Pruning tomatoes – a simple neglected task
Pruning tomatoes is an essential activity during the maintenance of the tomato crop. Just as the plants should be trellised every week, so should each...
Category Archives: Crops
Not all crops are suitable for commercial hydroponic systems. Most plants however can be grown hydroponically for fun.
Trellising tomato plants in a greenhouse
Trellising tomato plants is only required when growing indeterminate types in greenhouses. Although trellising tomato plants it is labour intensive and must be done weekly,...
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...
Tomato types available for the commercial grower
Tomatoes originated in tropical America. Tomatoes were first exported from Peru to Italy, then to Northern Europe and finally to the USA by 1781. In...
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...
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...
Small fruit in crops grown in greenhouses is a sign of stress
Getting small fruit (peppers or tomatoes) is better than getting no fruit at all. However it can be frustrating when growing to achieve 140 g...
Common pest and disease control for peppers
Good pest and disease control in hydroponic systems is crucial for a successful hydroponic farm. Soon after the plants have been transplanted, pest and diseases...
Fertigation of hydroponic peppers
Fertigation of peppers is sometimes more of an art than science since plant requirements change as the weather/climate change. Learn how to read your plants...
Ideal temperature and humidity regime for greenhouse crops
Temperature and humidity regime for peppers. Temperature and humidity go hand in hand. Quite often increasing the one has an effect of the other. So...
Trellising hydroponically grown peppers – secret to growth optimization
Trellising sweet peppers is common practice in commercial greenhouses. Although labour intensive, it increases quality and quantity of fruit yields, so it cannot be ignored....
Pruning peppers for optimum yields in hydroponics
Pruning peppers will have a significant effect on yields over the production life of the crop. The correct pruning method will also increase ventilation and...
Planting density of various vegetable crops in hydroponic systems
Planting density in bag culture systems Pepper & tomato planting density influences yields, diseases and quality of the end product. Get it right the first...
Scientific classification of commercial vegetable crops
There are approximately 10,000 plant species that are used as vegetables, but only 50 of those are of any commercial value. In order to simplify...
Transplanting seedlings into growth medium – common mistakes
Always transplant seedlings that are in good condition. Rather discard the extra small seedlings and give them a chance to grow in the nursery. They...
