Hydroponic - Basic Demands

Growing in Pelemix Coco is a very efficient way to grow, and enables the grower to achieve good results with high yields.

There are some important principles that should be followed in order to prepare the greenhouse and plan the plot. The following principles are related to growing in Coco (coir). All general principles such as the disinfection of the greenhouse should be followed.

Structure- The height of the greenhouse, the heating and the ventilation inside the greenhouse should be according to climate conditions in the region.

Slope- In order to collect and remove the drainage water from the green house, the growing row should have a slope of at least 1.5% percent.

There are some ways to achieve this slope:

1. Taking advantage of a natural slope in the building of the greenhouse, so the row will accommodate the natural slope. This method is cheap but too often irrelevant because of other factors that dictate the direction of the growing rows.
2. Create a slope for each growing row. This could be done by elevating the row or lowering it towards the ground. In both cases it should be done in a way that the uniformity of the slope will not be compromised during growth.
3. In the use of hanging gutters there are 2 critical items that should be attended to:

• Strength of structure: the ability of the structure to hold the gutter, the wet substrate and the plant.
• Uniformity of the slope: It is important to use  hangings gutters that are not flexible and will not bend under the total weight of a wet growbag and the plant.

Water removal- In order to keep the green house clean and dry, drainage water should be collected.

The number of collecting pipes in the greenhouse depends on the gutter type.

For some gutters a collecting pipe is needed every 30 meters and for others a collecting pipe is needed every 70-80 meters.

Drainage Water- After removing the water from the greenhouse there are a few possible uses for drainage water.

1. Dispose the water into a draining  ditch.
2. Reuse the water to irrigate an open field- This field will benefit from all the nutrients and fertilizers. In such cases the drainage water E.C. should be monitored.
3. Full recycling- Collect the water into a separate tank, monitor the level of all nutrients, E.C. and pH before re-irrigation. In addition an anti disease  treatment / precaution should be applied to avoid the slight possibility of introducing pathogens to healthy plants.