Greenhouse Crop Production in

Cocopeat

Irapuato Mexico
November 2009

Andrew Olley Consulting

Andrew Olley
(B.Agr.Sc.,MAIAST)
Greenhouse Agronomist
 Cocopeat Crop Production Presentation

1) History Andrew Olley Consulting

2) Australian Industry

3) Galuku Cocopeat

4) Cocopeat Irrigation Management

5) Cocopeat Nutrition Management

7) Consultancy Services
1) History Andrew Olley

Bachelor Agricultural Science (Greenhouse Agronomist)

- Specialist in Greenhouse crop production
- 23 years experience in hydroponic / greenhouse production
starting in 1986
- Commercial consultant since 1993 (16 years experience)
- Owner Sunshine Greenhouses for 8 years. Specialist research
greenhouse of 5000 square metres for development advanced
production methods for tomatoes and cucumbers in hot climates
- Consulted for Galuku Cocopeat since 1996
- Consulted within Australia plus 20 plus other countries including
-Sth Africa - Maldives - Turkey - Qatar
- Dubai - Fiji - Malaysia
Sunshine Greenhouses
- Research Facility of 5000 square metres
- Specialist work in Cucumber / Tomato
production based on Cocopeat media
- Cucumber production 65 kgs / m
- Tomato production 40 kgs / m (non
heated)
2) Australian Industry
2) Australian Tomato Industry

4000 kms
2) Australian Tomato Industry
• Australian Greenhouse tomato industry present since early 1990’s
• Traditionally medium technology industry
Plastic greenhouses of low gutter height less than 3 metres
Limited heating
No Carbon dioxide
• Early 2000’s change to high technology production involving
Full heating / Hanging gutter systems
Carbon Dioxide
Glasshouses in colder production areas
Plastic houses with 4 plus metre gutter height
• Pollination is done by hand 3 times per weeks as Bumble Bees as
prohibited in Australia
• Labour costs are very high @ AUD $20 per hour (US $18 / hour)
 2) Australian Tomato Industry
Crop is usually grown over a 40 week period

- Northern Australia transplanted Early Autumn

- Southern Australia transplanted Early Winter
- Growing Costs of AUD$ 2.50 / kg average returns of AUD$2.75 / kg
- Growers being forced to grow at least 40 kgs / metre before any profits are
made
- Greenhouse tomatoes are approximately 5-10 % of the fresh tomato market
- Compete with field tomatoes which are easy to grow due to mild climate and
spread growing regions within Australia.
- Dramatic growth greenhouse tomatoes is now occurring as field supply is
irregular and of poor quality
- MEDIA used in high tech greenhouses is COCOPEAT 75 % and
ROCKWOOL 25%
2) Australian Tomato Industry
Australian growers achieving following yields

Plastic houses no heating 35 - 40 kgs / metre

Plastic houses high gutter + heating 40-50 kgs / metre
Plastic houses high gutter + heating + CO2 50-55 kgs / metre
High Technology Glasshouses 60-70 kgs / metre

High producing Glasshouse in Australia

“Blush Tomatoes” 200 000 square metres growing in Galuku Cocopeat achieving
yields of 65 + kgs / metre with no interplant
2) Australian Tomato Industry
Godfrey Dol of “Blush Tomatoes” & Joe Davids, Director of Galuku
20 ha high tech Glasshouse
2) Australian Tomato Industry
Blush Tomatoes crop that exceeded 65 kgs / metre fruit production
3) Galuku Cocopeat
The Galuku Advantage

Galuku, the world leader in coir media, has been setting the standard for
commercial quality coir since 1992.

* Extensive Pre-Sales Technical Consultations

* Quality Guaranteed Coir Products
•After-Sales Technical Support and Backup Services

Galuku products are researched and developed in Australia. The products are
manufactured in Sri Lanka, India and Malaysia by Galuku owned factories.

All sales and marketing activities are handled by head office in Sydney,
Australia.

The Galuku Guarantee

With factories in Sri Lanka, India and Malaysia, Galuku controls the entire
manufacturing process, and offers a highly reliable supply chain that delivers
quality guaranteed products all over the world.
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Galuku Sri Lanka Factory and Offices
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Galuku India Factory and Offices
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Galuku Malaysia Factory and Offices
3) Cocopeat Product Formulas
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Controlled Steer Growbags WC and Air Content can be customized to
suit production method and grower requirements
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Controlled Steer Growbags allow root development throughout the
media maximizing strength of the root zone
3) Galuku Cocopeat
Competitor growbags without customized media components have very
poor root growth only at base of the bag as finer material makes bag to
wet
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Most Critical part of Greenhouse Tomato management and most often the
area where growers have technique incorrect to maximize yields
Important Definitions for this Presentation

1) STEERING the crop = Growers technique / tools to control crop production

and growth in a desired direction

2) VEGETATIVE growth = Crop growth with thick stems, upright flowers

truss, strong growth, poor fruit set as all crops
energy going into leaf growth

3) GENERATIVE growth = Thin stems, flower truss at 90 degrees to stem,

long thin leaves, high fruit set, small fruit size and
slow speed of plant growth
4) BALANCED crop = Plant growth is strong while fruit growth and size is
also performing well
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
VEGETATIVE PLANT GENERATIVE PLANT

Flower Truss
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Vegetative Crop
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Generative Crop
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Steering Crop for Vegetative to Generative
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Balanced Crop at TRUSS 36 fruit size and crop Vigor Still good at 35 degrees
4) Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- What is the purpose Irrigation ?

1) Water for growth of the plant / crop
2) Water for Transpiration to cool the plant
3) Water to allow excess salts to be drained from the root zone

Simple Formula for Greenhouse Crop Irrigation

Requirements
100 joules light = 300 mls Irrigation per square metre

Approximate requirements broken into

100 mls for plant growth
100 mls for Transpiration
100 mls for Drain runoff / EC regulation
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- Irrigate Crops effectively irrigation application should be LINKED to

accumulated light levels

- Irrigation based on TIME alone will not accurately meet the crops
demands for irrigation

- Exception is on low light / cloudy days where accumulated light will not
trigger sufficient irrigation for EC control of the growing slab hence
override timed irrigation applications should be applied
 Irrigation Management - LIGHT LEVELS

Light Intensity
Light Sum
Irrigation Total

First Irrigation Last Irrigation

Irrigation Period

6am 7 8 9 10 11 12pm 1 2 3 4 5 6pm

 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- Volume of Irrigation to apply per DRIPPER or per SQUARE METRE is

critical
- Cocopeat growbags have a threshold of water infiltration which if exceed
does not allow irrigation to pass through the slab rather it moves around
the sides of the bag
- This is referred to as FALSE DRAIN
Greater 450 mls / m
300-450 mls / m irrigation applied
irrigation applied

HIGH EC
ZONE

Normal Irrigation moving through FALSE DRAIN where irrigation

all areas of the cocopeat moves around sides growbag
Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Irrigation Management Cocopeat
Irrigation Management Cocopeat
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat
False Drain does not allow for the regulation of EC in the slab and
hence crops can be pushed into a highly GENERATIVE mode which
may decrease crop yields

CRITICAL THAT IRRIGATION DOES NOT SUPPLY MORE THAN

300-450 mls per square metre per application to avoid FALSE DRAIN
occurring

This is equivalent to 2 L / hr drippers @ 3 per square metre applying

no more than 2-3 minutes of irrigation at any one time

Shorter more frequent irrigations are much better than longer intervals
of larger volumes

Irrigation VOLUME should be FIXED through the day and irrigation

TIMINGS should be changed to suit light levels.
 Irrigation Management - IRRIGATION TIMINGS

Light Intensity

Irrigation Timing

First Irrigation Last Irrigation

Irrigation Period
6am 7 8 9 10 11 12pm 1 2 3 4 5 6pm
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- Irrigation period through the day is critical to be able to STEER crop in the
desired direction and to keep fruit production in balance
- Ideal COCOPEAT volume to allow STEERING of the crop is
approximately
8 -10 Litres Cocopeat per square metre of greenhouse
Ideal GROWBAG size for modern greenhouses
1 metre long x 15 cm wide x 10 cm high
(15 Litres volume) at plant density of 3 plants square metre gives 9
Litres per square metre media
Less than 8 L is insufficient in periods of hot weather hence crop will
STEER to GENERATIVE actions
Greater than 10 L is too much available water volume and crop will
STEER towards VEGETATIVE actions
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

The right MEDIA volume allows the grower control over the growth
habit of the crop and yields can be maximized.

Critical that greenhouse irrigation system has no more than 3

valves per pump unit to allow sufficient water to be applied to the
media in summer growing conditions.

More valves per pump unit saves costs however will not keep up
with crop water demands during summer periods.

In peak summer Irrigation system should be able to supply 10

Litres of irrigation per square metre per hour in irrigation
applications of no more than 450mls per square metre per cycle to
avoid false drain
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- To allow for maximal crop production Cocopeat requires drying during the
night period to allow the oxygenation of the root zone.
- Drying of the root zone also has the effective of producing plant hormones
in the crop to STEER the growth in the growers desired direction.
COCOPEAT
Drying 8-10 % at night STEERS GENERATIVE
Drying Less than 6 % at night STEERS VEGATIVELY

Knowing the moisture content of the growbag is critical to STEER the crop
and knowing when to start and stop irrigation each day.

Moisture Content can measured Automatically or Manually using either

1) Scales to measure the weight of the water changes in the growbag
2) Electronic meters to measure water content directly
Irrigation Management Cocopeat
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- Simple Manual scale system for measuring WC growbags

 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- PRIVA root optimizer measuring WC / ph / EC / Drain

Andrew Olley Consulting (confidential)

 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- Irrigation start time should be approximately 1-2 hours after sunrise

to allow the crop to WAKEUP and start to absorb water from the
growbag
- Measuring water content allows the grower to see when the crop is
ACTIVE and the first irrigation should be applied
- If irrigation is applied to early excessive ROOT PRESURE may
force water into the fruit and SPLIT fruit may result
- The LAST irrigation of the DAY should be timed to allow sufficient
drying time of the COCOPEAT overnight. This last irrigation may
occur 2-3 hours before SUNSET to give the active crop time to
reduce the Water Content in the growbag.
 Irrigation Management – SLAB WATER CONTENT

WC % Irrigation Timing Slab WC %

80 Slab Drying
78
76
Slab Saturation
74 Root Uptake
72 Last Irrigation
70
First Irrigation

Irrigation Period
6am 7 8 9 10 11 12pm 1 2 3 4 5 6pm
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- DRAIN (Runoff) is essential in Hydroponic media to regulate the EC of the

growbag. EC has the effect of OSMOTIC PRESSURE on the plant and
determines the volume of water the plant can absorb.
- HIGH EC reduces water uptake and is a GENERATIVE action
- LOW EC increases water uptake and is a VEGETATIVE action
- In general COCOPEAT requires approximate 30-40 % DRAIN each day to
keep the root zone at a set EC level by the grower
- IMPORTANT that is an AVERAGE figure for the day and must be varied
at different times of the day to keep the EC of the root zone constant
- Maximum DRAIN should occur at the peak of light through the day as this
is when the plant is absorbing large volumes of water and reduce nutrient
uptake occurs. This is the critical time than DRAIN must be around 50 %
to keep the EC in balance in the growbag
- The first 1 or 2 irrigations at the start of the day should not cause DRAIN
as the growbag will have dried down at night
 Irrigation Management – DRAIN RUNOFF %

Drain %
Drain
% Irrigation Timing
50
40
30 Av Drain %
20
10 Max Drain %
0
First Irrigation Last Irrigation

Irrigation Period
6am 7 8 9 10 11 12pm 1 2 3 4 5 6pm
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- To keep the rootzone at the IDEAL EC level for desired STEERING of

growth the EC must be monitored regularly
- The DRAIN EC is critical to be known so effective irrigation cycles can be
scheduled.
- If the DRAIN EC is HIGH more frequent irrigations should be given to
slowly bring it back into range
- If the DRAIN EC is LOW less irrigations should be given to bring it back
into range
- THE APPLICATION OF LOW EC or WATER ALONE through the irrigation
should never be given to reduce the EC and this will cause the plant to
take up large volume of water and fruit quality will be greatly reduced with
symptoms of SOFT fruit
- If the EC in the DRAIN needs to be altered more than 0.5 dsm it should be
gradually done over a period 1-2 days so the plant is not shocked by the
changes in the root zone.
 Irrigation Management Cocopeat

- The greenhouse computer should be used to automatically adjust

the EC of the irrigation based on light intensity as this helps keep
the ROOTZONE of the growbag at a constant EC level
- However the difference between HIGH light and LOW light EC
setpoints should not be more than 0.5 dsm as a change through
the day greater than this will cause unstable root zone and loss of
yield and quality
- During intense summer periods where night temperatures do not
drop below 25 degrees night applications of Irrigation may be
require to stop the slab drying down to far and causing the EC to
rise.
- In summer growbags starting off below desired WC can be hard to
bring to saturation when heat / light levels are high.
- Checking WC graphs during hot night periods is critical to ensure
growbags do not dry down too far.
 Irrigation Management - EC MANAGEMENT

EC EC Slab
ds/m
3.2
EC Drain
3.1 EC Irrig
3.0
2.9
2.8
2.7
2.6 Irrigation Timing
First Irrigation
2.5

Last Irrigation

Irrigation Period
6am 7 8 9 10 11 12pm 1 2 3 4 5 6pm
5) Cocopeat Nutrition Management

Cocopeat requires BUFFERING at the hydration (expansion stage) to reduce

Sodium, Potassium from internal micropores of the substrate

Procedure;
Place bags onto gutter and insert drippers, do not cut drainage slits
When expanding bags use Calcium Nitrate at 2.0 ds/m until bags are tight
Fully expand bags and leave sit 24 hours in Calcium Nitrate solution
Cut drainage slits 2-3 cm long from under bags at 45 degree angle on sides
Flush bags with 50 % bag water volume with clean water
Eg 15 Litre growbag flush with 7-8 litres fresh water
Then complete flushing with Starter nutrient solution to complete the process
and set your starting EC level.
 6) Consultancy Services
- World Wide Consultancy services are available ON FARM and remotely by
the way of PHONE and EMAIL support

Crop Advice and Management

Growing Media selection and Management
Plant Nutrition Management
Climate Management
Trouble Finding in problem crops
Advice on Nutrient Laboratory Analysis
Training Growers, Agronomists and Consultants
Design, Planning and Project Management of Greenhouse Systems and
irrigation
Email: [email protected]
 Thank you to :

Asesores en Invernaderos, SA de CV
Acceso 2 No. 5 Nave 11 Parque Industrial Benito Juarez,
76120 Queretaro, Qro.
Tel (442) 209 5060 Fax (442) 209 5061 www.aiasesores

www.galuku.com