Table Of ContentGreenhouse
Vegetable
Production
/dlbcrra
AGRICULTURE
AGDEX 250/15-1
National Library Bibliotti^que Rationale
of Canada du Canada
1+1
Copies of this publication may be obtained from:
Print Media Branch
Alberta Agriculture
7000 - 1 1 3 Street
Edmonton, Alberta T6H 5T6
OR
Alberta Agriculture's district offices
1990 02 1M
APR 1 2 K
Greenhouse
Vegetable
Production
Guide
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2014
https://archive.org/details/greenhousevegetaOOalbe
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1 Feeding 24
GREENHOUSE ENVIRONMENT 2 Training the Plants 27
Pruning 28
The Effect of Temperature 2
Renewable Umbrella System 28
Supplemental Carbon Dioxide 3
Fruit Harvest 29
PRODUCTION INFORMATION 5
Grading and Packing 29
Management 5 Storage 29
Greenhouse Soil Management 5 Shelf Life 29
Type and Condition of Soil 5 Disease Control Recommendations 29
Soil Testing 5 Diseases 30
Soil Mixes for Seedlings 6 Nutrient Disorders 33
Pre Crop Application of Fertilizer, Pest Control 35
Straw and Manure 7 Intergrated Control 35
Soil pH and its Correction 7 Insects and Mites 36
Adjustment of Soil pH in a Standing Crop 8 TOMATO PRODUCTION 39
Soilless Culture 8
Varieties 39
Greenhouse Sanitation 9
Cropping Schedules 39
Soil Sterilization 9
Late Spring Single Crop 39
Damping-Off 11
Early Fall Single Crop 39
Water Quality 11
The Two-Crop System 40
Electrical Conductivity 11
Raising Healthy Transplants 40
Special Management Practices 12
Propagation Schedules 40
Acidifying Water Supplies 13
Seed Sowing 40
Phosphoric Acid 13
The Cold Treatment 41
Nitric Acid 14
Transplant Into Pots (Pricking Out) 41
Sulphuric Acid 14
Water and Nutrition of Transplants 41
Hydrochloric Acid 14
Artificial Lighting of Transplants 42
Chlorination 14
Temperature Control 42
Fluoridation 14
Carbon Dioxide Enrichment 42
Boron 1 4
Grafting 43
Sodium 14
Management of Seedlings in Rockwool 43
Pollutants 1 5
Chemical Treatments 43
Alkalinization 15
Plant Density 44
Water Treatment 15
Planting Out 44
Disease Control 15
Pollination 44
Definition of Plant Disease 16
Training 44
Causes of Plant Disease 16
Fertilizing Soil Grown Crops 44
Diagnosing Plant Diseases 1 7
Temperatures 49
Diagnosing Nutrient Disorders 17
Truss Pruning 49
SEEDLESS CUCUMBERS 19 Fruit Harvest 49
General Information 19 Accelerated Ripening 49
Recommended Cultivars 19 Harvesting, Handling and Marketing 49
Seedling Production and Timing 19 Greenhouse Labour Breakdown 50
Artificial Illumination 20 Yields 50
Raising Healthy Seedlings 20 Disease Control Recommendations 50
Growing Systems 21 Diseases 50
Standing Out 22 Nutrient Disorders 53
Planting 22 Insect Control 55
Temperature 23 PEPPER PRODUCTION 56
Carbon Dioxide Enrichment 23
Varieties 56
Irrigation 23
iii
Germination 56 Re-entry to Treated Areas 61
Plant Raising 56 Relative Toxicity of Pesticides 61
Plant Density 56 Very Toxic 61
Crop Timing 56 Toxic 61
Training and Pruning 57 Slightly Toxic 62
Climate
57 PESTICIDES 63
Feeding 57
Fungicides 63
Harvesting
Insecticides 63
Fruit Disorders
Grading and Storage gg Fumigants 63
Disease and Insect Control 5g MMoiltliuscciidceidse 6633
PESTICIDE SAFETY 59 Herbicides 63
Know Your Pesticides 59 Rodenticides 63
Code for the Safe Handling VEGETABLE RESEARCH AND
and Use of Pesticides
59 EXTENSION STAFF 64
Protective Clothing 59
Respirators 59 GREENHOUSE SOIL AND ANALYSIS
LABORATORIES 66
Indoor Use of Fumigants, Smoke
Generators and Foggers 59 METRIC UNITS 67
Disposal of Unwanted Pesticides 60 CONVERSION FACTORS 68
Disposal of Containers
Storage 60 SOLUBILITY OF FERTILIZERS IN
Records 60 COLD AND HOT WATER 69
After Applying Pesticides 60
Symptoms of Pesticide Poisoning 60
Poison Control Centres 61
IV
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Commercial Greenhouse Vegetable Production Guide is a combination of production information
on seedless cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers. The information is based on the experience gained at the
Alberta Special Crops and Horticultural Research Center, Brooks and the Alberta Tree Nursery and
Horticulture Centre, Edmonton. Information has also been utilized from the Vegetable Production
Guides of British Columbia and Ontario.
My special thanks to staff of Alberta Agriculture, especially Dr. Ron Howard for his input into the
'Disease' section and other useful suggestions.
Mirza Mohyuddin, Ph.D., PAg.
Greenhouse Crops Specialist
January, 1990
v
INTRODUCTION
Growing plants out of season when outdoor Suffield gets 13.0% more light annually than
conditions are unsuitable is the basic reason for Edmonton. A further comparison of solar radiation
growing crops in protected environments, and that for various seasons indicates that Suffield gets
is the reason for building greenhouses. Primary 28.0%; 12.0%; 18.0% and 33.0% better light
considerations are satisfactory plant growth and respectively for the winter period, spring period,
economics. Natural light conditions will affect summer period and fall period.
plant growth and are the single most important
This means that during the period of most
factor that should be taken into account before
limiting light, the differential between Suffield
deciding on the kind of vegetables to be grown.
and Edmonton is high in terms of both hours of
sunshine and available solar energy. Conversely,
The province of Alberta stretches from 49° north
in spring and summer, when plant growth is least
to 60° north and the winter light conditions vary
from south to north. Light is a critical and a limited by light, the differences between Suffield
limiting factor for the production of greenhouse and Edmonton are reduced but still significant.
vegetables during winter, but during summer Adjustments in planting schedules are therefore
there is an overabundance of light. Consequently necessary. Schedules are suggested for various
shading is required. A comparison of solar areas in Alberta in appropriate sections.
radiation at Suffield, located just above 50° north,
and Edmonton located 53° north shows that
1
GREENHOUSE ENVIRONMENT
A greenhouse is a structure designed to control HIGH
the conditions surrounding plants. These
conditions include the light falling on the leaves, RESPIRATION
RATE
the temperature and moisture of both soil and air,
the nutrient elements available and the diseases
(URSEE S EORFV EFSO)O D
and insects that attack the plants. Factors such as
heat, water, nutrients and diseases can be
controlled, but nothing can be done to control light.
Artificial light can seldom be added profitably
because of cost. LOW
LOW MEDIUM HIGH
The Effect of Temperature
TEMPERATURE
The temperature of a plant regulates the rate at Figure 2. The effect of temperature on respiration rate
which all the growth processes proceed. Each
plant has an optimum temperature for growth,
Lowering the temperature conserves the food
which varies from crop to crop. For example 1 2 to
reserves in the plant.
15°C is highly favorable for the growth of lettuce,
but too low for cucumbers.
A green plant while in the light is using food
but at the same time is producing new food
100 n through— i the process called photosynthesis. The
5 speed at which food production goes on is also
o
O) 75 controlled by temperature. However, the type of
09
jQ curve is different, as show in figure 3.
Since no food is produced at night the
50- temperature should be lowered somewhat. In this
way the food produced during the day is conserved
25- by reducing night time respiration. If
Lettuce Tomato Cucumber
10 15 —r- —r- temperatures are kept high at night or during dull
20 25 35 weather, spindly, soft plants result. Lowering the
30 night temperature benefits the crop and results in
temperature in °C a considerable fuel saving.
Figure 1. Idealized growth curves for several crops with
changing temperature The respiration and photosynthesis curves vary
somewhat for different plants, but the general
Figure 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of the
growth curves of several crops. These growth HIGH
curves are idealized, but they demonstrate that a
temperature favorable to one crop may be entirely PHOTOSYNTHESIS
RATE
unsatisfactory for another.
The temperature in a greenhouse must not (PRNOEDWU C TFOIOODN) OF
fluctuate too widely from the optimum or growth
will be reduced. Also, with rapid temperature
changes there is danger of condensation on the
leaves and an increase in leaf diseases. A living
plant constantly uses food in its respiration. The LOW
rate at which food is consumed rises with LOW MEDIUM HIGH
temperature. Figure 2 shows the type of curve TEMPERATURE
obtained with most plants.
Figure 3. The effect of temperature on photosynthesis
rate
2
