Hydroponics III

Learn more about Managing Hydroponic Systems

• For people with some prior knowledge or experience in hydroponic growing
• Explore the possibilities for serious hydroponic growing in greater depth
• Discover how you need to adapt management practices to not only the crop you grow, but also the climate and system you are working with.
• Develop a deeper understanding of nutrient solutions and water chemistry
• Bed guided by experts in both horticultural science and hydroponics.
• Our faculty includes people with decades of experience in commercial hydroponics
  

Lesson Structure

There are 8 lessons in this course:

1. Options for Managing Plant Culture - different approaches to cultural operations in hydroponics. Organics vs. hydroponics: Nutrient differences in food products. Is hydroponic food more or less healthy than organic? How feasible is organic hydroponics?
2. Planning a Hydroponic Operation - site and crop selection; matching a system with a crop, materials, resources & services required.
3. System Design Components - pumps, hardware, media, pipes, size, type, and so forth. Components for different types of culture.
4. Managing a Hydroponic System in Hot, Humid Conditions - tropical and subtropical climates or summer in temperate areas.
5. Water Management - water quality measures, treatments, runoff, testing, purifying water, water in recirculating and run-to-waste systems.
6. Nutrient Formulation - standard formulations, detecting toxicities & deficiencies.
7. Controlling Nutrient Levels - using EC and pH measures of concentration levels, solution temperatures, and maintaining nutrient levels.
8. Pest & Disease Control - nutrient and pH manipulation for control of pests & diseases, integrated pest management, common pests and diseases.

Aims

• Describe different approaches to cultural operations
• Demonstrate an awareness of similarities and differences between organic and hydroponic production techniques
• Describe how to plan a hydroponic operation through site and crop selection, matching a specific crop, materials, resources and services required, and site layout; for different specific crops.
• Discuss system design components such as pumps, grow beds, solution tanks, media and pipes in terms of size, type, and options for different cultures and specific crops.
• Provide details of how to manage a hydroponic system in hot, humid conditions such as in tropical or subtropical areas, or in summer, in temperate areas, for specific crops.
• Explain options for water management such as water sources, quality, testing, treatments, and use in recirculating and non recirculating systems.
• Recommend awareness of natural and other methods of pest and disease control such as biological controls, as part of IPM and nutrient and pH manipulation for different pests and diseases.
• Explain and recommend different standards of nutrient formulation, and advanced methods of detecting toxicities and deficiencies in specific crops.
• Recommend methods to control nutrient level concentrations by taking EC, pH and temperature measurements, and maintaining nutrient levels for different specific crops.

How to Manage Hydroponic Nutrition

Hydroponic systems are reliant on the composition and formulation of the nutrient solution to supply all the essential elements required for optimal plant growth and yields. However, nutrient solutions are complex and the composition of these changes as they flow through the root system and irons are extracted. Many problems in hydroponic systems are either nutrient or environmentally based, making these the main areas where troubleshooting skills need to be developed.

The most common nutrient problem is the development of deficiencies of one or more elements, either due to rapid uptake or unsuitable nutrient formulations and management, which are common mistakes made by many hydroponic growers.

Solutions 
Working out if deficiency symptoms on a crop are actual or induced by other factors becomes the vital first step to solving such problems. The simplest way for a grower to determine this is to have a full solution or leachate analysis carried out to rule out any deficiency in the plant’s feed regime. Low levels of an element in solution (below the optimum being aimed for) certainly indicate that the nutrient is the problem and boosting levels of the deficient element will rapidly help correct the situation. Some deficiencies, particularly of the trace elements such as iron, benefit from foliar application of these nutrients to help correct the problem in the short term. These however are only a quick fix and the missing nutrient needs to be supplied in the root zone at the correct levels over the long term. Iron foliar sprays are particularly effective where cool conditions or root zone damage have limited iron uptake and caused the distinctive iron chlorosis symptoms on the new leaves.