds of aphids and thrips.
Their larvae which look like little alligators with orange spots have an appetite just as great as the adult's. A ladybug larva will consume 50 or more aphids a day.
Ladybugs will lay up to 50 eggs per day. If conditions are good, the lady bug will lay up to 1500 eggs. The eggs are laid on the bottom side of plant leaves. Within 2 to 5 days the larvae will hatch out and live for three weeks. At the end of that time they will pupate. It then takes about 4 days for them emerge from the pupa as adults.
The ideal temperature for ladybugs is between 62 and 80 degrees. If the temperature goes lower than 55 degrees ladybugs will slow down and not fly. They can be kept in storage for up to three weeks at a temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The relative humidity should be around 70 per cent.
IS IT POSSIBLE TO REAR THEM?
See next month's newsletter for Part Two.
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7. Think about it...
I do not like broccoli. And I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I'm President of the United States and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli. - George Bush, U.S. President, 1990
Bulb: potential flower buried in Autumn, never to be seen again. - Henry Beard
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"How to Start on a Shoestring and Make a Profit with Hydroponics"
"Big Dollars Growing Gourmet Salad Greens"
"Beneficial Insects - How to Mass Rear and Make a Profit"
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