Sherry's Greenhouse - Tomato growing notes
and help for beginning hydroponic growers.
Try starting
seeds hydroponically.
CropKing Hydroponic Gardening catalog
... Magazines & Books... A few links
These notes were taken as I watched video of the basics of
managing a greenhouse growing tomatoes hydroponically. Even though the focus
is on commercial hydroponics, most of the information is applicable to growing
tomatoes in soil or potting mix as well.
Smallest greenhouse for good (commercial) return: 30 feet by 120 feet. Best
orientation for greenhouse is to have the length of it running north to south.
Plants will get light from both sides.
[I don't necessarily agree with this. Detached greenhouses
oriented north-south work well also. Watch this website for more on siting your
greenhouse.]
Newsflash! "Plants grow when their needs are met."
The nutrient mixture water reservoir need not be an expensive tank. It could be a wooden box lined with swimming pool liner material.
Growing media: Horticultural rockwool has high water-holding ability. Perlite also considered good. Vermiculite has high nutrient-containing ability.
Tomato fruit: "Breaker stage" (yellow or red color at blossom end) is when seeds are mature and fruit will ripen properly. "King fruit" is the largest fruit in a cluster, the fruit closest to the main stem of the plant.
Lower stems as plant matures. Remove lower leaves. Definitely remove suckers. (More detail on this below.)
Pollination should take place twice daily (morning and afternoon). Tomato flowers are ready for pollination when the petals curve backward. The window of time for successful pollination is 3 days.
Tomato roots do not function at temperatures below 58 degrees Fahrenheit. Water temperature should be 65 to 68 degrees.
Relative humidity decreases with temperature increase.
Hot water in root area does not have enough oxygen for plant.
With high relative humidity, pollen may clump. With low relative humidity, pollen may become dry and bounce off. Tomatoes prefer a relative humidity of 60 to 80 percent.
Plant tomato seeds in 1 1/2 inch rockwool propagation cubes. When roots reach the outside, place in 3 inch rockwool cubes. Place on mat to drain. The roots will air-prune and branch within the block, and there will be no transplant shock. When the plants are 8 to 14 inches tall, place on rockwool slabs or perlite growbags. (Cut "X" in bag. Saturate with wter. Cut horizontal drainage slits 1/2 inch long, 3/4' inch above bag bottom to allow 3/4 to 1 inch water reservoir.) After placing the plants on the slab or bag, feed blocks often for the first week. After 2 weeks, feed bag or slab area, not block.
Bags or slabs sit on insulation. Offset twine bundle to side.
[My profuse apologies for these crude graphics, but they do load quickly.]
Add clips (8 to 12 inches apart) once a week to keep plants vertical. Keep flower clusters opposite twine and clips. Place clip under leaf above cluster, not below cluster.
Remove suckers once a week--in the morning. Hold main stem just below sucker. Bend sucker back and forth to break off rather than cutting (prevents spread of disease). If top of plant "twins", wait and remove less vigorous one.
Remove old leaves (3 each week) at bottom of plant. Start when plant is 4 feet high. Don't wait longer and remove more leaves--plant will compensate with vegetative growth rather than work on fruit. Use natural breaking point to remove leaves. At this time, "lean and lower" the plants (see graphic below).
Top plants (cut off tops) 6 weeks before removing from
greenhouse so that they will concentrate on remaining fruit.
If temperature of seedlings is too high at 2 weeks, "bullish" plants are produced that don't fruit.
The size and shape of the tomato is determined 2 weeks before the buds are visible. Cool temperatures at growing point influence size and shape of fruit. Slightly cool temperature for short durations--large fruit. Also ribbed, elongated, cat-faced fruit, forked clusters or upward facing clusters.
To pollinate, vibrate either main stem or flower cluster. Don't touch flowers or fruit. Each seed in a fruit results from pollination of a single pollen grain.
Tomato plants will only carry 20 to 30 fruit at a time and will produce replacements as fruit is picked. Prune cluster to control production and quality of fruit. Remove vegetative growth on end of cluster.
Pick tomato fruit when color has appeared (or when a white "star" is visible on the blossom end). Don't let fruit ripen completely on the vine to prevent the message being sent to the plant that seed has been produced.
Don't store tomato fruit at temperatures below 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Definitely never store tomatoes in your refrigerator--flavor will be lost.
Ethylene gas (used by some commercial growers) reddens tomato fruit but does not develop its flavor.
A "4x5" is one layer of 8 oz tomatoes packed in a 10 lb box (4 rows of 5).
"The Hydroponic Grower's Training Workshop" set of tapes is available from the CropKing hydroponic gardening catalog. It is intended for training commercial hydroponic growers and their employees..... "you'll learn the basics of managing a [commercial] greenhouse facility growing tomatoes and using hydroponic methods. The CropKing catalog also offers various hydroculture systems, growing media, starter kits, fertilizers (not organic), various types of lights, books, those vine clips mentioned above for training tomato vines, and more.
CropKing Inc, 5050 Greenwich Road, Seville, OH 44273, USA, telephone 800-321-5211.
Would you like to try hydroponic gardening?
Magazines:
The current issue (August/September 1997) of Taunton's Kitchen Garden magazine contains an article on building a small home hydroponics system.
The Winter 1996-1997 issue of the Growing Edge magazine and the December 1996 issue of Garden Gate magazine also have articles on building home hydroponics systems. Check your library or used magazine store.
In addition, the Growing Edge magazine is always full of advertisements for various hydroponics systems and accessories. Keep picking up issues of this magazine and you will learn more about the latest developments in greenhouses, growing vegetables, herbs and ornamentals, lighting, mycorrihizal fungi, and more!
Books:
There are many available. I picked up these two. Both explain the basics and have instructions for hydrponic systems both extremely simple and inexpensive and also the more complicated setups.
Beginning Hydroponics (Soilless Gardening - The Beginner's Guide to growing Vegetables, Houseplants, Flowers, and Herbs without Soil), by Richard E. Nicholls, publisher Running Press.
Hydroponic Tomatoes for the Home Gardener, by Howard M. Resh, publisher Woodbridge Press.
Remember: Hydroponic growing doesn't have to be a big project. You can probably set something up today with what you already have on hand.
Try sprouting seeds hydroponically. You'll need: 2 plastic cups (preferably transparent), some perlite or vermiculite, some water, some liquid fish fertilizer, a piece of flexible plastic wrap and a rubber band (or the cup lid, instead) and a few seeds.
Punch a couple of holes in one cup and fill it to about the halfway point with perlite or vermiculite. Plant 2 or 3 seeds in the your chosen planting medium. If they're tiny seeds, just press them into the surface. If larger, plant a little deeper. Cover the top of the cup with plastic wrap and a rubber band (or use the cup lid).
In the other cup, put some water and a very small amount of liquid fish fertilizer. Nest the 2 cups together. [It should be obvious to you which one goes on top. If not, perhaps hydroponics is not for you.] The level of liquid should be about 1/2 inch or so above the bottom of the inner cup. You want your planting medium to soak up the liquid, but you don't want to swamp your seeds.
Place your nested cup "greenhouse" in an area with bright light (but not direct sun), maintain the level of the fertilizer/water mixture (that's why it is easier to use transparent cups) so that the medium stays moist, and watch your little seeds grow. You might want to put the whole setup in something more stable--like a large heavy mug, as the nested cups are easily knocked over. Just be sure the top section gets lots of light. Some seeds require light for germination, and definitely your little seedlings will need light as soon as they sprout.
As soon as the seeds sprout, remove the plastic and rubber band (or the lid). See how easy hydroponics can be?
A few hydroponic gardening links:
Aloha
'Aina Hydro Farm
Check out "Growing System 1" showing various stages
of tomato plant growth (5 1/2 week old plants with flowers! Tomatoes
ready for market in 9 to 10 weeks!) Site is slow to load, but
worth looking at.