One of the benefits of the COVID pandemic is the opportunity to slow down and work on the virtue of patience. In spite of my family's fortunate circumstance of owning a farm, I did not have much affinity to planting. For impatient people (like myself), it's a slow process, labor intensive and subject to the vagaries of the weather. I truly sympathize with the plight of our farmers who labor to grow their crops, only to be wiped out by a typhoon or even just an "unscheduled" rainfall. Hence, as evidenced by the more progressive and productive agricultural sectors in the world, it is imperative to control (as much as possible) the environment of your crop. This is where hydroponics within a greenhouse comes into the picture.
Hydroponics has been around for decades but it has become quite accessible to the common person today. I have also studied with great interest the integration of aquaculture and hydroponics, also known as Aquaponics. However, to keep things as simple as possible, I decided to undertake a modest hydroponics project in my veranda (outdoors but not completely), a practical "R&D" initiative that could potentially be expanded at the farm or, at the very least, be demonstrated at the farm for the training of other farmers who may wish to venture into hydroponics high-value crops.
For starters, I have chosen to use two (2) well-known and proven hydroponics systems. One is the Nutrient Film Technique or NFT and the other is the Kratky Method--the latter being the simplest method in hydroponics. In addition, because I am growing vegetables in hot and humid conditions, I am leaning towards the Kratky Method, which reportedly keeps the relatively deeper water/nutrient solution reservoir in direct contact with the roots of the plants cooler (i.e., cooler roots are reportedly better for growing vegetables in hot weather). This is in contrast to the relatively shallow water/nutrient solution in the NFT system, which reportedly warms-up in hot and humid conditions (i.e., warmer roots are reportedly undesirable for growing vegetables in hot weather).
Second, I chose to grow green leafy lowland vegetables that are likely to thrive and be more productive in hot and humid conditions. For now, it appears that Rocket Arugula, Watercress and Sweet Basil are good candidates; whereas, Grand Romaine Lettuce is less productive. I am also evaluating, Cilantro, Parsley, Chinese Kale or Kai-Lan, and Parris Island Lettuce. More on these varieties later.
One exception to my green leafy vegetables is my indeterminate cherry tomato, which I have also decided to grow, just because I like it. Cherry tomatoes are not only more complex to grow but also take a considerably longer time. Notwithstanding, I hope to report on my cherry tomatoes in a few months. I have started an indeterminate variety, which would hopefully bear fruit over a period of many months.
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| Nutrient Film Technique or NFT System. Contains seedlings of Rocket Arugula, Grand Romaine Lettuce, Watercress and Sweet Basil. |
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| Kratky Method for my indeterminate cherry tomato. This one is for the long haul and will be transferred to a larger container as it grows into a vine. |
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| This is also the Kratky Method. This shows the incredible growth rate of the Rocket Arugula as of September 13. The seeds were germinated on August 25. That is only 19 days from germination. Very impressive indeed! |
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| This shows the Watercress (also germinated on August 25), which is doing well but not nearly as impressive as the Rocket Arugula. The pot at the bottom left is the Grand Romaine Lettuce (also germinated on August 25), which is not exceptional. |
Third, I have begun to use LED full spectrum grow lights at night to hasten the growth of my vegetables. Hence, I take advantage of the natural sun light during the day and grow lights at night.
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| My Krakty System under LED full spectrum grow lights. Natural sun during the day and grow lights at night hasten the growth of vegetables. |
When I am reasonably confident of the growth viability of my selected crops and their respective grow cycles, I plan to plant a slightly larger area (just a few square meters within a mini-greenhouse) at the garden of my sister's home. My brother-in-law may decide to install a comparable system side-by-side with mine for some friendly competition. After a couple of more growing cycles with our selected crops, we should have a more definitive feel for the duration of the growth cycle and yield of the same. We will also be able to assess the relative ease or difficulty of setting-up and operating this system on a larger scale--just in case we decide to produce more as a "mom and pops" enterprise or even as a full commercial undertaking.
A couple of reasons I like hydroponics: it's simplicity and the absence of soil. Hence, it is neat, literally and figuratively. I am not particularly keen on getting my hands dirty with soil--even though soil-based planting has the advantage of beneficial microorganisms. However, unless soil is sterilized at the outset of planting, it could potentially contain a host of undesirable stuff that may wreak havoc on your crops.
Hydroponics involves the use of water (even tap water from your faucet that probably contains some chlorine) and the addition of small amounts of liquid nutrients (usually purchased in a set of two bottles, one labeled A and the other labeled B) for every liter of water stored in the tank or reservoir. With respect to the germination of seeds, hydroponics uses sponge or rockwool cubes (not soil), upon which the seed or seeds are placed to sprout. And when the seeds have sprouted their first pair of baby leaves (several days to a couple of weeks, depending on the variety of plant), then the sponge or rockwool cubes (upon which the young roots have anchored) are transferred to "pots" that are slightly submerged in the water/nutrient solution. No soil, no dirt, no mess. Further, because there is no soil, there is practically no "uprooting" of the very fragile sprout, which (in my mind) seems traumatic for the plant. Instead, the handling of the tiny infant plant is done through the sponge or rockwool cube, which serves as a kind of buffer against clumsy mishandling that I am prone to do. Thus, hydroponics appears to work for heavy-handed non-green thumbs, which works for me.
A word on seeds. I try as much as possible to use seeds produced by a Taiwan seed company, Known You, which has a presence in the Philippines. Several years ago, I met the local partner of Known You, Julius Barcelona, a young, knowledgeable and enthusiastic agriculturist. He showed me (and made me taste) the excellent quality of their produce in their demonstration farm in Rosales, Pangasinan, including various kinds of melons, cherry tomatoes, papaya and lowland sunflowers (I forgot to taste the sunflower seeds). Julius planted on soil; therefore, I was not enthusiastic enough to initiate any planting. That said, I took note of the quality of his hybrid seeds, which I am now using for my hydroponics initiative to the extent that he has the seeds for my selected crops.
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| After my first harvest of the Rocket Arugula. This one is a "cut and come back" crop, which means I can come back in a couple of weeks and harvest again. |
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| A full plate of young Rocket Arugula . . . |
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| . . . with cherry tomatoes and a light dressing of extra virgin olive oil, calamansi and rock salt. |
Let me tell you, it doesn't get any fresher than this!
End of Part 1.
