Proof of Concept - water management

[Cole_Robbie]

I have played with both hydro and aquaponics. But I happen to have such rich soil, that it is much more feasible to just grow in the ground.

Fish waste is almost entirely nitrogen, so aquaponics is great for growing lettuce. But for tomatoes and other fruiting crops, I think you would need to mix additional fertilizer with the fish water, and then set the tomato plants up as run-to-waste, like a typical container.

Humates and humic acid, which is what makes compost or rich soil have a dark color, also shows promise in helping plants make the most of water resources. Rich soil requires less water, I know that from experience.

And I haven't tried it, but yucca extract is also used on plants to help them survive droughts. Fertilizer companies also offer what is basically synthesized yucca, for use as a spray.

[mohanurs]

Thanks for sharing your experience Cole_Robbie. I guess nothing can beat the balanced soil. There is a company in Bangalore which has demonstrated using combination of biochar, humic n fulvic acid, trees were grown in a arid terrain with rainfall of less than 10mm per annum. They have agreed to ship me the samples. Will update the results

[Cole_Robbie]

That is really cool. Humic and fulvic acid are great stuff. A friend of mine makes bio-char from pine needles.

And by the way, if English is not your native language, I certainly can't tell. If it is a 2nd language for you, then I have to say that you command it very well.

[mohanurs]

Oh my english! getting Christian convent education in my formative yrs and 25 yrs of work experience in global companies just rounded my language skills enough to do business communication.

Made some 100 kgs of charcoal last month with firewood, need to powder it and innoculate with various soil bacteria anf nutrients to make biochar.

[Cole_Robbie]

Interesting. I have made aerated compost tea before, out of my very best soil. Molasses, or any sugar, is combined with water, and an air pump added. After about two days, bubbles foam up, indicating high bacteria count. Whatever good bacteria you have, you can culture them exponentially greater in an aerated tea.

[mohanurs]

Quite a knowledge, I do use aerators in my water tank to keep away the algae formation.

Tried doing the same with cow dung, a handful of wet soil, sugarcane juice and some malt like corn floor or rice floor, but it became messy n smelly. Stopped preparing it, have to design a cleaner system with filter, so that I can use the compost tea through drip.

[mohanurs]

Thanks for your inputs. You can always participate in my whatsapp group, I call it proof of concept by mohanurs. The invite link is here https://chat.whatsapp.com/81zACpJVZQG1QLBiuQlo5f

[Worth1]

We get next to nothing on the news about the drought in India.
How are the poor doing there not good I would think.
Worth

[mohanurs]

The reality is, its terrible, unfortunate, our media loves to cover sensational topics and ignore the reality. Fresh water scarcity will peak in the next decade. Water conservation has to be made mandatory for farmers. My goal is to build proof of concepts with acute focus on water management, and zero pesticide.

[mohanurs]

Tomato variety Valouro beef steak from Rijkzwaan, NL,

[dmforcier]

Wow! That's a big greenhouse. The plants look pretty good. I think you're on to something.

[Worth1]

Thanks I will get back with you on water conservation in this thread.

But I have to ask here.
If you know anything about Indian food could you start a thread on it in the cooking section.
Everyone here knows how much I love food from all over the place.
Worth

[mohanurs]

Yes, its a 22000sft (2000 sqm) greenhouse, holding 4000 tomato saplings and 2000 cucumber vines.

[mohanurs]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Thanks I will get back with you on water conservation in this thread.

But I have to ask here.
If you know anything about Indian food could you start a thread on it in the cooking section.
Everyone here knows how much I love food from all over the place.
Worth

Indian food! Done let me open a new thread with some spicy Indian recipes

[GrowingCoastal]

Originally Posted by mohanurs

The reality is, its terrible, unfortunate, our media loves to cover sensational topics and ignore the reality. Fresh water scarcity will peak in the next decade. Water conservation has to be made mandatory for farmers. My goal is to build proof of concepts with acute focus on water management, and zero pesticide.

Wonderful goals! Wishing you all success.