Commercial Hydroponic Farming

Category Archives: Crop protection

Crop protection is crucial to long term profitability of a commercial hydroponic farm. You need to know which chemicals to apply at the right time to ensure a high percentage of grade a product.

Bacterial canker (Clavibacter michiganensis) the most destructive disease

Diseases

Bacterial canker (Clavibacter michiganensis) is one of the most destructive diseases of tomatoes which is caused by Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis (smith) formerly known as...

Aug 28

by Antonius Lecuona

Powdery mildew

Diseases

Powdery mildew background Powdery mildew (Leveillula taurica) is most prevalent in warm, dry atmosphere. The optimum germinating temperature is approximately 25°C with humidity ranging between...

Aug 28

by Antonius Lecuona

Early blight (Alternaria solani) common fungus on tomatoes

Diseases

Early blight (Alternaria solani) is one of the most common funguses found on tomatoes. The fungus infects mainly the leaves, but stem and fruit infection...

Aug 28

by Antonius Lecuona

Late blight – Phytophthora infestans

Diseases

Late blight background Late blight (Phytophthora infestans) is very destructive under conditions of excessive moisture and low temperatures. Starts as small water soaked lesions which...

Aug 28

by Antonius Lecuona

Botrytis rot or grey mould fungus – symptoms and control

Diseases

Botrytis rot (Botrytis cinerea) Botrytis rot (Botrytis cinerea), also known as grey mould, is caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea, and has become on the...

Aug 27

by Antonius Lecuona

Bacterial speck

Diseases

Bacterial speck, also known as Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria, Pseudomonas syringae pv. Tomato. Bacterial speck and spot are very difficult to distinguish from each other. However...

Aug 27

by Antonius Lecuona

Cucumber pest and disease control

Never use chemical that are not registered by your local Department of Agriculture. A range of chemicals that can be used on cucumbers are provided...

Aug 27

by Antonius Lecuona

growth cracks radial tomatoes greenhouse

Growth cracks in greenhouse vegetable fruit

Physiological disorders

Growth cracks symptoms There are two types of cracking found on tomato fruit. Concentric cracking are cracks that vary in depth and size found in...

Aug 25

by Antonius Lecuona

cat-face tomato fruit greenhouse catface

Cat-face tomato fruit – genetic physiological disorder

Physiological disorders

Cat-face tomato fruit Symptoms Fruits have a long scar at the blossom end that extends inwards and renders the fruit unmarketable and disfigured (abnormal). There are...

Aug 25

by Antonius Lecuona

Hollow fruit disorder in hydroponic greenhouse systems

Physiological disorders

Hollow fruit description Hollow fruit, also called puffy fruit or boxy fruit are angular in shape instead of round, however one should be careful since some...

Aug 25

by Antonius Lecuona

Zippering – Physiological disorder of tomato and pepper fruit

Zippering symptoms Zippering are thin scars running from the top of the shoulder of the fruit down the length to the blossom end. These longitudinal...

Aug 4

by Antonius Lecuona

Blossom drop – A sure sign of stress in hydroponic greenhouses

Blossom drop Symptoms Blossom drop (flower buds abscise) occurs prior to anthesis under stress conditions. The early indications of blossom drop are the yellowing of the...

Aug 3

by Antonius Lecuona

blossom-end-rot-hydroponic-vegetable-fruit

Blossom-end-rot – most common physiological disorder in vegetable fruit

Physiological disorders

Blossom-end-rot (BER) Symptoms This physiological disorder looks like a typical fruit disease. The symptoms generally occur at the blossom-end of the fruit and begins with...

Aug 3

by Antonius Lecuona

Sunscald or sun burn on vegetable fruit – sun damage that can be prevented

Physiological disorders

Sunscald or sunburn causes Sunscald may appear on foliage and fruits. The disorder is caused when the temperature of the fruit exceeds 40°C. An imbalance...

Aug 3

by Antonius Lecuona

Thin spindly sick pale plants – it’s causes and solutions

At some stage a grower will see thin spindly pale plants growing somewhere in the greenhouse. Although not a physiological disorder of fruit, it is...

Jul 31

by Antonius Lecuona

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