Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 4.16
Pruning basil early results in multistemmed plants.
Greenhouse peppers take about a month longer than tomatoes to mature.
It would be best to start them in July and again in March. You can use bush
varieties that take about a month less to mature than the greenhouse ones.
European cucumbers require 2 months from seeding to first fruit pro-
duction. However, if you are going to grow all of these crops together
in the same hydroponic unit, start the cucumbers in September so that
cucumbers will be ready by November. In this way, the seedlings that are
transplanted to your hydroponic system will all start out at the same size
and grow up together. This will assist in raising the lights at the correct
level above all the plants. It also prevents any older plants from shading
out the younger ones.
Overall, then, you will have two crops a year. Start the seedlings in a
separate system under their own lights, so as not to interfere with the exist-
ing crop as you make the changeover.
CROP CHANGEOVER
About one month prior to the scheduled end of your crops, cut off the
growing point of your tomato plants. This will shift nutrients to the form-
ing tomatoes. Continue to remove any suckers that develop near the tops
of the plants. There is no need to do this for the cucumbers and peppers.
Several days prior to removing the plants, spray them with a mixture
of insecticides and fungicide to control the presence of any insects or dis-
eases. After this period, one day prior to pulling the plants you can stop
the flow of nutrients to wilt the plants, reducing their weight and volume
