Greenhouse Hydroponics
YOU FINALLY HAVE YOUR OWN GREENHOUSE and it’s up and operational. The next decision, if you have not already determined this, is what to grow in your new greenhouse. The answer depends upon your purpose for having the greenhouse as well as some other factors. If part of your purpose for getting a greenhouse is to provide at least some of your own food, you will need to start by allocating space for those types of plants. Growers quickly find that their greenhouse is smaller than they realized once plants are in and growing.
Most any plant will grow in the greenhouse. Every plant requires its own space; some plants require more space than other plants and still others need the space for a longer time. Some plants, like tomato, will take space in the greenhouse for a long time but will produce over much of that time. Other plants, like lettuce, will take space for six to eight weeks and the whole plant will be removed when it is harvested. The novice grower should take some time to plan out his plant layout for the greenhouse
to avoid overcrowded conditions as plants grow.
Once you have decided what you will grow, the next question is do you grow your own plants from seed or buy plants that are already started? Although it seems easier to buy plants that are already started, it will actually save you much trouble to start all your greenhouse plants from seed. Bringing in started plants like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, or lettuce from a nursery or another greenhouse is asking for disease and insect problems, because both diseases and insects can travel into your greenhouse on your nursery-bought plants.
With a little planning and scheduling you can have your own plant starts when you need them. However, some plants are not commonly started from seeds. If you want to grow some of these plants, starting everything from seed may not be a workable plan for you. In those instances make sure you purchase your plants from a reputable greenhouse, and keep those plants segregated from the rest of your greenhouse plants until you have had a chance to observe them for a few days.
Make sure you start with good-quality, fresh seed. If you’re interested in growing your own organic produce, organic seed of some cultivars are available. Although true organic seeds are not available for many cultivars, most seed producers are no longer treating their seeds with fungicides. This usually allows the seeds to be used for certified organic production if organic seeds are not available.
SEEDS FOR GREENHOUSE FRUIT-BEARING PLANTS
Before we proceed to discuss specific cultivars, let us talk a bit about the seeds. Greenhouse cultivars of tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers are grown form seeds that are F1 Hybrids. They have been developed through a breeding program that has many advantages and only a few disadvantages.
The fruit characteristics like taste, size, and keeping quality are selected in the breeding process. Resistance or tolerance to various fungi, viruses, and bacterial diseases are also characteristics
that are selectively bred into greenhouse cultivars. Because greenhouse cultivars are kept in production for longer periods of time than outside cultivars, disease resistance is more important
in them than in their outdoor counterparts. It is important to keep the plant healthy and productive for the longer period of time during which they are grown in the greenhouse.
Conversely, cultivars bred for outdoor production will have different characteristics than those bred for greenhouse production.
Different things will be more important to the growth, development, and production of the outdoor plant compared to one in the greenhouse. Because of these distinct differences cultivars bred for greenhouse production will do a better job in the greenhouse than cultivars bred for outside production.
Seeds from a plant grown from F1 hybrid seeds should not be saved for planting. Because of the way F1 hybrids are developed and produced they will not come true to the F1 seed that was initially planted to create the parent plant. In other words, a seed saved from a fruit from an F1 hybrid will have a different mix of genetic material than its parent had.
Tomatoes, peppers, and melons that you purchase in the grocery store are usually the fruit of F1 hybrids developed for field or greenhouse production. Seed from such fruit will not produce plants that produce fruit similar to what you purchased.
Purchasing the seed of greenhouse cultivars for production in your greenhouse will give you much better results and will be well worth the cost of the seed. Heirloom cultivars are not F1 hybrids. They can be and are reproduced by saving and planting the seed from the fruit of the plant. They are generally old cultivars that have been passed down for many years. Although heirlooms can be grown in the greenhouse, they present some problems. They have very little disease resistance compared to the greenhouse cultivars. They cannot be depended upon to provide an extended productive life in the greenhouse. The plants will need to be replaced in the greenhouse two to three times as often as plants of greenhouse hybrids. Commercial growers who grow heirlooms have them grafted onto a rootstock that gives the plant more vigor and some disease resistance.
Choosing Fruit Bearing Plants for Greenhouse Hydropinics