Hydroponics I 100 Hours Certificate Course

There are 10 lessons:

1 Introduction

• hydroponic systems
• global industry
• comparision to growing in soil
• resources and contacts.

2 How a Plant Grows

• plant structure
• biochemistry
• biochemical cell processess
• mechanisms of nutrient uptake
• photosynthesis; minerals and nutrients
• the role of pH in plant growth
• hydroponic nutrient solutions
• preparing nutrient solutions.

3 Hydroponic Systems

• location
• equipment
• systems
• soilless mixes
• rockwool
• rockwool manufacture
• rockwool properties
• development of propagating blocks
• propagation applications
• recommended practices for propogation
• nutrient film techniques
• alternative layouts for NFT
• methods of solution dispention, closed and open systems; techniques.

4 Nutrition & Nutrition management

• understanding nutrient formulae
• atoms, elements & compounds
• chemical names
• what does a plant need
• calculating formulae
• mixing nutrients
• symptoms of nutrient deficiency
• recommendations
• adjusting the pH
• using electrical conductivity measures
• conductivity
• conductivity and hydroponics.

5 Plant Culture

• flow charting the crop
• controllers
• salinity controllers
• pH controllers
• post harvest storage
• cooling
• drying
• canning/bottling
• controlled atmosphere storage
• relative humidity
• vacuum storage
• freeze drying
• freezing
• pest and diseases in controlled environments
• fungi, common funal problems
• cultural controls
• current legislation
• biological and integrated pest management
• beneficial agents
• economic thresholds
• methods of introduction
• major pests, diseases and disorders of crops identified
• problem solving and identification of illness
• difficult to diagnose problems
• leaf hoppers; thrip; virus; bacteria; caterpillars; harlequin bugs and more.

6 Hydroponic Vegetable Production

• commerical cultivation of vegetables
• propagation
• temperatures required for seed germination
• optimum monthly temperatures for vegetable growth
• harvesting vegetables
• growing vegetables hydroponically
• vegetable families
• fresh-cut herbs in hydroponic culture
• nutrient solution
• materials and handling
• notes on selected crops.

7 Hydroponic Cut Flower Production

• growing flowers in hydroponics
• carbon dioxide
• automation
• flower varieties
• indoor plants.

8 Solid Media vs Nutrient Film

• growing media
• NFT system choices
• header tank or direct pumping
• construction materials
• solution delivery
• capillary matting
• channel width and length
• slope
• temperature
• types of media
• vermiculite; sand; perlite; expanded plastics; scoria; expanded clay
• organic media; sawdust; peat moss; coir fibre; composted bark
• indoor plants
• plant directory
• transplanting a pot grown plant into a hydroponic 'culture pot'.

9 Greenhouse Operation & Management

• growing crops in greenhouses
• solar energy
• greenhouses
• nature of active solar heating systems
• examples of solar greenhouse facilities
• greenhouse management
• what you can grow
• greenhouse and other growing structures
• environmental factors that influence plant growth
• plant needs
• temperature control
• heat loss
• heaters
• light factors
• artificial light
• horticultural management in a greenhouse
• greenhouse benches
• greenhouse cooling
• fog.

10 Special Assignment

• plan a hydroponic enterprise.

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The quality of this course is second to none, from the in-depth learning you will get to the expert individual mentoring you will receive throughout your studies. The mentors for this course are:

Susan Stephenson

BSc in Applied Plant Biology (Botany) Univ. London 1983.

City and guilds: Garden Centre Management, Management and Interior Decor (1984)

Management qualifications in training with retail store. Diploma in Hort level 2 (RHS General) Distinction.

Susan Stephenson is a passionate and experienced horticulturist and garden designer. She has authored three books, lectures at 2 Further and Higher Education Colleges, teaching people of all ages and backgrounds about the wonders of plants and garden design, and tutors many students by correspondence from all over the world.

Susan studied botany at Royal Holloway College (Univ of London) and worked in the trading industry before returning to her first love plants and garden design. She is therefore, well placed to combine business knowledge with horticulture and design skills. Her experience is wide and varied and she has designed gardens for families and individuals. Susan is a mentor for garden designers who are just starting out, offering her support and advice and she also writes, delivers and assesses courses for colleges, introducing and encouraging people into horticulture and garden design.

In 2010, Susan authored a complete module for a Foundation degree (FDSC) in Arboriculture.

Susan holds the RHS General with Distinction. She continues to actively learn about horticulture and plants and (as her students will tell you) remains passionate and interested in design and horticulture.

Steven Whitaker

Diploma in Garden Design (Distinction) – The Blackford Centre, Gold Certificate of Achievement in Horticulture, Level 2 NVQ in Amenity Horticulture, Level 1 NOCN Introduction to Gardening, – Joseph Priestly College, BTEC Diploma in Hotel, Catering and Institutional Operations (Merit), Trainer Skills 1, & 2, Group trainer, Interview and Selection Skills – Kirby College of Further Education

Steven has a wealth of Horticultural knowledge, having ran his own Design and Build service, Landscaping company, and been a Head Gardener. His awards include five Gold awards at Leeds in Bloom, two Gold awards at Yorkshire in Bloom and The Yorkshire Rose Award for Permanent Landscaping. Steven has worked with TV’s Phil Spencer as his garden advisor on the Channel 4 TV Programme, “Secret Agent”.

He is qualified to Level 2 NVQ in Amenity Horticulture and has a Diploma in Garden Design which he passed with Distinction. Steven’s Tutor and Mentor was the Chelsea Flower Show Gold Award-winning Garden Designer, Tracy Foster. He also works for a major Horticultural Commercial Grower in the field of Propagation and Craft Gardening. Steven lives in Leeds where he is a Freelance Garden Designer and Garden Advice Consultant.

UNDERSTANDING HYDROPONIC NUTRIENT FORMULAE

For many years it has been considered that all plants require around 20 nutrient elements for their growth, and some plants might require a few more which others don't need. Less than ten elements are known to be used in large quantities, and these are what make up the bulk of any nutrient being fed to plants growing in hydroponics. The remaining nutrients are generally supplied in either tiny quantities, or not supplied at all (it is assumed that dust in the air or impurities in the system will supply these tiny quantities of minor nutrients. This is however not always the case, and minor nutrient deficiencies can have drastic effects on the crop produced (even though they are only needed in small amounts).

Recent research has actually found that up to 93 elements in fact are needed to maximise the flavour in fruit and vegetables. (Potassium and magnesium are particularly important to the flavour of strawberries, though many other nutrient elements also have a contributing effect.)

Atoms, Elements and Compounds

Atoms are the basic building blocks of our world. Everything you see, touch and feel (including yourself) is made up of atoms. If you split any object or substance (solid, liquid or gas) up and continued splitting it, you would eventually get down to having microscopic particles which are atoms.

‑ There are 103 different types of atoms.

‑ 92 different types of atoms occur naturally.

‑ Each different type of atom is called a different 'Element'.

‑ Around 50 different elements have been used by plants. (With many they are important to one type of plant but not all types of plants.)

‑ Just less then 20 different elements are important to all plants. (These are the nutrients we add to our nutrient solution.)

‑ Different types of elements join together to form 'compounds'.

‑ 'Nutrient salts' are a type of compound which is commonly used in hydroponics to supply nutrient elements to plants.

Atoms are made up of smaller particles which are held together by electrical or magnetic forces. Each atom is in effect like a mini solar system with a cluster of particles called "electrons" orbiting it. The nucleus has a positive electrical charge and the electrons have negative electrical charges. The charges of the electrons balance out or neutralise the charge of the nucleus. In effect then, unless an imbalance occurs (eg. an electron is gained or lost by an atom), the electrical charge remains nil (it is balanced).

Elements differ one from the other in terms of atomic weight. By knowing the atomic weights of different parts (different elements) of a nutrient salt, we can calculate the proportion of the total weight of that salt which is the proportion of the total weight of that salt which is made up of the element we are wanting to feed the plant with.

EXAMPLE: Ammonium sulphate (also called Sulphate of Ammonia)

This is composed of the following:

‑ Two atoms of nitrogen

‑ Eight atoms of hydrogen

‑ One atom of sulphur

‑ Four atoms of oxygen

...The two atoms of nitrogen are what we want to feed the plant, but we have to feed it everything else as well, because that is the most convenient way to apply nitrogen.

...Only 21.3% of the total weight is actually nitrogen. The rest of the weight is made up of hydrogen, sulphur and oxygen.

An alternative form of nitrogen sometimes used is Ammonium nitrate. This chemical salt has a larger proportion of nitrogen though (35%). If ammonium nitrate were used instead of ammonium sulphate, less of the chemical would need to be applied to feed the plant with the same amount of nitrogen.

Writing Chemical Names

The different elements have been given standard letter abbreviations. Chemical compounds or nutrient salts can be written using these abbreviations.