Best Management Practices (BMPs) are important for the Suwannee Valley field crop industry with a focus on water conservation, nutrient management, and Florida’s natural resources. This is also true for the protected agriculture industry. Whether it is a large-scale commercial greenhouse operation or a small-scale homeowner set-up, BMPs still matter. Managing irrigation timing, nutrient and pest applications, water run-off and erosion are just a few practices to help protected agriculture facilities run efficiently and stay within regulations.
The UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center- Suwannee Valley (NFREC-SV), utilizes the greenhouse structures and hydroponic systems at the farm to demonstrate BMPs with a focus on plant nutrient basics, water quality, and growing substrate selections. There are BMP’s happening all throughout the protected agriculture structures at the Center between the recirculating NFT (nutrient film technique) system, specialized container systems such as, Dutch buckets, vertical towers, deep water culture, soilless substrate trenches and raised beds. Having all these systems provides many opportunities for growers to learn and adopt the practices that make the most sense for their operation. Along with these practices, the NFREC-SV protected agriculture team and local UF/IFAS Extension agents host In Service Trainings (IST) like the “Hydroponic Business” short course which allows for participants to get a glimpse on how to run a successful hydroponic and green house operation as a business.
Most Common BMP:
Like field crop BMPs, the most common and widely used category of BMPs for protected agriculture is Nutrient Management. This is because it has an influence on crop quality, plant health, and environmental sustainability. There are several ways to implement these nutrient management practices. A few examples are testing potting media to evaluate nutrient levels, calibrating fertilizer equipment, and testing plant tissue to allow for nutrient adjustments. Having a trusted drainage collection system is also an important BMP to take into consideration; installing a leachate collection system for a drain to waste system or utilizing a recirculation system is ideal for water conservation in protected agriculture structures.
Shown in Figure 1 is a practice commonly used in the protected ag industry by using an automated proportional dosing pump system, in this case, Dosatron injectors. These pumps accurately and precisely dose fertilizer into the plants through irrigation water. This ensures proper application rates, prevents over-fertilization and over-irrigation; they help maintain consistency throughout the growing season, and help growers reduce costs while conserving inputs.
Creative Teaching Methods- “The Tubs of Torture”:
Another nutrient management practice used for educational and demonstration purposes is a project called “Tubs of Torture”. This project provides a visual representation of how plants respond to nutrient deficiencies and toxicities. At NFREC-SV, this project is used as an instructional tool to help demonstrate the importance of proper nutrient management in protected agriculture systems. The process begins with five-gallon tubs filled with water, where specific nutrients such as potassium, phosphor, calcium, or micronutrients such as copper or zinc can be added or omitted to create targeted deficiency or toxicity conditions. The type and amount of each nutrient selected will determine the response being demonstrated. Once the nutrient solution is prepared, plants are placed into the tubs and monitored over time as visual symptoms of nutrient imbalance begin to develop. This hands-on approach allows growers and industry professionals to better recognize and understand how to identify deficiencies and toxicities, as well as the effects of improper nutrient management on plant health. The figure below represents the “Tubs of Torture”.
Authors: Kelsey Crain, Wanda Laughlin, Bob Hochmuth
University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences; North Florida Research and Education Center – Suwannee Valley
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