Increasing your productivity in substrate cultivation.

Substrate cultivation is the process of using artificial soil for plant production?in pots and containers. Therefore, substrate cultivation has completely different production methods and management concepts from soil cultivation.?If you want to achieve robust growth and increased yield of substrate-cultivated plants, you must understand the underlying logic of substrate-cultivated yield improvement.

1.?The yield of substrate-cultivated plants depends on the difficulty of plant roots obtaining water, fertilizer, air and heat?conditions.?Substrate cultivation takes advantage of the small space of the planting pots and container and its high sensitivity to water, fertilizer, air and heat to artificially regulate and accurately provide the water, fertilizer, air and heat conditions required by the plant roots, thereby creating the best conditions for robust plant growth and increased crop yields.

2. Plant yield also depends on the degree of isolation of pathogens, insect eggs and weeds.?Growing plants in closed pots, containers using substrates isolates soil-borne diseases, insect pests and weeds, avoids plant growth slowdown and yield reduction caused by diseases, insect pests and weeds, reduces the abuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and improves the quality and safety of agricultural products.?

3. The yield of substrate cultivation depends on the understanding of substrate characteristics and the level of management.?There are huge differences between commercially available substrate products. Different peat substrates have different physical, chemical and biological characteristics. Without requesting the peat substrate test report from the producer/supplier, and not understanding the properties and characteristics of the peat substrate used.

4. The filling density of the container peat substrate determines the size of the air pores in the material. Too tight or too loose will cause damage to the plant root system and limit the increase in the yield of peat substrate cultivated crops.?Use a volumetric cylinder to measure the volume ratio of the substrate with or without the pressure plate, and use it as the filling factor of the substrate pot to fill it with the substrate density that is most needed and suitable for plants.?

5. The substrate moisture characteristic curve is the determining factor of substrate irrigation water volume and irrigation frequency, and irrigation water volume and irrigation frequency are important factors that determine the level of substrate yield.?If the irrigation volume is greater than the effective water volume of the substrate, there will be more liquid back-flow due to excessive irrigation, resulting in nutrient loss and deterioration of water quality.?Too little watering will result in insufficient moisture in the substrate and frequent watering, which will increase the humidity in the greenhouse and increase the risk of plant diseases. Only the irrigation cycle or irrigation frequency determined accordingly can accurately meet the water needs of substrate-cultivated plants without sacrificing water. Problems such as over-irrigation or under-irrigation may occur.?The matrix water potential can be measured using a commercially available water potential probe or volumetric water content probe, which is highly accurate and easy to use.

6. The water absorption strength of the substrate is an important indicator for evaluating the wet-ability of the substrate.?The water absorption strength can be used to understand the convenience of the substrate in absorbing water and evaluate the ease of moisture management.?If you want to achieve high yields in substrate cultivation, you must choose a substrate with higher water absorption strength.??

7. The shrinkage rate of the substrate is an important indicator for evaluating the stability of the structure. A high shrinkage rate means that as the use time of the substrate increases, structure becomes finely fragmented, has poor ventilation, and increases water holding capacity, which can easily cause plant root rot.?For example if the growth period of substrate-grown vegetables, flowers, and strawberries exceeds 5 months, you need to consider choosing a professional substrate with a substrate shrinkage rate of less than 30%.?For blueberries with a planting period of 5-7 years, a professional substrate with a shrinkage rate of less than 20% must be used.

8. The pH value of the substrate is very important indicator of the chemical properties of professional substrates. Users should choose professional substrates corresponding to the pH value according to different plants.?Acid-loving plants cannot choose neutral or even alkaline substrates, and alkaline-loving plants cannot choose acidic professional substrates.?The pH value of the substrate is also an important factor in plant disease prevention. For example the use of acidic peat substrate can prevent and control the occurrence of rice blight and bacterial wilt in the seedling stage, and improve the safety of rice seedling production.?Since the pH value of non-peat substrate is relatively high, inorganic acid has to be used to adjust the pH of the substrate. Otherwise, the probability of blight occurring during rice seedling cultivation is extremely high.

9. The electrical conductivity (EC value) of the substrate is also one of the important properties of the substrate. The low EC value of the peat substrate is conducive to the supply and regulation of substrate cultivation nutrients, while the cultivation substrate dominated by biomass fermentation products limits the use of water and fertilizer due to the high EC value. Normal implementation of integration.?At the same time, low EC value is conducive to improving the yield of substrate-cultivated plants, while high EC value is not conducive to improving the yield and quality of substrate-cultivated vegetables.

10. The CEC (cation exchange capacity) value of the substrate is a measure of the amount of cation substitution by the substrate. The higher the CEC value, the stronger the buffering capacity for cations in the substrate water. Even occasional excessive fertilization will not cause harm to the plants. Excessive fertilizer will be absorbed and replaced, and then slowly released to supply the plant roots.?The CEC value of the substrate is high, and some long-lasting fertilizers can be added directly to the substrate to reduce the trouble of calculating fertilizer concentration and dosage during liquid fertilization.

11.?Nutritional adjustment of the substrate is a key factor in improving or inhibiting the yield of substrate cultivation.?Factors that affect substrate nutrition regulation include the CEC value of the substrate, the effective water content of the substrate, and the interaction between the substrate and nutrient ions in the irrigation water.?Determining the nutrient concentration, nutrient types and supply frequency in irrigation water must be based on the relationship between the CEC value of the substrate, available water volume and nutrients. Otherwise, nutrient adjustment will not only fail to improve the yield of substrate cultivation, but may result in improper fertilization. It will cause burning of seedlings, root damage and affect plant health.

The core of substrate cultivation is to adjust the irrigation frequency and amount according to the characteristics of the substrate in a controlled environment, as well as the nutrient ratio and nutrient concentration, provide optimal water for the roots, air and nutritional conditions, thereby effectively and continuously increasing the yield of substrate cultivation crops.

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