How to minimize water borne disease in hydroponics.

How to minimize water borne disease in hydroponics. Although using a hydroponics system may eliminate soil borne pests, there are pests and fungi that spread through water, which means cleaning equipment and using an additional filtration system can drastically help reduce the occurrence of disease spreading. Heat and moisture in an irrigation system left untreated can create an optimal atmosphere for the development of water molds, like Pythium and Phytophthora. These molds can be brought into contact with plants through growing media, which in the case of hydroponics means through recirculating water. These molds can also be transferred from dirty plant trays and plugs or dirty greenhouse surfaces. The microflora in a hydroponics system can develop very quickly, within 20 hours of planting infected plants, bacteria can be traced throughout a system. Symptoms of Pythium present themselves as it eats away at the plant root and attacks the root, which results in stunted growth and plant death. Growers often refer to this mold as root rot. Phytophthora comes in two major varieties that are known to attack floriculture crops, causing root, crown and foliar blight. Essentially, both varieties of this bacterial disease can decimate a crop very easily if using hydroponics systems without an additional filtering system. Some systems come with screen or paper filters to filter out large-sized particles and debris, but often more is needed to combat water borne diseases effectively. For this reason, it is recommended to add or combine a number of additional filtering systems. more

Making cows more environmentally friendly by feeding hydroponic fodder.

Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) and the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre, Frankfurt have published a paper revealing an important discovery surrounding plants used to feed livestock; that plants growing in warmer conditions are tougher and have lower nutritional value to grazing livestock, potentially inhibiting milk and meat yields and raising the amount of methane released by the animals. 

           

 The higher amounts of methane are produced when plants are tougher to digest -- an effect of a warmer environment. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, around 25 times better at trapping heat than carbon dioxide and more than 95% of the methane produced by cows comes from their breath through belching and farting . Diet plays a vital role in control of methane emissions related to cattle thus various strategies have been proposed to stem these emissions. 

The change in diet of cattle to more easily digestible and metabolisable feed ensures less regurgitation,more absorption and less methane emission. Farming without soil also referred to as hydroponics refers to growing plants in nutrient rich media under controlled temperature and humidity to produce fresh fodder for animals,which are highly nutritious, easily digestible and free from pesticides. Cattle fed with hydroponic fodder grow fast, produce more milk,beef and less gas. The animals have access to the full nutrients from the cereal or legume,the minerals protein and fat are liberated in the fodder making it a great alternative. Cows normally have access to 20% of energy in the grain diet while with fodder system 95% of the energy is available for growth and reproductive health and performance. The short span of growth from seed to fodder within 7 days ensures that animals have fresh fodder all year round.

Climate smart agriculture.#hydroponics.

Climate smart agriculture growing vegetables in a tray without soil. The innovative mindset birthed this and now its live!!! I have a farm where i grow vegetables,but decided to plant some veggies the hydroponics way; 

 I followed these steps ; 1) chose good quality seeds. 2) soaked the seeds in hypochlorite solution for 6 hours. 3) washed seeds with clean water and set in trays. 4) i sprayed with water morning and evening. 5) here comes the veggies.

FOOD SECURITY.

Food security refers to the availability of food in required quantities,quality and the ease of access. The accessibility can be categorized on basis of affordability, availability and ease of purchase. 

The onus of food security is on producers,their rate of production coupled with the price has a lot of impact on the way food is accessed. 

 The agricultural sector is weighed down by so many factors that makes production unstable and inaccessible.

These factors are: 

 1) Inadequate land for growing crops and rearing livestock.

 2) Cost of production . 

3)Storage /processing 

4) Transportation. 

 Land is the basic capital needed for production,hence the value it adds to production cost cannot be overemphasized.

The production of food to cater for the growing population can only be achieved if other methods of production are practiced. 

 Food security will entail using innovative measures to produce crops and rear animals.The use of genetics hampers on this production methods by using seed improvement and modified seeds and also new planting techniques such as hydroponics.

This will not only ensure a rapid harvest but also reduce the cost of production as many crops can be planted in a column in smaller spaces. 

 The issue of using genetically superior breeds also valuable in livestock,if superior breeds are reared more products will be accessed from them within a shorter time at reduced cost of production.

 Feeding accounts for about 75% of production cost,thus if cheaper methods of feeding are embraced then more products will be available.

The use of fodder system is a good initiative with health benefits not only for the animals but also for man. 

The inclusion of greens into diet such as water hyacinth,seaweeds and even watermelon has shown increase body weight within a short time .The use of insects and worms also have added benefits to growth and development of the animals.

 Feed fermentation is also another method to reduce cost of feeding as the animal will require about 1/2 of the original ration in fermented form,and also the feed will be a source of probiotics thus maintaining intestinal health and preventing diseases which invariably reduces costs as antibiotic inclusion is not necessary.Substitution of local feed stuff in feed rations also reduce cost.

Fermentation in poultry feed results in bigger eggs with thick shells and chicken with bigger carcass weight. 

   Storage and processing methods also play a role in food security, with better processing techniques more food will be stored and less food lost and discarded as waste.    Innovations such as extraction/extrusion machines, milling machines, klins for drying e.t.c coupled with proper packaging and storage will extend shelve-life of products.

 Transportation: this factor can hinder all other factors of production if the products need to travel long distances before they are available for sale.This can be adjusted by strategic locations of production points near markets.

  The transportation chain must provide easy access from farm to stores or from farm to processing and storage centers. The growing population will require innovations to ensure that more food is produced,its readily available and affordable.

FEED THE FUTURE ; HYDROPONICS SYSTEM.

Rose Chelang’at decided to take up hydroponics farming at her dairy farm in Kericho County, Kenya after receiving training by a representative from Hydroponics Kenya, a local company that helps smallholders use innovative technology to grow food. Hydroponics is the process of growing crops, including fodder for livestock, without the use of soil. The technology, which is gaining ground quickly in Kenya, speeds up growth while eliminating soil-borne diseases, such as aflatoxin. Under Feed the Future, USAID is on the forefront of this trend, encouraging hydroponics farming to ensure more nutrition for farmers’ livestock, which will increase milk production and raise incomes. Hydroponic farming is a new concept to Kenyan smallholder farmers, who are taking it up as they come to recognize its affordability and suitability for small-scale farming. Youth are becoming more receptive to the technology as well, as it is a major boost to the dairy sector and has created job opportunities along the value chain for youth who are now creating aluminum trays for sale to local farmers. Technology transfer is an important method under Feed the Future to get affordable, effective technologies into the hands of smallholder farmers around the world. In Kenya, USAID is supporting the dissemination of nine new agricultural technologies and management practices at different phases of development. As an exciting new way to increase animal fodder and dairy production, hydroponic farming is a bright spot in Kenya’s agricultural future. Chelang’at reported after introducing the hydroponically grown fodder into the diet of her herd, “Two of my dairy cows now produce four more liters per day, increasing their daily milk production from 11 to 15 liters. I get an additional 12 liters per day from my third cow. #food security # food safety # innovation story culled from feed the future/Kenya article.

Soilless farming an avenue to food security.

Soil-less farming could help developing countries with little arable land and harsh for agriculture climate, such as Qatar, to become self-sufficient in terms of their produce. Relying on advanced hydroponics and multi-story vertical growing, the proposed system uses nutrient-enriched water to produce approximately a hundred times more yield compared to when the crops are grown on a conventional farmland of the same size. The hybrid setup, devised by Nik-Othman Abdullah, biotechnologist at Malaysia University of Science and Technology, is described in his Methods paper, published in the open-access peer-reviewed journal Research Ideas and Outcomes (RIO). The proposed vertical-horizontal regulated soil-less farming is theoretically capable of increasing the domestic produce on such a scale that the country. This type of soil-less farming could provide reliable quantity as well as quality of the crops. Grown indoors, where they would be constantly monitored by personnel with good technical and scientific knowledge, the produce would be less affected by factors such as atmospheric conditions, contamination or pests. The plants would be supplied with the calculated amount of nutrition they need, as well as the exact amount of light and gas exposure. Being grown in a sterile environment and not treated with fertilizers, pesticides, and other harsh chemicals, the crops would not only look visibly identical, but would also be cleaner, fresher, healthier, tastier and richer in nutrient content. They would also grow faster and bigger. Plants would not waste energy in root tissue production because nutrients in pure form will be provided to the plants instead of the plant stressing to search for the nutrients," explains the bio-technologist. "Therefore, plants grow evidently 50% faster and bigger. This type of farming platform can be constructed basically in any location. It can be set up almost anytime and everywhere, in a greenhouse, warehouse, inside a building. This in-house farming is viable in urban areas as well,where more of the available land is for infrastructure.This platform is a model of the hydroponic system described in earlier posts. #food security # hydroponic system # food safety.

FOOD SECURITY THROUGH GENETIC IMPROVEMENT.

Food security can be achieved on a global scale if production processes are subjected to improved stock using genetically proven animals.

The way to harness the advantages in using genetically proven lines include; selective breeding,rearing and cross breeding to develop strains/lines that can produce more in the desired country.

There are various breeds of chicken,cattle,pigs that are proven and can adapt and survive in the country.

Genetics play a pivotal role in food security either by selective breeding, genetic engineering, gene mapping and coding and artificial insemination.
The improved strain will produce faster within a short time thus extending production cycles. Seed improvement is also relevant in food security, where genetically modified seeds produce better crops that are disease resistant .

Ordinary seeds can also be improved by using agricultural supplements that enables the crops to grow,flourish and ready for harvest within a shorter time. The use of technology in food security cannot be overemphasized as the introduction of biotech to food production is of immense benefits.

The springing up of bio-crops allows farming even in areas where there is much pressure on the land,thus availing the urban farmer an opportunity to participate in food security.

 Cultivating advanced planting techniques such as hydroponics,aeroponics and aquaponics , also enables farming in areas where land is an issue.

Fruits and vegetables are planted in columns,using nutrient media instead of soil. Vegetables can also be reared alongside fishes in the aquaponics to enhance food security.

HYDROPONICS AND FOOD SECURITY.

Benefits of hydroponics. 1) There is no need for soil means more food can be grown on less land,this is ideal for a growing, urbanizing global population. 2) Yields can be up to 10 times more than from open field agriculture. 3) The water used can be recycled. 4) Farms can be anywhere, from skyscrapers to shipping containers. 5)Pollution from pesticides and herbicides can be prevented. 6)Local production reduces food miles and transportation costs. , A tech firm Fujitsu , at its Aizu Wakamatsu factory in central Japan is applying cloud-based data analytic s to the production of low-potassium lettuce and spinach.The operation takes place in a dust-free "clean-room" formerly used for semiconductor production. Fujitsu's cloud platform - Akisai - stores and analyses data from lots of sensors in the greenhouses, and enables heating units, ventilation fans and other equipment to be operated remotely."In terms of quality, we have applied the same industrial perspective from semiconductor manufacturing to vegetable cultivation," a Fujitsu spokesman tells the BBC. "Having a control structure that keeps product specifications - the weight and nutrient constituent-parts of lettuce - within a defined range, makes for effective high added-value vegetable production." The company sells the lettuce it produces to hospitals, supermarkets, and hotels - as well as online - and says its cloud service is collecting valuable data that is leading to improved quality and higher yields. Fujitsu's insights and efficiency improvements could also encourage more producers to enter the market and "lead to an increase in younger generations getting into agriculture", the spokesman adds. Story credit;BBC news.

HYDROPONICS# FOOD IN A COLUMN.

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BIO TECHNOLOGY FOR FOOD SUSTAINABILITY.

Biotechnology is one of the various ways of using scientific principles and techniques to produce crops that are pure strains and resistant to diseases. Biotechnology,nanotechnology,genetic engineering are all scientific interventions to produce better crops,improve plants,animals and microorganisms to enhance their value.

 The world today is faced with population explosion; the growth of the population is not at the same rate as food production and processing leaving most developing countries on poverty threshold and food scarcity. The world now is looking at strategies for food security and sustainability to eliminate hunger and eradicate poverty.

 Biotechnology has actually shown great potential to achieve food security in the agricultural sector where it has been used to develop plant strains that are resistant to pests and diseases. Biotechnology has also been employed to improve food processing,nutritional value better flavor and productivity of plants,vegetables and other food crops.

 Agric biotechnology is the use of scientific techniques to modify and improve crops by selective breeding. Advances in science especially in the field of molecular biology has provided scientist with ability to manipulate food at molecular level referred to as genetic engineering.The technique employed in genetic engineering is the transfer of DNA from species with specific desired traits into distantly related organisms.

 Genetic engineering allows the transfer of one or more traits from specific organism,plants,animals and microorganism and introduce them to new strains to come up with genetically modified strains with better productivity. The technology era has brought with it innovation , information , inputs and institutional support to enhance economic growth and development.The use of technology to ensure food security cannot be overemphasized,and so many options are at our fingertips to ensure food sustainability.


 Food can be cultivated in nutrient media instead of soil, and this is done in a controlled environment this system is referred to as hydroponics /aeroponics depending on the conditions of growth.This system enables farming even in your room or balcony or any small space that can house the system you want to adopt.

 Technology bringing change in its track; who could have imagined farming without soil or land? can you imagine planting tomatoes or vegetables or even yam in a column -like stand or table? Welcome to the world of BIOTECH; feeding the world with ease.