Bed preparation and Seedplug Transplanting Vegetable Master Grower Program 14 th Feb 2014

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1 Bed preparation and Seedplug Transplanting Vegetable Master Grower Program 14 th Feb 2014

2 Overview Types of vegetable raised beds Know your soil Vegetable planting distances Vegetable seedlings and seedplug transplanting Fertilizing Watering

3 Soil bed preparation Things to prepare before planting! Types of Vegetable raised beds

4 Types of Vegetable raised beds

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6 Know your Soil!

7 Know your Soil! Soil can be categorize into three kinds : Clayey Soil, Loamy soil and Sandy soil Sandy soil - Good drainage - Poor nutrient retention - Usually poor in organic matter Loamy soil - Good water and nutrient retention - Poor drainage - Rich in organic matter Clayey soil - Excellent water and nutrient retention - Poor drainage - Good amount in organic matter

8 Zone 1 Zone 2 Zone 3 Zone 4 Zone 1: Richest in organic matter but also a lot of unwanted materials such as weed seeds, pests etc. Zone 2: loamy soil zone, good mix of clayey and organic layer soil. Still have same problem as zone 1 to a lesser degree Zone 3: Clayey soil. This is most likely the soil you see Zone 4: large aggregated clayey soil.

9 In SG, the most common soil you will encounter are these type of soil. They are clayey and tend to hold a lot of water. If garden drainage is not good, flooding will occur. Vegetable do not generally grow well in this kind of soil without soil amendments

10 Soil ph Most leafy and fruited vegetables require ph of to grow. In Singapore, our soil is mostly acidic (mitigate by using chicken manure frequently or lime) We can test ph by using a soil ph meter or by looking at plant root growth

11 Soil amendments To improve: - Drainage: River Sand - Organic matter: Peat substrate/cocopeat/ compost - Nutrient content: Chicken manure - ph: Lime

12 Our soil mix. We found that a mixture of 5 parts soil, 2 parts cocopeat/peat substrate and 0.1 part of chicken manure works best! 0.1 part air-dried chicken manure as base fertilizers 2 parts of cocopeat/peat substrate to boost organic matter 5 parts of soil *add 1 2 part sand if you feel that drainage needs to be improved. For certain fruited vegetables that requires looser soils such as radishes

13 Preparing vegetable planting bed Add 2 inches of compost to planting bed Add 2.5kg of chicken manure per square meter of soil (decreasing by 0.5kg per each crop cycle till 1kg, then every subsequent crop cycle add 1 kg Mix thoroughly to a depth of 6 8 inches Best to leave it for 3-4 days before planting Most leafy vegetables root does not reach more than 6 inches into the soil. Therefore if you mix too deep the nutrients will be wasted. Fruited vegetables will require you to dig deeper (up to 10 inches) due to a deeper root zone

14 Vegetable Planting Distances

15 Vegetable planting distances All vegetables have a planting distance between each plant to prevent overcrowding. Overcrowding leads to poor sanitation and increased in pests and diseases occurrences

16 Vegetable Cai Xin, Xiao Bai Cai, Naibai, Bai Cai Gai Lan, Lettuces, leaf mustard, Ceylon spinach Bayam, Kangkong Cabbages, Corn, Okra, Brinjal, tomatoes, chili, Radishes, Chinese cabbages Planting distance apart 10cm 15cm Direct sowing or 10cm 30-40cm 20cm Gourds (bitter/winter/ash) 50cm -1m Herbs (Basil etc) 30cm

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19 Vegetable seedlings and seed plug transplanting

20 Vegetable seedlings and seed plug transplanting Signs of a healthy seedling are: true leaves (excluding the cotyledon leaves) - Visible root development with numerous roots and white in color - Vegetables is up-right and does not flop limply ( not all vegetable)

21 Seed plug transplanting Make planting holes in the soil bed. The holes should not be too deep, can use metal spoon to widen the hole. (Demo on template)

22 Remove seed plug either by poking from below or using the ends of a spoon to dig it out.(practical/demo) Note: You will need to ensure that the root ball does not break apart as it will damage the roots! Moisten the seedlings first before removing!

23 Common Transplanting errors

24 Common Transplanting errors Do not remove the seed plugs until necessary. Roots tend to dry out very fast when exposed to air and will need to plant immediately. It is recommended to mark the planting beds with a planting distance template first before removing the seedlings. Please remember to water immediately after transplanting! You will need to water gently so that the seedlings would not be injured (Demo)

25 Important! Press the seedlings down and plant upright whenever possible!

26 Fertilizing

27 Types of fertilizers Liquid fertilizers Chemical fertilizers (granules) Foliar feed Organic fertilizers

28 Fertilizing Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K), each of these being essential in plant nutrition Nitrogen is for healthy leaves and is a component of chlorophyll, the substance that gives plants their green color. Phosphorus encourages the growth of roots, and promotes blooming. Phosphorus also confers the ability to withstand stress Potassium, the third essential nutrient, assisting in photosynthesis, fruit quality and increase disease resistance

29 Most fertilizers will have the composition stated in the bag. Some will have more info such as micronutrients content The main micronutrients include iron, manganese, molybdenum, zinc, and copper, calcium, boron Come in many colors but only the composition matters

30 Storing fertilizer Because fertilizers are soluble. They will eventually melt when constantly exposed to air. Best to double bag in a durable plastic bag and store in an air tight container. Take what you need and store the rest away.

31 How much fertilizers to apply? Leafy Vegetables 20g per meter square 3 days after transplanting and 10 days after Do not fertilize at least 5 days before harvest Fruited Vegetables 10g per plant Once a month Switch from High N fertilizer to High K fertilizer to promote fruiting

32 How to apply fertilizers Fertilizers are normally applied between two rows of vegetables. Care must be taken to ensure that the granules does not touch the vegetables. Do not touch the vegetable with your hands as it might leave residues on the leaves and cause fertilizer burns (Demo) For larger fruited vegetable. You can fertilize by sprinkling the fertilizer around the plant. Do not go beyond the canopy of the plant as it will be out of the root zone. Do not fertilize too near the stem of the plant as well as it will cause it to burn (Demo)

33 Fertilizer burn can occur when too much fertilizer is applied, resulting in drying out of the leaves and damage or even death of the plant. When vegetables wilt within half a day of applying fertilizers, you need to drench the whole planting bed to wash away the excessive fertilizers

34 Organic fertilizers? Organic fertilizer needs to break down first before being uptake by plants, therefore slower acting than chemical fertilizers Because nutrient content of organic fertilizers are low, vegetables tend to grow slower when using organic fertilizers General NPK values for bio solids fertilizers Dairy manure horse manure poultry manure Bone Meal Fish blood and bone

35 Quick Facts Excessive amounts of nitrogen can reduce production and quality, and increase insect and disease problems. When an excess amount of nitrogen is applied to fruit crops such as tomatoes and squash, it is common to have all vines and no fruit. Excessive amounts of nitrogen are applied to root crops such as radishes may end up with many leaves and a small root.

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37 Myth Busted! Do not water during hot afternoon Myth! - You need to water the vegetables during a hot day, especially if the vegetables are wilting. - You need to DRENCH the vegetables and ensure they get enough water!

38 How to water. Leafy vegetables For leafy vegetables, ensure that the entire vegetable is drenched when the plant showed signs of wilting from heat. This will bring down the temperature immediately and provide water for transpiration Be mindful of the water pressure!

39 How to water. Fruited vegetables For fruited vegetables, ensure that the root zone is drenched when the plant showed signs of wilting from heat. If the fruited vegetables is small, drench the whole plant. Be mindful of water pressure, although not as critical as leafy vegetables.

40 Wrong ways of watering

41 Types of water nozzle

42 Cheap way of watering.

43 Practical!!!