Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) is the world's most valuable fruit and essential greenhouse crop. They deliver vital nutrients to our diets and serve as a pivotal model for plant biology research. Unfortunately, modern tomato varieties often lack the flavour that original or traditional cultivars boast. During the domestication and enhancement process, breeders prioritized traits like yield, [...]
High intensity radiation is more common in equatorial regions than cold weather climates. This is because of the angle the sun rays hit the soil surface. It does not mean that the intensity of radiation is lower in South Africa than Nigeria per se. It also depends on the angle and direction of the land, [...]
Understanding the effect of radiation on plants will help identify weaknesses in your greenhouse. The effect of radiation can be divided into three parts; its effect on flowering, on photosynthesis and the temperature and water loss. High light intensity is correlated with temperature and water loss. Flowering is determined by illumination levels less than 10.9 [...]
Trellising and training of greenhouse cucumbers Trellising of cucumbers should not be confused with pruning. They do go hand in hand, but are very different. Trellising is leading the whole plant up the twine in a certain growth direction or pattern while pruning is removing leaves, fruit and growth points during the growth period. I [...]
We all know the basics of nitrogen in plants. The good and the bad. Every grower and student knows nitrogen is important for good looking healthy plants. Too much nitrogen and you get dark green vigorous growing vegetative growth, too little and plants show smaller leaves but it seems that there are more flowers and [...]
Cucumbers are sensitive to water stress (to little water) and to water logging (over watering). Any of these two conditions will reduce plant vigour and cause physiological fruit disorders such as crooked fruit. The frequency of water application cannot be standardized because of so many factors that vary within each farming system. Fertigation scheduling should [...]
Heating the nutrient solution of a NFT hydroponic system may sound like a lucrative option for early yields. Tampering with the nutrient solution temperature is expensive and return on investment low. It is as if the protected environment provides growers endless possibilities to manipulate the growth season of their crops. Unfortunately nature does not work [...]
Spinach or Spinacia oleracea L. belongs to the Chenopodiaceae family. The Chenopodiaceae family also includes crop such as beet (Beta vulgaris L. subsp. vulgaris) and chard (swiss chard: Beta vulgaris L. var cicla: Ulrich) The most will known swiss chard variety among growers is Ford Hook Giant. Most people regard swiss chard as actual spinach. [...]
The ripening stage when tomato fruit are harvested will depend on the variety, the market segment (do they want red full ripe tomatoes or does the consumer want the tomato to ripen at home) and market distance. In most cases, tomatoes are harvested just after some red discolouration has set in. The grower knows (and [...]
