Farming Q&A

Effortless Aeroponic Towers & Hydroponic Systems Cleaning Method, Amazing! No Scrubbing, No Sweating

14 Mar 2023 By FarmTek Australia

Hydroponic systems can become a breeding ground for dirt, algae and molds if they are not cleaned on every growing cycle. This will destroy the root zone and create an unhealthy environment, spreading diseases to plants.

Dirt, algae and other contaminants such as drop leaves, broken roots, can end up blocking the flow of water through the system and eventually damage your plants or the equipment itself. You can clean your tower system with a brush that has been dipped into a solution made of water mixed with vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. However, it is an exhausting task and very time consuming.

Do you know, you can clean any hydroponic systems effortless?

We have developed an effortless cleaning method after every harvest. The result could be even much better than scrubbing and brushing.

Step 1:

Dilute bleach solution at 1:100 – 1:200 (depending on how fast you want it cleaned). Pour into the aeroponic tower system.

 

Step 2:

Switch on the circulation pump, let the system run continuously for 24-48 hours depending on the concentration ration of the bleach solution. If you use 1:100, 24 hours will basically clean up the system. If 1:200, it could take 48 hours or longer to clean up dirt and algae stuck in joints.  If the planting hole rim is dirty, by placing a net pot on it will guide the bleach solution into the gap between net pot rim and planting hole rim.

 

Step 3:

After running the system for 48 hours, the inner section of the whole system shall be 99% cleaned and sanitised even using 1:200 bleach solution. You do not have to do anything to the inner section of the system, whether it is aeroponic towers or NFT systems. All you need to do is to clean up the outer surface of the tower with a damp cloth or hose down the dirt on surface

 

 

Step 4:

Don’t waste the bleach solution. Through all used net pots into the water tank and soak those net pots for a day or two. With scrubbing or touching those, the bleach solution will clean up the dirty net pots like new. Of course, you may combine this step with previous step, to clean the tower and net pots at the same time.

 

Step 5:

Rinse the net pots with clean water.  Clean the water tank and re-assemble the tower system.

 

Cleaning NFT System 

Cleaning NFT system is basically the same as above, by using diluted bleach solution to run the system continuously for 1-2 days to clean up all the dirt and algae inside the channels, water piping, and water tank.

Make sure that the water volume is equal or greater than your usual water volume in growing stage, to ensure all the inside areas are reached by bleach solution.

How to fix yellow leaves problem of your plants?

27 Dec 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Fixing the Yellow Leaf Problem Of Plants

Yellow Leaves Problem

Yellow leaves are commonly found on plants without proper care.  There are many reasons contributing to the yellow leaf issue, such as over and under-watering, nutrient deficiency, pH value of the soil, sunlight and pests.

Methods to diagnose the cause of the yellow leaves problem:

  1. Measure the humidity in the soil
    Use a proper soil condition tester, and insert the probe into the soil 5-10cm deep.  If you do not have any testers, dig into the soil for 5-10cm and observe the soil. You should be able to feel and see that the soil is moist without seeing excessive water. If it is wet (can see excessive water) or too dry (dusty), adjust your watering frequency and amount.
  2. Measure the pH value in the soil
    Use a proper soil condition tester, and insert the probe into the soil 5-10cm deep.  Compare the reading with the suitable pH range for the plants you are growing. BoosterPlus can auto-balance pH in soil, turning soil pH back to neutral.
  3. Measure the sunlight in the planting area
    Using our 4-in-1 soil condition tester, you can easily measure the sunlight rate in different spots of the field. In an outdoor growing environment, it is less likely the yellow leaf issue was caused by insufficient sunlight unless the planting area is shaded by neighbour tall objects such as sheds, tall crops, trees, fences, buildings etc.

This BoosterPlus experiment was done accidentally. The grapefruit tree was left unattended for months outdoors with other plants.  We excluded the possibility of watering and sunlight problems. Thus, we treated the plant with BoosterPlus fortnightly at 1:3000 ratio.

After 2 weeks time, we can observe a significant change in the colour of leaves. Applied 2nd treatment with NPK 30-10-10 at 1:3000 as usual, re-check after a couple of weeks, the result exceeded our expectation. Apart from two old leaves, all other leaves are turned completely green. Two of them can see minor yellowish green as shown in photos.

 

Save Your Plant with FarmTek® BoosterPlus™ 

FarmTek® BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid For Plants is an organic leonardite base Fulvic Acid product, is made of natural young leonardite, processed through the unique anti-flocculation technology, smaller molecular,  hard water tolerance to 21°dh, completely soluble in hard water and acid condition.

BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid contains both micro and macro nutrients for plants. It is an immediately available form of food for all plants and soil microbes.

Furthermore, BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid can auto-balance pH in soil, turning soil pH back to neutral.

 

*images are for reference only

FarmTek® Case Studies For Your Successful Planting Experience

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Aeroponic Tower – Australia’s Best Aeroponic Garden Towers

09 Dec 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Australia’s Best Aeroponic Garden Towers & Walls

Aeroponic Tower can be considered a variant of NFT hydroponic system, one of the vertical farming techniques for home growers as well as for commercial farmers.  By pumping nutrient solutions up high, nutrient solutions run down passing through each plant and back to the bottom water storage tank, plants absorb nutrients and grow.

Farmtek Aeroponic Tower

 

Advantages of aeroponic tower systems

  1. Higher yield per square, due to its vertical farming design. (96 plants in 0.36m2 with sufficient grow space for every plant)
  2. Flexible to scale. The standard system comes in 48 holes, expandable to 96 holes by adding layers.
  3. Scalable to commercial farming. Multiple systems can be linked in serial, parallel, or mix of them, to form a larger hydroponic farm, option to add a fully automatic management system
  4. Easy to set up and manage.
  5. Require minimal space. Compared to other hydroponic methods with similar yields, our aeroponic systems require much less space.
  6. Mobility. With our dedicated dolly, the system can easily be maneuvered for relocation, turning to natural lighting (if the light source is from a single direction)

Aeroponic Tower Hydroponic - FarmTek Australia

 

The Easiest High-Yield Hydroponic Method

Regardless if you are a home grower or a commercial farmer, this aeroponic tower can be the best answer for its scalability.

The individual system itself can be configured to 6-12 levels with 8 plants per level. This is great to feed the whole family continuously.

For commercial farmers, by linking multiple aeroponic towers (easy plumbing modification required), with the same floor space, the aeroponic towers system can produce a lot more than any other popular commercial hydroponic systems eg Nutrient Film Technique, Deep Water Culture, EBB & Flow Bed, etc.

 

No Plumbing Work For Individuals

If you find setting up plumbing work for NFT frustrating, this system requires no complicated work to assemble. The assembling of the aeroponic tower is just like playing Lego. When finishing assembling, fill up the bottom tank with water/nutrients, power up, and transplant your crops to the system.

Check water level, nutrient EC and pH regularly to ensure your crops receive sufficient nutrients.

 

 

 

FarmTek Aeroponic Tower

Professional Vertical Farming For Home Growers & Commercial Farmers

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Potassium Fulvic Acid – Mineral vs Biochemical

24 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Mineral potassium Fulvic Acid is very different from Bio-Chemical Fulvic Acid

 

Mineral potassium fulvate is an organic compound extracted from Leonardite. The fulvic acid is combined with potassium oxide to form a relatively stable soil remediation product.

The Biochemical potassium fulvate is derived from industrial products such as sugar alcohol and monosodium glutamate. It has relatively few active functional groups and relatively more polysaccharides and lignins. These substances are easier to absorb moisture.  It absorbs moisture when exposed to higher temperatures.

If the potassium fulvate becomes a pile of mud, it must be bio-chemical potassium fulvate.

Bio-Chemical Fulvic Acid vs Mineral Fulvic Acid

 

From the appearance of the products, we can easily distinguish whether it is a mineral source or biochemical potassium fulvic acid. Biochemical fulvate is generally yellow, while mineral fulvic acid is generally black flakes/powder.

Both of them promote root system development, improve soil condition, stimulate growth, and relieve stress, however, the mineral potassium fulvate is better at promoting the activity of enzymes. For this, the mineral source potassium fulvate is effective in cold and drought resistance.

The biochemical potassium fulvate is not suitable for spraying and drip irrigation etc. diluted applications due to its physical characteristics. Contrastly, the mineral source potassium fulvate has more humus and is 100% soluble in water at any pH level. Thus, the application rate is much lesser.

FarmTek® BoosterPlus™ is a mineral source of potassium fulvate derived from Leonardite, more cost-effective and easy to store, handle and apply.

Humic Acid Vs Fulvic Acid In Agriculture

24 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Humic Acid Vs Fulvic Acid

Humic Acid and Fulvic Acid are both humic substances (along with humin). However, there are a few key differences that affect their benefits and how each is best applied. In short, they vary in carbon and oxygen content, acidity, degree of polymerization, molecular weight, and color.

Humic acids have large molecules that perform best in the soil to provide an optimal growing environment. In contrast, Fulvic acids for plants have smaller molecules that work well in both soil and foliar applications, where they transfer vital nutrients through the cell membrane of crops and plants. They work in tandem to help boost plant help and increase crop yields.

fulvic acid vs humic acid

Humic Acid

Humic acids have big molecules, ranging in molecular size from 10,000 to 100,000. They’re dark in color and combine mixtures of carbon chains and carbon rings. In addition to carbon, they also contain oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and phosphorus. The exact composition of humic molecules varies by source. They’re not soluble in water in acid conditions but are soluble in alkaline solutions.

Potassium humic acid work best in the soil, where it unlocks nutrients’ structure and binds to them, making them available for uptake into crops and plants. It chelates toxic metals, preventing harmful material from being absorbed by crops and plants.

Furthermore, humic acid stimulates microbial activity in the soil, increases water retention, and stimulates root and shoot growth.

Humic acids also act as a dilator, increasing the cell wall permeability of plants so that nutrients can be absorbed. They are essential to maintain quality soil, a vital component of every soil condition that helps to make the whole growing system work better.

Humic acids can be considered as a passage allowing essential exchanges between plants and soil.

It works best in soil and foliar applications because humic acid increases the cell wall permeability of plants, which in turn greatly improves the uptake of nutrients by crops and plants.

Fulvic Acid

Fulvic acid has much smaller molecules than Humic acid, ranging in molecular size from 1,000 to 10,000. Unlike Humic acids, Fulvic acid is soluble at all pH levels.

There are two types of Fulvic acids, Potassium Fulvates and Free-form Fulvic Acids.  Fulvic acids are molecules bound to minerals. They consist mostly of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. Like humic acids, they’re formed through microbial decay. They are golden in color and are more biologically active than humic acids, due to an oxygen content that is nearly twice that of humic acids.

 

What are the major benefits of Fulvic acid?

The primary benefit of fulvic acids is their ability to bind to nutrients and transfer them into plants. In fact, Fulvic acids are the most effective carbon-containing chelating compound known. This is due to fulvic acids’ small molecular size and electrical charge.

Fulvic acid molecules are small, but they can carry minerals at multiple times their own weight. Fulvic acids are considered a pipeline network that transfers vital nutrients from the soil into crops and plants.

Humic acid and Fulvic acid, which do I need?

Humic and fulvic acids are both essential for healthy plants. Using one without the other short-changes the full spectrum of benefits that the two acids provide.

Further, they work in tandem to optimize growing conditions. For instance, humic acids increase the permeability of cell walls, making it easier for fulvic acids to carry nutrients into the plant. While fulvic acids are the carrier of nutrients, humic acids make those nutrients more readily available in the soil. They are perfect partners, working together to increase water holding capacity and stimulate root and shoot growth.

The science of humic acid and fulvic acid is constantly evolving, and testing methods are becoming better from time to time. Recently, these two acids were grouped together and not tested separately. Despite we are able to differentiate the functions of each acid, there is a significant crossover between the two, and it’s inappropriate to differentiate them completely. Therefore, we believe it would be imprudent for any company to only recommend one of the acids.

Which types of Humic/Fulvic products do we offer?

Currently, we offer BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid and FertiCore™ Humic Acid to commercial farms and home growers.

A rule of thumb to distinguish them is that FertiCore™ Humic Acid for improving soil conditions while BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid helps crops and plants to grow better and healthier.

FarmTek BoosterPlus 1kgFarmTek FertiCore

How Does FertiCore™ Humic Acid Re-condition Soil Amazingly?

23 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Farmtek Humic Acid

Many studies have shown that adding humic acid to soils can result in increased crop yields by increasing root growth, water-holding capacity, nutrient availability, disease suppression and pathogen resistance.

Over time, the soil becomes less and less able to support plant life. That’s because the nutrients that plants need are constantly being depleted by the natural processes of decomposition and evaporation.

The solution is to replenish these nutrients with a high-quality humic acid product like FertiCore™ Humic Acid. It contains a full spectrum of plant-available nutrients that are released slowly over time, so they don’t burn your plants’ roots or foliage.

When you re-condition your soil with FertiCore™ Humic Acid, you’ll see results in just a few weeks!

 

Major Soil Condition Problems

Compaction. The main cause of compaction is the use of mechanical tillage tools such as tractors and their implements. These tools break up the soil surface and mix in organic matter with the soil, but they also compact it by driving over it repeatedly during planting or cultivating operations. Compaction reduces the number of air spaces between soil particles, making it more difficult for water to penetrate into the root zone of crops. This can result in reduced crop yield and quality as well as increased susceptibility to drought stress.

The best way to avoid compaction is not to turn over the soil at all if possible. If this is not possible because you need to plant or cultivate crops that require additional nutrients, then there are some steps you can take to minimize compaction:

Use lightweight tillage equipment whenever possible (such as vertical tillage tools) rather than heavy equipment (tractors). Vertical tillers are less likely to break up soil aggregates than tractors because they do not drive over the ground repeatedly like tractors do (vertical tillers)

 

 

Farmtek FertiCore™ Applications

It can be used as a soil conditioner. Humic acid is produced by the breakdown of organic matter in the soil. It functions to hold onto moisture, making it easier for plants to access. It also helps with nutrient uptake and movement through the soil profile. Furthermore, it helps stabilize the pH levels in your soil by acting as a buffer against excesses of either acidic or alkaline compounds.

The main function of humic acid is to provide nutrients to plants while maintaining the health of your soil environment. The structure of humic acids makes them very effective at holding onto water molecules, making them ideal for use in drought-prone areas where water retention is critical to plant survival. As a result, humic acids are often used as a supplement when dealing with dry conditions or when trying to increase your crops’ yield potential by increasing their root growth capabilities.

It also helps plants take up nutrients more easily from the soil around them because they have many positive effects on soil ecology. One such effect is that they stimulate the activity of beneficial bacteria that live in healthy soils; these bacteria break down organic material into smaller particles that are easier for plants.

 

 

What does FertiCore™ do to your soil?

– Rehydrate dry, compacted soil.

– Improve soil structure and tilth.

– Increase cation exchange capacity (CEC).

– Provide nutritive elements to plants, including calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese and other nutrients.

– Increase the water-holding capacity of the soil by up to 30%, which results in increased plant growth and larger yields.

 

The primary function of humic acids in the soil is to provide cation exchange capacity (CEC) to the soil, which helps to store nutrients in an available form for plant use, buffers pH levels, increase water retention, and provides improved nutrient uptake by plants.

Detoxication. Humic acids also act as chelating agents that can bind to toxic elements such as aluminium and chromium so they can be immobilized in the soil and not taken up by plants or leached into groundwater supplies.

Many studies have shown that adding humic acid to soils can result in increased crop yields by increasing root growth, water-holding capacity, nutrient availability, disease suppression and pathogen resistance.

 

Summary

In general, humic acids are large molecules that are produced from plant matter over time. As they dissolve in water, they become more soluble and easier for plants to use. In addition to being a source of nutrients for plants, humic acid can also help improve soil structure and moisture retention in sandy soils.

It functions as a natural chelating agent, which means it can bind with certain minerals in the soil to help them become more available for plant uptake. This is an especially important function in sandy soils where there is little organic matter present or when you have added an amendment like peat moss that will break down quickly. Humic acid can also be applied directly to plants as a foliar spray or root drench to improve nutrient uptake directly by your plants rather than through the soil.

 

 

*images are for reference only

How Does FertiCore™ Humic Acid Re-condition Soil?

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Exclusive Hints To Choose The Right Hydroponics

06 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

If you are going hydroponics, that is a great step to protect our environment, at the same time, eliminate the threats from climate and pests. Produce non polluted heanthy crops.

The next question you may ask is which hydroponic growing method should you choose.

Before making your decision, you should evaluate the following factors.

 

Factors affect the selection of hydroponics 

  1. available funds
  2. available space
  3. available public facilities (water source, electricity, LPG) of the site
  4. type of crops to grow
  5. open space or greenhouse
  6. distribution of produce

 

Available Funds

Regardless of which type of hydroponics, the initial investment is higher than traditional farming.

The hydroponic method with a lower initial investment is Deep Water Culture (DWC). This method is suitable for leafy vegetables only. To grow tomatoes, cucumbers, etc larger plants, drip irrigation, and dutch buckets are suitable.

Water Culture - Hydroponics

 

Available Space

If available space is a concern, multi-level NFT (Nutrient Film Technique) or EBB & Flow would be the best option. Again, these methods are suitable for leafy vegetables only. EBB & Flow can also grow short garden plants and pot flowers.

Both NFT and EBB & Flow can be single-level or multi-level depending on your requirement of yield per square. With a single-level system, natural lighting is sufficient. For multiple levels, LED lighting (non A-frame type) and ventilation are required. These facilities will boost the initial investment by double at least. Thus, a detailed financial analysis is expected to find out if the additional investment can be recovered by additional yield if go multi-level.

For climbing crops, such as tomato, cucumber, bean & peas, etc, hydroponics such as drip irrigation with rock wool slabs would be a good choice.

FarmTek Hydroponic Growing System

 

Available Public Facilities

Water sources, electricity, and gas supplies direct affect your operation cost, especially for greenhouse farming. Greenhouse farming requires high consumption of electricity for lighting and ventilation which solar power is insufficient to support. For areas with cold winters (outside tropical and sub-tropical regions), gas is used for maintaining ambient temperature in the greenhouse. Though electricity heating is a substitute for gas heating but again, it increases your operation cost.

 

Type Of Crops To Grow

The types of crops you want to grow directly limit the selection of hydroponics methods.

As mentioned in many of our articles, for larger, climbing plants, the applicable methods are Drip Irrigation and Dutch Buckets.  In terms of cost, Dutch buckets are much lower than Drip irrigation with rock wool slabs. The dutch buckets and growing medium are reusable while Rockwool slabs, while rock wool blocks are disposable after every harvest.

This is arguable that to reuse a dutch bucket, the labor cost to clean and sanitize the growing medium is high, while rock wool slabs and blocks are disposable.  This is pretty much like a decision to use party plates or reusable plates (plastic, ceramic, or metal)

FarmTek Dutch Bucket

 

Open Space, Greenhouse, Or Indoor

There are several factors to be considered when operating a hydroponic system in open space/outdoor and greenhouse/indoor.

  1. evaporation: water consumption would be higher when setting up a hydroponic system outdoors due to evaporation. EBB & Flow is not ideal for an outdoor environment, not only it has a much greater evaporation area but also catches dirt.
  2. sunlight requirements of plants: for some plants, exposure to direct sunlight could be too harsh, causing leave burnt. Thus, mesh cover might need to be built to reduce harsh sunlight which is also an extra investment
  3. ambient temperature: In the greenhouse, ambient environment and water temperature are fully controllable
  4. investments: an open space/outdoor hydroponics setup requires far less investment than greenhouse indoor, not only for its building cost but also long term operating cost.
  5. pollination: when growing crops requiring pollination, open space requires no effort but greenhouse growing requires manual pollination or keeping bees in the greenhouse.

Outdoor Hydroponics

 

Distribution Of Produce

If you do not have wholesalers and distributors come and collect your products, instead, you need to deliver your products to sales channels, you might want to select a site where closer to your market/city to reduce excessive costs of transportation and storage.

When setting up your site closer to the city, you might face issues such as no suitable site available, or site being too small to grow sufficient produce, or too large requiring much greater investment.

It is suggested that indoor NFT or EBB & Flow are more appropriate for small sites. These hydroponics are able to be set up in multi-level for vertical farming.

 

 

We are professional hydroponics experts and designers to assist with your hydroponics growing plan design, setup, and operation.

Contact us for a phone discussion or an in-person visit appointment.

 

 

Hydroponic Farming Pros & Cons

06 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Hydroponic farming becomes more and more vital nowadays due to the climate change. Extreme heat and cold, drought, flood, etc. affects traditional farming greatly.

The hydroponic growing method allows farmers with full control on water usage, nutrients level, and seasonless growing by growing in green house environment.

 

Benefits of hydroponic farming

  1. Reduce water consumption by 94%, according to studies and tests around the world. plants are grown in a closed, circulated watering system.
  2. Greatly reduced fertiliser usage by 60% or more through eliminating nutrients being washed away by rain and irrigation
  3. Eliminate soil borne pest thus the usage of pesticide is extremely minimal to none
  4. Multi-level and vertical farming arrangement saves space and produce greater yield per square
  5. Save massive labour cost to care and harvest resulted from highly concentrated planting area, or fully automated lift cycle from sowing to harvest
  6. Fully controllable nutrients formula and level
  7. Reduce carbon discharge by growing in urban areas (urban farming), thus reducing carbon discharge by reducing total mileage of transportation. Furthermore, crops can be supplied to retail chain in much shorter time, produce are still fresh when reaching consumers

 

Drawback of hydroponic farming

  1. Higher initial investment for the channels, water storage and circulation system, automated control system, possible greenhouse investment together with temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide level control
  2. Vertical farming requires LED lighting and high consumption of electricity to compensate natural sunlight

 

Hydroponic growing can be in open space or inside green house. However, majority of hydroponic farming were operating in greenhouses to overcome not only water resources, but also climate factors. By having indoor hydroponic growing, farmers have full control on all growing conditions and to tune it to suit the plants and corp they want to grow.

6 Common Types of Hydroponics

03 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Hydroponic has proven to be the most water-efficient and space-efficient cultivation method for leaf vegetables. According to studies, hydroponic growing saves as much as 94% of water usage compared to conventional field farming.

The most obvious difference between field farming and hydroponic farming is that hydroponic farming requires no soil. We understand that majority of pests come from the soil. Without soil, crops and plants require no or extremely minimal pesticide during their growing cycle.

Hydroponic crops are generally free from pesticide residues thus safe and healthy.

Another great benefit of hydroponic farming is that nutrients and the environment are highly controllable. Different nutrients formula and lighting could change the shape and taste of the crop easily.

To understand all the benefits of hydroponic farming, please read Benefits of Hydroponic Farming

Types of Hydroponics

There are various types of hydroponic growing methods. The investment budgets, labor costs, production scale, land size, crops and plants to grow, water resources, weather, and climate, are the common factors influencing the selection of hydroponic methods for commercial farming. For details on how to choose a suitable hydroponic type, please read this post “which hydroponic method should you choose?”

1. Deep Water Culture (DWC) System/Kratky

Types of Hydroponics - Deep Water Culture

Water culture refers to a growing system with a floating foam board floating on a reservoir of water.  The root of the plants is immersed in water to absorb the required nutrients. Such a system can be as large as over 100m3, or as small as a used jam jar (Kratky, please read “What is a Kratky Method Hydroponics?“).

Water culture is suitable for leafy vegetables such as lettuce, spinach, water spinach, Pak Choi, kale, etc.  However, draught crops, root vegetables, climbing crops, or larger plants are not a good choice.

 

2. Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) System

NFT - Hydroponics

The Nutrient Film Technique is one of the popular hydroponic methods for commercial farming.

NFT system is built with PVC NFT channels for nutrient solution to pass through. There are holes punched on the top side of the channel at a set distance to house hydroponic baskets.

All sorts of hydroponic mediums can be used in the NTF system. The core concept is to allow a thin film of nutrient flow through the channels where roots absorb nutrients via the nutrient flow stream.

The nutrient flows back to the holding tank and circulates again and again.

Aeroponics is a modern type of vertical farming hydroponic derived from NFT.  By arranging grow holes vertically, the root systems of the crops are hanging in the air. With the nutrient stream raining down and passing through the root system of crops, nutrient circulation is similar to the NFT system.  Aeroponics well uses space, is easy to organize, and links multiple units to form a larger system.

Farmtek Aeroponic Tower

 

The significant benefits of NFT are:

  1. easy to operate and build automation to control nutrient solutions
  2. flexible and scaleable, can be built to multi-level systems to save space and boost high yield per square
  3. less water and fertilizer used compared to DWC (Deep Water Culture)
  4. suitable for a wide variety of leafy vegetables
  5. the best option for both home and commercial growers

 

 

3. Drip System

Drip System Hydroponic Example

The hydroponic drip system uses various growing mediums such as coco coir/peat, and rock wool blocks with drip needles inserted into the growing medium to provide continuous nutrients to plants. Similar to NFT, but instead of pumping a thin nutrient stream, the nutrient solution is delivered to each plant via drip hoses and needles.

Drip needles are inserted into the growing medium of every individual plant. Nutrients are delivered to every single plant slowly. The excessive nutrient solution will be collected and flow back to a storage tank for circulation.

The drip system is suitable for rich root system crops, larger and climbing plants, such as tomato and cucumber, etc.

The most common form of a hydroponic drip system is to use rock wool slabs. Seeds will be germinated and propagated in rock wool cubes, then transplanted onto rock wool slabs.

 

 

4. EBB and Flow

FarmTek EBB & Flow

Ebb and flow is a form of hydroponics for its simplicity, reliability of operation, and low initial investment cost. Pots are filled with a growing medium that anchors the roots and soaks up nutrient solution from the bed/table, functioning as a temporary reserve of water and nutrients for the root system. The hydroponic solution alternately floods the system and is allowed to ebb away.

Pots of plants are placed in a water-tight growing bed/table. The growing medium may be composed of material that enables the root system to reach the level ebb reaches such as rock wool, and coconut peat, clay balls. A mixture of these different types of medium can absorb the moisture, and allow root system ventilation, more evenly and efficiently than using a single type of medium.

The bed/table is periodically flooded for a short period (5 to 10 minutes) with a nutrient solution pumped from a reservoir. By placing the nutrient solution reservoir below the growing bed, the nutrient solution can drain back by gravity.

This hydroponic growing system can be very effective for any size plant depending on space. The method is inefficient in its use of water and plant nutrient reagents. Root disease and nutrient element insufficiency can occur without proper aeration.

Since it is a rather closed circulation system, monitoring of pH, EC, and PPM of re-circulated nutrient solution flowing back into the reservoir is vital. This can either be done manually or via automated control & dosing system.

 

5. Dutch Bucket

FarmTek Dutch Bucket

The theory of dutch bucket growing is quite similar to EBB and Flow in some aspects, eg. plants grow in a selected growing medium which helps to support the root system, as well as to reserve moisture and nutrients for plants. The excessive nutrient solution will flow back to a storage tank for re-circulation.

Dutch bucket is suitable for rich root systems, large plants, and climbing crops.

The volume of the dutch buck has plenty of room for the very rich root system to develop. It helps support the plant too.

The most common growing medium for the dutch bucket system is clay balls. Clay balls absorb and hold nutrient solutions for the plant. Spaces in between allowing plenty of air for the root system to “breath”. Furthermore, there is no excessive water immersing the root system, great for plants requiring well-drained growing conditions.

 

6. Aquaponics

Aquaponics - Farmtek

Aquaponics refers to a farming method that incorporates aqua animal culture alongside plants/crops (such as vegetables) and water culture. It consists of two main parts, the aquaculture part for raising aquatic animals (usually fish) and the hydroponics part for growing plants.

Aquatic effluents, resulting from uneaten feed or raising animals like fish, accumulate in water due to the closed-system circulation of most aquaculture systems. The effluent-rich water becomes toxic to aquatic animals in high concentrations but contains nutrients essential for plant growth.

These two main parts of aquaponics systems require several subsystems to effectively remove solid wastes, for adding bases to neutralize acidity in water, or for maintaining water oxygen content.

Typical subsystems found in an aquaponic system:

Fish holding tank: the tanks for raising and feeding the fish;
Settling tank: a unit for catching uneaten food and detached biofilms, and for settling out fine particulates;
Bio-filter: a place where the nitrification bacteria can grow and convert ammonia into nitrates, which are usable by the plants;
Hydroponics system: the portion of the system where plants are grown by absorbing excess nutrients from the water;
Sump: the lowest point in the system where the water flows to and from which it is pumped back to the fish tanks.

Depending on the sophistication and cost of the aquaponics system, the units for solids removal, bio-filtration, and/or the hydroponics subsystem may be combined into one unit or subsystem which prevents the water from flowing directly from the aquaculture section of the system to the hydroponics section.

 

FarmTek® Bio-Stimulants Products

02 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

FarmTek FertiCoreFarmTek® FertiCore™

FarmTek® FertiCore™ is 100% water-soluble, humic granules fertiliser to be used as a soil conditioner or “Traditional Chemical fertiliser promoters”. Though it can be used for foliage spray and drip irrigation, the best usage is to use it as slow-release base fertiliser. It contains high level of humic acid. Humic acid is a macro molecule and provides the best growing environment, suitable for all fields and cash crops. This product is not suitable for hydroponic system.

 

 

FarmTek BoosterPlusFarmTek® BoosterPlus™

FarmTek® BoosterPlus™ is a mineral base Fulvic acid product to be used as foliage fertiliser, 100% water soluble fertilisers, to be used as a bio-stimulant, plant growth enhancers, anti-flocculation/anti-hard water, excellent for drip irrigation system, auto balancer of soil pH. It contains high level of humic acid and fulvic acid. The synergy characteristic of humic acid and fulvic acid produces fast and significant results, as fast as about 5 days.

This product is recommended for foliage spray and drip irrigation, suitable for all cash crops. For hydroponic system, dilute 200% of soil growing application concentration.

 

 

Organic Bio-Stimulants – Global Trend 2022

02 Sep 2022 By FarmTek Australia

Promoting organic agriculture is the primary objective of global agricultural promotion. Organic fertilisers will definitely reduce the use of traditional chemical fertilisers, although they cannot completely replace them. The market and prospects of future agricultural development are unpredictable and limitless.

In 2020, the global humic acid market was valued at USD 707.5 million, in 2021, it was valued at USD 8994.46 Million USD and is expected to grow by 1.75% from 2021 to 2027.

Factors contributing significantly to market revenue growth include an increase in global population, increased demand for nutritious food, and a shift from conventional fertilisers and pesticides to organic fertilisers and pesticides. The increased use of humic acid in farming has been attributed to stringent government regulations against chemical fertilisers, due to their toxic environmental and health impacts. Therefore, this is a major factor driving market growth.

 

Abiotic stress is a concern for agriculture in most countries in 2022

FarmTek Potassium Humate

Several countries have been affected by extreme weather this year, including typhoons, heavy rainfall, and extreme heat. As an example, in the United Kingdom, the sharp reduction in rainfall and high temperatures have caused drought. The heat wave and drought in this summer have also brought a series of fires. 

Thames Water, one of the largest water companies in the UK, announced on the August 17th that it will start a series of fires in London and the Thames Valley from August 24. Regions implement temporary “water for hose” bans.

Not only the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and other parts of Europe are also facing serious water resources, such as South Korea, Algeria, and Spain etc due to the extreme weather.

Using bio-stimulants increases crop tolerance to abiotic stress, as a result, improving crop yield and quality. In recent years, the use of bio-stimulants has become a good agricultural practice, helping to make farming more sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Some commercial farmers use our BoosterPlus™, the stress resistance of crops (drought resistance, cold resistance, water logging resistance, insect pest resistance) has been significantly improved. That is, the tolerance to abiotic stress has been improved, promoting rapid crop recovery from extreme climatic conditions, and compared to other farmers’ incomes, they lose almost nothing.

What is BoosterPlus™ Fulvic Acid and its benefits?

31 Aug 2022 By FarmTek Australia

BoostPlus

FarmTek® BoostPlus is a mineral base Fulvic acid growth enhancer product, organic biostimulant for plant growth and development. It is used in nutrient mixes for aquatic, aerial and biological culture systems designed to grow plants in commercial greenhouse facilities and domestic conditions, both traditional soil cultivation and soiless hydroponic growing.

This product is designed to increase the efficiency of mineral fertilisers used in hydroponic nutrient mixes. It improves the chemical and organoleptic properties of product quality.

The production process of this product is characterised by a special combination of chemical and physicochemical methods aimed at producing the Fulvic acid complex with maximum biological activity associated with plants.

By increasing the solubility of macro and micro nutrients in solution, it helps to increase crop yields and improve the chemical and sensory properties of fruits and vegetables. This effect is related to the highly reactive nature of Fulvic acid.

Benefits

• Natural and environmentally friendly
• Provide stable physicochemical properties and high biological activity
• Helps to increase the effectiveness of the nutrient solution (strength of the solution) without compromising conductivity
• Improve the organoleptic properties of the produce (taste, smell);
• Suitable for reversible and irreversible hydroponic systems.

 

Application

• Large greenhouse facility with a greenhouse area of ​​more than 30 hectares
• Small greenhouse facility
• Amateur hydroponics growers

 

BoosterPlus 20kg

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