 |
How To Make Your Greenhouse Super Profitable
Author: Gerald Mason  | Posted: 08-12-2007 | Comments: 0 | Views: 166 | Rating: (71)  (?) 
Whether you are using the greenhouse or are growing plants in a special room or area in the home, regular attention is essential to success with artificially lighted plants just as with sun-lighted plants.
Try to keep daytime temperatures between 70 and 75 degrees with the usual 10 degree drop during the night. Increase humidity by setting the pots on moistened pea rock. Grow the plants in sterilized soil. Water them regularly, according to the needs of each plant. Spray plants with insecticide every second week, as a preventive. As plants grow, shift them to the next larger sized pot. Leave the lights on flowering plants 12 to 16 hours each day; 4 to 8 hours per day for foliage plants.
If the plants produce long willowy foliage, they are too far from the lights. Set them on boxes or inverted flower pots to boost them closer. If leaves turn yellow and hug the pot, plants are probably getting too much light. Move them farther from the lights.
With stationary fixtures, aim for 18 inches between light tube and plant table to allow head room for plants in 4-inch pots. If you grow larger plants, fasten the lights a greater distance from the table or, better still, operate them on a pulley so you can regulate distances to suit plants.
As you experiment, you will find the proper distances. Here ' is a rather general rule to guide you. Light-loving plants, such as gloxinias and many other tuberous gesneriads, cacti, coleus, and wax begonias grow best with about 8 inches between light fixture and pot rim. African violets, rex begonias, and episcias, among others, thrive when space is about 11 inches. Foliage plants, philodendron, ivy, and cissus can be set 18 to 24 inches from the source of light.
PROPAGATION UNDER LIGHTS
The most popular plants for propagating under lights are the gesneriads. Leaf cuttings or plant divisions can be rooted by inserting them in your favorite rooting media-vermiculite, peatmoss, sand, sphagnum moss, or a mixture of these. You can speed rooting by putting a transparent plastic "tent" over the pots or flats and placing them about 6 to 8 inches from the lights. Transplant the small plants as they appear, which sometimes is but a matter of 3 or 4 weeks.
Tubers and rhizomes can be rooted by placing them on peatmoss, sphagnum moss, or vermiculite. Keep the medium moist and place the planting about 4 to 6 inches from the lights. As soon as sprouts show, transplant the tubers to individual pots.
Start any of the gesneriads from seed by sprinkling the seed over sterilized, milled sphagnum moss, sand, or vermiculite. Cover the planting with a pane of glass or slip it into a transparent plastic bag. Seeds will sprout in a dark, warm area (70 to 75 degrees). As soon as you see the green flecks of new plants, place the planting as close as 3 inches from the light tubes. Here the seedlings will grow with amazing rapidity. By careful timing as to fertilizing and transplanting, you can have flowering gloxinias in 3 to 5 months and African violets in 4 to 6 months.
ADDITIONAL GROWING SPACE
If you want still more room, add fluorescent light setups to the dark areas of your house and turn them into plant-growing spaces. Basements, attics, closets, windowless walls, utility rooms-all become propagation areas when supplied with fluorescent lighting.
These lights work on ordinary household current. However, before installing more than a pair or two of them it would be wise to check with your electrical company to find out if your present electrical wiring can stand the additional load.
If you need only a small additional propagation area, you may find it advantageous to buy one of the commercial fluorescent light stands with two to four shelves. A model with three shelves holds two hundred 3-inch pots. There are models available with or without wheels.
PROPAGATION UNDER MIST
Plant physiologists have discovered that a mist like fog of water keeps tender softwood cuttings (cuttings from new growth) in such excellent shape they "just have to root!" Under these conditions of either constant or intermittent mist the cuttings don't wilt and there is a minimum of trouble from fungus and rot.
There is a mist unit on the market that has been adapted from a larger commercial mist-maker system. It's called the Mistic Bubble and is an excellent greenhouse space stretcher. This is a system for rooting soft cuttings outdoors, in sand under plastic with the use of electronically controlled mist. Harvey M. Templeton, Jr., Winchester, Tennessee, is the inventor of the system and the control known as the Electronic Leaf. With this portable system the plants get water automatically, as they need it, until rooting takes place. Then the temporary greenhouse cover is gradually removed and the plants are thus hardened to growing outside in the full sunlight.
The hemispherical shape of the Mistic Bubble is designed to let in light evenly all around as long as the sun hits the cover. The plastic covering has a pigment cast into it to protect the cuttings from excessive summer heat. The low capacity mist nozzle, using 1½ gallons of water per hour, keeps the leaves of the cuttings wet at all times, promoting very rapid rooting.
The Mistic Bubble is 4 feet in diameter and has 12½ square feet of planting space-it will hold 1000 cuttings at a time. After they root the cuttings can be sold or planted out to grow to maturity. In the South, the Bubble can be used throughout the year.
We are installing one of these units to use for propagation of herbaceous plants and conifer cuttings, which we will plant out as a basis of a profit-making nursery. We'll start by lining out several hundred daylilies and iris plus a few rows of evergreens. Later we may include chrysanthemums (these too can be rooted in the Mistic Bubble), and a few Azalea mollis, the hardy species, which several dealers now carry and which can stand our hard Minnesota winters.
I have described this system not only because I've had experience with it but also because its basic principles apply generally to mist propagation in the greenhouse as well as in a purchased or homemade propagating case. Fog nozzles for water lines are available for those who wish to make their own setups. Complete mist propagation kits are on the market too.
Rate this Article:
Current: 0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s).
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/how-to-make-your-greenhouse-super-profitable-277760.html
|
Submitting articles has become one of the most popular means of generating quality backlinks and targeted traffic to your website. Join us today - It's Free! |
|
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
Primrose Hello, I live in S. California. I would ...
By: D. Mary | 06-10-2008
primrose
Hello, I live in S. California. I would like to plant primrose in a flowerbed that receives a few hours of sun in the afternoon. Will these beautiful plants bloom through the relatively, mild, winters here? The plants are just now being offered in nurseries in my area. Some nursery owners say they will bloom until Dec. some say they will not. Thank You M
Why are my parsnips all twisted and gnarled?
By: oakwood | 04-10-2008
why are my parsnips all twisted and gnarled?
Asparagus fern what to do cool weather is near
By: red | 04-10-2008
asparagus fern what to do cool weather is near
Beets did not form.
By: Brenda | 02-10-2008
Most of my beets did not form and had long roots instead. The ones that did form were very small. I grew a popular recommended variety. The beet tops were fine. Any clues?
What should I spray on the strawberry plant to get ...
By: joules | 01-10-2008
What should I spray on the strawberry plant to get rid of thrip?
What fertilizer should i use on my lima bean plants?
By: XLchick33 | 01-10-2008
What fertilizer is the best to use when growing a lima bean plant at your home. We have fairly good soil, and spots very accessable to the sun.. please help me decide which fertilizer is the best to use.
Q&A Powered by: 
Latest Gardening Articles
Beautiful Garden Centers in the United States
By: Christa Kowalczyk | 11/10/2008
Garden centers are known to be retail firms, which sell products and plants related to the different garden needs. A garden center is also considered as a primary business. It caters to the general public and is open in showcasing its display and facilities for plants and gardens.
The items one...
How Did Bonsai Plants Start in China and Japan?
By: Cindy Heller | 11/10/2008
The art of bonsai making has a very long history. In fact, it has been around for centuries. It is believed that in the beginning this practice was called Punsai, which means growing a tree in a pot.
Why Do You Need to Find the Right Bonsai Pot?
By: Cindy Heller | 11/10/2008
Choosing the right bonsai pot is a thing that should be considered carefully if you have an interest in growing bonsai trees. The main value of a bonsai is its aesthetical appearance. A bonsai is a beautiful plant that will decorate your house nicely.
Important Activities to Grow Bonsai Successfully
By: Cindy Heller | 11/10/2008
There are many types of trees that can be made into bonsai and you need to know them if you want to grow bonsai. After you identify the tree that will be made into bonsai, there are certain monitoring and caring techniques that should be implemented to keep the tree grows healthily.
Secrets of Growing Indoor Bonsai Trees
By: Cindy Heller | 11/10/2008
Your house will look more beautiful with the addition of indoor bonsai trees. These plants are mostly cultivated by experts because there are certain techniques that should be used to limit the growth of the plants.
Important Tips for Beginners to Keep Juniper Bonsai
By: Cindy Heller | 11/10/2008
A juniper bonsai is one type of bonsai trees that is suitable for beginners because it is quite easy to be taken care of. The are many types of juniper that can be turned into bonsai, such as Shimpaku, Japanese Garden, Green Mound, Chinese Juniper, Sargents, and Needle.
Easy Swing Set Installation Instructions
By: Dave Text | 10/10/2008
Playing is very important for children. It would help them to become physically strong and psychologically fit. Swing sets offer children the pleasure and benefits of playing.
A swing set is tantamount to childhood. It is an important fact that in their earlier times children are to enjoy their games. A...
Rose Gardening In The Fall: the 4 Most Important Tasks of Autumn
By: Dave Leach | 09/10/2008
Preparing your rose beds for winter is a very important process for the fall rose gardener. Follow these four important steps and your rose bushes will be be well prepared.
More from Gerald Mason
Creating A Good Backend To Sky Rocket Your Internet Sales
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
If you really want to be successful online, you need a back end system in place that's capable of selling to your customers again and again. If you only sell one product and nothing else, you're losing out on massive amounts of profit everyday.
So, let's take a look at how...
How To Increase Your Click Through Rate
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
It's amazing, the difference a higher click through rate (CTR) can have on your pay per click (PPC) campaign. Not only will you drive a lot more targeted traffic, but you also get better ad positioning for cheaper prices.
This means the difference between an online business that barely pulls its...
Free Traffic Generating Techniques To Drive Tons Of Visitors To Your Website
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
Getting traffic to your site is critical if you want to make money online. However, the wrong traffic won't produce any sales. You need niche-targeted traffic; people who are highly interested in your product or service. If they aren't, they definitely won't buy what you have to offer.
This article is...
Add Bonuses To Improve Greatly Improve Your Sales
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
People love getting free gifts. So, naturally, if your product comes with free gifts, people will be more inclined to buy. Offering free gifts/bonuses is one of the most powerful ways to increase your internet sales. This is because adding bonuses actually increases the perceived value of your product.
This approach...
How To Increase The Life Time Value Of Your Customers
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
This article is going to show you how to extract the maximum value from each of your visitors. The lifetime value of a customer is how much they spend with you over the years until they stop buying.
Most internet businesses have very bad lifetime visitor values. This is...
How To Build A Good Long Term Internet Business
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
Amongst all the hype on the net about how to get rich overnight with a simple website, it's easy to get a little jaded. Many people try their hand at internet marketing, waver around a bit and never get the results they're looking for.
This article is going to show you...
Internet Marketing: How To Write A Good Article
By: Gerald Mason | 23/12/2007 | Internet
Good writing is a critical skill if you want to be successful online. Whether affiliate marketing, creating your own products or article marketing your words are your salesmen.
They are what convert readers into buyers.
This article is going to show you powerful and easy to implement methods guaranteed to make...
When Dating Leads To An Engagement
By: Gerald Mason | 20/12/2007 | Dating
The Engagement
After a considerable time of courtship an engagement is established. An engagement is a mutual promise to enter into marriage in the near future. The young man frequently gives the girl an engagement ring which she wears on the third finger of her left hand. There are two types...
|
|
Home and Family 
