Speakers include Charlie Shultz, who will present on the status of aquaponics; Dr Nick Savidov, who will speak on commercial aquaponics design, agro ecology in aquaponics, plant physiology and food safety; Steve Naylor, who will talk on aquaculture in Ontario; and Shawn Coyle, who will present on low-cost RAS Systems and Largemouth Bass.

The class will be divided into groups and learn the following:

• Seed germination
• Plant Harvest for specific markets
• Water testing
• Harvesting Eggs from Tilapia
• Sexing Tilapia

Registration is available at: http://events.uoguelph.ca/ei/getdemo.ei?id=188&s=_0SO0WIFEC

Heading the floriculture speaking program will be Wim van der Ende (Netherlands), who will focus on Plant physiology for flowers (temperature, water and CO2; Herman Eijkleboom (Netherlands), who will speak on nutrient deficiency in floricultural crops; and Paul Horne (IPM Technologies, Australia), who will present on IPM for cut flowers. Also on the program is a representative from the Australian Quarantine Inspection Service, who will present on quarantine issues for flower imports. The floriculture program includes a question and answer forum with a panel of industry experts.

The PCA conference and trade show is specifically for commercial greenhouse, hydroponic and aquaponic growers, industry suppliers, allied service providers, research and extension personnel, and anyone else with an interest in protected  cropping technologies.

PCA Conference 2013 Delegate Form

PCA Conference 2013 Sponsor brochure

For further information contact the conference organisers: Rick Donnan and Rosemary Viggers, Ph: (02) 4567 7685 Email: pcaconference@westnet.com.au

AUSVEG, the National Peak Industry Body for vegetable and potato growers, in conjunction with Horticulture Australia Limited (HAL), will demonstrate the quality and safety of Australian produce to Asia’s biggest restaurateurs and industry stakeholders through an industry-first Reverse Trade Mission, designed to create novel export opportunities for Australian vegetable producers.

“Australian produce is amongst some of the finest, and most importantly, safest, available on the planet, and in an era of oversupply and markedly low margins for growers, the vegetable industry now needs to look abroad to cement its future,” said AUSVEG Spokesperson, William Churchill.

“With slim domestic profit margins challenging Australian vegetable growers, we need to actively develop new markets where growers can reap the full benefits of their efforts. Considering our proximity to the region, we believe the best place to start is in Asia,” said Mr Churchill.

Representatives of key food retailers and providores from Hong Kong, Malaysia and Japan will be brought to Australia to  undertake networking activities that will include visits to some of Australia’s most prominent vegetable growing farms in Queensland and Victoria, to witness how high-quality Australian produce is grown.

“During the course of this Reverse Trade Mission, AUSVEG hopes to facilitate new relationships between Australian growers and foreign buyers that will lay the groundwork for Australian vegetable exports into Asia,” said Mr Churchill.

In an address to the Global Food Forum in Melbourne last month, Visy Chief Executive, Anthony Pratt, echoed the concerns of Australian vegetable growers, stating there was a need to reinvigorate the Australian food processing sector.

“When one of Australia’s leading businessmen acknowledges that our industry is facing huge problems and needs to expand its horizons, you realise that the time to act is now. This Reverse Trade Mission will be the first stepping stone on a path to new opportunities for the Australian vegetable industry.

“Alongside other initiatives, including a booth showcasing Australian produce at leading trade expo Asia Fruit Logistica and an Export Symposium in June designed to inform growers how to tap into the Chinese market, 2013 will be the year the Australian vegetable industry makes its mark on the global stage,” said Mr Churchill.

This project is funded by Horticulture Australia Limited using the National Vegetable Levy and matched funds from the Australian Government.

AUSVEG spokesperson Andrew White said the hotline would provide vegetable growers with unparalleled access to technical agronomy information and would benefit many vegetable growers across Australia by providing them with technical insights relevant to their circumstances.

“This is a unique and innovative initiative for the Australian vegetable industry that will be particularly useful for those growers that cannot afford to employ a full-time technical agronomist on staff or are unable to easily access technical information relevant to their circumstances due to the remoteness of their farm,” Mr White said.

“Technical advice will be provided through the service by a leading Australian agronomy service provider. The hotline will provide a useful resource for growers to obtain technical advice in a range of areas, including pest control and identification of pest problems, weed control, nutrition, post-harvest, seed/genetic selection, protected cropping and other on-farm technical issues,” Mr White said.

“Growers will be provided with up-to-date information relevant to their circumstances and may also be guided to the industry’s Knowledge Management R&D database located on the AUSVEG website for additional information where it’s appropriate,” he said.

The pilot project is being funded by Horticulture Australia using the National Vegetable Levy with matched funds from the Australia Government.

Mr White said that the service would become a valuable industry resource.

“The industry felt that a 1800 hotline was the easiest and most cost-effective way to address potential lack of access to technical information on a national basis. The service provides an avenue to access technical information that will assist those growers who would otherwise be unable to access such information,” Mr White said.

For further information go to: www.ausveg.com.au

Generally speaking, business owners only think about selling their business when they are approaching retirement, if they become frustrated with the way their business is progressing, or if they think it’s time to realise the fruits of their labour. But sometimes an unsolicited, yet very desirable, offer can turn up out of the blue and you wouldn’t want to miss out on an amazing opportunity simply because you weren’t prepared.

As a commercial lawyer, I’m regularly approached by business owners needing help with selling their businesses, and many of those owners lament that ‘missed opportunity’. My advice to all business owners is to think about the sale process early on in the business venture. Why? Because, through no fault of their own, business owners only focus on what they do best: establishing, running and operating their business to make a profit. Then, when it’s time to sell the business or an opportunity arises, it becomes apparent that the business is not sale ready, and the sale negotiations can become difficult and protracted.

Ideally, thinking about selling your business should start before you even commence operations. The idea of being ready to sell should remain with you throughout the life of your business. This is because the decisions you make early on in creating a business will have consequences during the life of your business, and when you ultimately sell it. Good decisions, combined with good business performance, go a long way towards helping you sell your business at the highest possible value. Remember, the lower the risk in your business, the more attractive the business is to any prospective buyer.

10 steps to becoming sale ready
Some simple steps can be taken early on in the life of your business to increase its value, minimise potential cost and effort down the track, and ensure it is always sale ready.

Structure your business well
Before commencing operations, you should decide on the best legal structure for your business – whether that is a company, a trust, incorporated joint venture or partnership. Getting the right structure from the start is crucial, because each option results in different legal and tax implications throughout the life of the business. Changing the legal structure during the life of your business may be costly and have unintended tax consequences, which could be avoided with the right advice from the start. Strong legal and accounting advice should always be sought when considering the right vehicle through which to run your business to ensure it works for you.

Prepare (and update) your business plan
We all know that it is important to have a business plan. Although each business approaches it differently, the business plan should have a strong focus on marketing (including the attraction and retention of customers, image and branding), and should contain realistic financial goals and funding analysis. However, the business plan is meant to be a working document and should be reviewed throughout the year, as well as annually, having regard to how the business is growing and changing, or is being affected by external forces. A current business plan is critical when negotiating the sale of your business.
Conduct a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)
As a business owner, you know the strengths and weaknesses of your business, and the areas on which you need to focus to improve its performance. Again, by documenting and regularly reviewing your situation, you can ensure prospective purchasers have a clear picture of your business situation and minimise the risk of uncertainty in the sale process.

Protect your intellectual property
If you use any trademarks or logos in your business, they should be registered to protect your rights. Legal protection of your business name through a trademark or logo increases the value of your business by ensuring your exclusive use of the brand.

As a commercial lawyer, I strongly recommend that evidence of all intellectual property, business names, email addresses and domain names be kept in one current legal archive so they can be easily retrieved and identified. Someone in the business also needs to be given the responsibility of ensuring that trademarks and other registrations are renewed when they are due, and that any third-party breaches are addressed promptly.

Protect any personal property
An important part of reviewing your business processes and operations is also to look at your contracts and terms, and then consider whether your security interests should be registered on the Personal Property Securities Register. Registration of property creates additional value in your business and enables your business to enforce these interests if necessary.

Review all your contracts
Throughout the life of your business, you should ensure that all of your commercial contracts are accurate and up to date, including leases, hire purchase agreements, client and supplier contracts, and licence agreements. Ascertain whether any of these contracts are assignable on the sale of the business if they are long-term contracts or lucrative supplier contracts – it will make the business very attractive to a potential purchaser. Take a look at your employment contracts to ensure that they include confidentiality provisions and identify who owns any intellectual property created by the employees. Are the restraints of trade in any employment contracts enforceable? Value is created where these terms are favourable to your business.

Streamline systems and processes
During operations, you should be creating a strong infrastructure of both systems and processes, so that buyers will be comfortable that the business can operate on its own without you being there. You must be able to hand over the corporate memory. You should also make sure that client records are accurate and take steps to reduce any debtors, if applicable.

Keep accurate financial records
A prospective buyer will assess the performance of the business based on the latest financial records. Work with your accountant and auditor to make sure everything is reported accurately and that all of your figures can be explained. Any taxation liabilities should also be clearly explained.

Value the business properly
One of the most critical tasks when preparing a business for sale is to determine the sale price, or value, of the business. Financial advisers, lawyers and specialist valuers can assist you in determining a sale price for your business. A range of methods is used to reach a sale price that incorporates equipment, plant and premises, if applicable. Financial advisers and lawyers can also help you to determine the value of the more intangible assets, such as the goodwill, reputation, trademark and intellectual property of the business. Having a realistic idea of the value of your business is particularly important. All too often, business owners have an unrealistic perception of what their business is worth, which can cause problems when entering into sale negotiations.

Be ready for due diligence
Due diligence is the important legal and financial research process that a buyer’s lawyer and professional advisers conduct on their behalf. The process highlights any issues that need to be addressed prior to the purchase, or in some cases, alerts a prospective buyer to the fact that it would be unwise to buy the business. As a business owner, it pays to ensure you are familiar with the issues a purchaser will consider, and that you know what they will find when they start digging.

Due diligence includes understanding the following: the ownership of the assets being purchased; any outstanding debts; pending and potential litigation or claims from any party dealing with the business; leases; warranties; contracts and employee agreements.

Take action
It is never too late to start readying your business for sale, even if it has been operating for some time. Speak to your lawyer and accountant for advice when setting up your business to ensure you establish the best possible processes and procedures from the outset. If your business is already operational, make 2013 the year you get your business in order and ensure that it is sale ready. A little time and effort spent housekeeping and preparing your business now, can mean the difference between seizing an opportunity and enjoying the rewards, or getting bogged down in a long and protracted sale process.

Questions a potential buyer might ask

• Why is the business for sale?
• What is included in the sale (goodwill, location, customers, assets, phone numbers, domain names and so on)?
• What is the current business plan?
• How valuable is the brand name?
• What other intellectual property is critical to the success of the business?
• How is the business perceived within the marketplace?
• What share of the market does the business control?

About the author
Dorota (Dee) Bryks is an experienced commercial lawyer and an associate with Coleman Greig Lawyers. She has particular expertise in the preparation of contracts and assisting clients with the sale and purchase of businesses. Dee is recognised for her commercially-focused approach and strong communication skills, keeping clients informed at every step. Website: www.colemangreig.com.au

PH&G May 2013 – Issue 131

Steven Carruthers

Aquaponics, the integration of hydroponics and fresh-water aquaculture, is no longer a fringe growing technology. Commercial aquaponic enterprises are now operating successfully in many countries to supply fresh greens and protein-rich fish to nearby and distant markets. However, the growing technology is far from a precise science.

Basically, aquaponics tries to balance fish waste nutrient production with plant nutrient requirements, but finding the right balance depends upon the many stages of plant and fish growth. For leafy crops it’s a no-brainer, but for fruiting crops such as tomato and capsicum, which are heavy feeders, much more work needs to be done before aquaponicists can claim it is the answer to sustainable food production. The challenge is growing the amount of fish that will produce the amount of nutrient required by any crop on a daily basis. There is no one formula that fits all plant and fish specie requirements.

There are also other issues that need to be sorted, such as returning solution to fish tanks containing residual elements that may impart deleterious effects on fish growth. Like all aquaculture-based systems, stock feed usually consists of fish meal derived from lower value species, with ongoing depletion of wild fish stocks making aquaponics unsustainable. More work needs to be done developing organic fish feeds, as well as other alternatives such as growing duckweed with an aquaponics system that feeds the same fish grown on the system. For Australia, that’s a problem where duckweed is an invasive weed, but there are other options available to produce organic fish feed.

And there are Ideological differences, depending on which pathway you come to the aquaponics industry. Many aquaponicists, including researchers, come from an aquaculture background, where the growing of plants is secondary to producing healthy fish; despite the fact that crop production may represent a higher value in farm income. Similar to the organics industry, which promotes points of differences between soil-grown and organic soil-grown produce, aquaponicists seek to promote differences between hydroponic and aquaponic produce. Is it organic? I’m not convinced, but it has the potential to be. Are plants grown in fish waste water tastier and more nutritious? I have yet to cite any peer-reviewed research paper that validates either claim. Is aquaponics sustainable? From where I sit, much more work needs to be done before that claim can be made.

In this issue, we feature an article about aquaponics research in Hawaii, which is being investigated as a means to decrease Hawaii’s dependence on imports for both food and energy. Although the researchers come from an aquaculture pathway, they recognise much more work needs to be done to move their goal forward. Their work gives a valuable insight into the future direction of aquaponics technology.

Aquaponics is also a special topic at the next biennial Protected Cropping Association conference and exhibition to be held in Melbourne from 28-31 July 2013. Among the speakers is Dr Nick Savidov, a Canadian Senior Research Scientist specialising in advanced commercial aquaponic systems. Also presenting will be Dr Mike Nichols, a regular contributer to PH&G, who has followed the development of aquaponics and presented papers on the technology across many global conference platforms. For more information, see our item on ‘Solutions for Sustainable Growth’ in this issue.

Steven Carruthers

PHG May 2013 – Issue 131

With its centuries-old tradition of sustainable food production, Hawaii boasts a long history of close contact with Nature. Early Hawaiian agricultural systems were closely linked to the natural environment to ensure long-term productivity and support to the inhabitants of these Islands.

Today, at the University of Hawaii’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) in Honolulu, the island state’s traditional, sustainable agricultural link with the ecological and biological cycles is being continued. For over 100 years, much work has been conducted by CTAHR in its various incarnations and partnerships to develop and improve agricultural technologies relevant to organic growers. This includes intensive cover crop research, promoting the importance of locally grown produce, developing biological and cultural methods for controlling pests without chemicals, and the use of biological nitrogen fixation to significantly increase production of high protein foods while at the same time reducing the need for commercially produced fertilisers.

Working as an aquaculture specialist at CTAHR’s Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering is Clyde S. Tamaru, PhD. Born and raised in Hawaii, Dr Tamaru received his doctorate from the University of Tokyo, Faculty of Agriculture Department of Fisheries. Dr Tamaru heads CTAHR’s aquaculture extension team, which provides technical assistance in aquaculture and aquaponics to private and public sector stakeholders within the state and abroad. The information and assistance is science based and accomplished by maintaining an active research portfolio that covers Hawaiian fishponds, biofuel byproduct remediation, aquaponics, and developing hatchery technologies for a variety of freshwater and marine species.

In search of food self-sufficiency
The overarching aim of Dr Tamaru’s and his team’s current research and extension efforts is to decrease Hawaii’s dependence on imports for both food and energy.

“The overall goal of CTAHR over the course of the next 10 years is to assist the State into increasing our self-reliance in the production of our own food. Currently, 85% to 90% of our food and more than 90% of our energy is being imported,” Dr Tamaru says.

According to a recent white paper, Food Self-Sufficiency in Hawaii by Dr Tamaru’s colleague, Dr Pingsun Leung, the pressing need for Hawaii is to increase its food self-sufficiency:

Hawai‘i is located approximately 2,506 miles from the continental United States. Most of Hawai‘i’s food is imported, which makes it particularly vulnerable to natural disasters and global events that might disrupt shipping and the food supply.

Hawai‘i has been hard hit by global economic events. Fluctuating oil prices, rising food costs, and the worldwide financial crisis have contributed to a downturn in Hawai‘i’s visitor arrivals, lowered economic forecasts, and rising unemployment. These events highlight the importance of food self-sufficiency and food sustainability priorities for Hawai‘i.

“Currently, our entire agricultural output is approximately US$500 million. By reducing our imports by just 10%, over US$300 million would stay in Hawaii, over 2000 jobs would be saved and our economy – which is highly dependent on the visitor industry – would be diversified,” Dr Tamaru says.

Dr Tamaru points out that the initiative would also offer several other benefits, including a decreased carbon footprint and a reduced risk of introducing invasive species.

“We are focused on just one aspect of the overall effort in becoming more self-reliant in food production and that is in the area of soilless farming,” he says.

“Aquaculture and hydroponics are two soilless farming technologies and the current focus is to develop a third, which is the integration of the two.”

In the highly urbanised town of Mililani at the centre of Hawaii’s Oahu Island, Mari’s Gardens is a nursery that has greenhouses and also integrates Hawaii’s biggest aquaponic farm.

Benefits of aquaponic technology

According to Dr Tamaru, aquaponic technology addresses several limitations that are presented by traditional soil-based agriculture.

“The first is that it is soilless farming and therefore not dependent on having ‘good’ soil or any kind of soil. Aquaponics also allows for the ability to produce food in areas where you would have never thought possible,” he says.

“This situation is particularly acute in an island state where land is a premium resource. In my presentations I use a slide, , which summarises this challenge, where prime agricultural land is set to be developed into a subdivision that will provide over 11,500 homes, schools and new businesses.

“There are no simple answers and it is a situation that will not go away,” Dr Tamaru says.

“The emerging technology of aquaponics allows for expansion of agriculture, using marginal lands and/or novel uses of already developed land.

“Aquaponics also addresses another resource limitation—one that many folks do not seem to realise is coming—and that is fresh water. Mark Twain has been attributed in saying: ‘Whiskey is for drinking but water is for fighting over’,” he says.

“In terms of water, aquaponics is estimated to use only 5% of what it would take to produce the same crop in soil. Things are even more acute when you live on an island surrounded by the ocean and this is another reason why we think it is important to focus on the development of this form of food-producing technology.”

Dr Tamaru also cites a third benefit of aquaponic technology.

“The aquaculture portion of aquaponics addresses the shortcomings of being able to satisfy the demand for fish and fishery products,” he says.

“Aquaponics merges the production of two separate technologies (aquaculture and hydroponics), representing the development of the most productive of food-producing technologies per unit area.

“Aquaponic technology offers sustainability, which rests on the principle that we must meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs,” Dr Tamaru says.

“Therefore, stewardship of both natural and human resources is of prime importance. The three Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle), which define sustainability, are embodied in aquaponics but not necessarily when aquaculture or hydroponics are practised separately.”

Ongoing research
Small aquaponic systems allow people to grow plants and fish in their backyard, but Dr Tamaru wants to see more growth in commercial aquaponics.

“However, we don’t want to compete against good agriculture land. We want places that are marginal or not even used,” he says.

As an emerging technology, there still is no one formula for commercial aquaponics systems in Hawaii, says Dr Tamaru.

“Likewise, for urban gardeners where system and systems designs are as varied as the folks who are setting up and running their own systems.”

Dr Tamaru explains that in aquaponics, the waste from the fish – including ammonia and nitrate – helps fertilise the plants; then the water is purified before being recirculated back to the fish tank.

But not just any fish can be raised in these tanks,” Dr Tamaru says.

“Tilapia is the main fish used in Hawaii, because they can tolerate these levels of ammonia and nitrate.”

Most tilapia now sold in Hawaii supermarkets and restaurants are imported, but Dr Tamaru wants to see more local-grown sales.

Dr Tamaru has found that setting up and maintaining a successful aquaponic operation has often involved a trial and error approach.

“We have had to take a step back and focus on answering some of the most basic of questions, for example, what kind of feed do I use in my aquaponic system,” he says.

“Basically, it depends – you need to look at what kind of fish and what kind of plant you plan to produce.

“My current research shows the impacts of two kinds of fish feed (Rangen with low protein, low fat; and Silver Cup with high protein, high fat) on the growth of tilapia and three kinds of leafy greens,” Dr Tamaru says.

“When tilapia were fed the two different types of feed, the high protein, high fat diet resulted in superior growth of the fish. However, there were no differences observed when growing lettuce when using either source of fish effluent. What we did find, however, was that there were significant differences when growing kai choi [Brassica juncea]. So the answer as to what type of fish feed you should use in an aquaponic setting will depend on what type of plant.”

In terms of pH used in the aquaponic systems, Dr Tamaru says that using Chinese taro plants in three different solid media and in an ebb and flow aquaponic systems showed that pH remediation is more important in producing larger leaves than the solid media used in growing the plants.
“We are currently investigating which strategy of pH remediation is the most effective from the standpoint of plant crop outputs, delivery systems, micronutrient supplementation, etc,” he says.

Challenges and opportunities
Dr Tamaru says that one of the major difficulties encountered in setting up and maintaining an aquaponic operation is the start-up cost.

“This can prove a major challenge, particularly for aquaponic producers at a commercial scale,” he says.

“Local market demand for home-grown products must increase for local farms to remain viable. There is a definite need for research and extension work to demonstrate that purchasing locally grown products is beneficial and that they can command higher prices.

“For commercial aquaponic producers one of the main challenges facing them is dealing with pests (for example, aphids, downy mildew, mites, rose beetles and the like). This is especially true if they want to be organically certified, as the number of pesticides and their effectiveness are limited,” he says.

Looking to the future, Dr Tamaru says that there is still much to undertake.

“We have a lot of work, both basic and applied, that needs to be done on the nitrification process, microbes involved, controlling efficiency, plant quality, fish species, plant species, system design, food safety, and so on. The quantity and quality of the plant produced aquaponically becomes very important, especially if there are differences that distinguishes it from hydroponically or terrestrially produced,” he explains.

“We are also seeing differences in protein content, antioxidants, micronutrients that indicate the aquaponic technology results in a higher quality plant. These kinds of results need to be demonstrated and validated and make up a large part of our future work.”

Mari’s Gardens aquaponic venture
Dr Tamaru and his team’s work in aquaponics is linked with the successful transfer of those technologies to appropriate end users. One such case is Mari’s Gardens in the highly urbanised town of Mililani at the centre of Hawaii’s Oahu Island.

Originally set up as a commercial nursery, Mari’s Gardens has evolved over time and has now dedicated one of its 18 acres to aquaponics, making it Hawaii’s biggest aquaponic farm and one of the pioneers in the commercial use of aquaponics on a large scale.

At Mari’s Gardens aquaponic facility there are five tanks with 2500 to 3000 fish in each.

Owner Fred Lau says he reuses water from his nursery to produce 150 pounds of cucumbers a day and 14,000 heads of lettuce a month, using five tanks with 2500 to 3000 fish in each. Around 200 pounds of fish a week are also produced.

Mari’s Gardens owner Fred Lau says he reuses water from his nursery to produce around 14,000 heads of lettuce a month.

“It is a sustainable method of farming, but economically, it could take a while to be beneficial,” Mr Lau says. “The start-up costs can be quite expensive.”
Since the first planting in February 2010, Mari’s Gardens has become the largest aquaponic producer of Manoa lettuce in Hawaii.

“We can’t grow it fast enough,” says Fred Lau.

“Our produce includes Manoa lettuce, Green Oak Leaf, Red Oak Leaf, Green Onions, Japanese cucumbers, tomatoes, and beets.

“Amidst expansion, we are testing other crops as well. Our produce is certified organic so no synthetic pesticides or fertilisers are used in the production process. We are also Food Safety Certified,” he says.

Along with the diversification of plant products is the expansion and diversification of the fish crops with the recent establishment of a Chinese catfish hatchery.

“Staff receive training from our aquaculture extension faculty in the induction of spawning and the artificial fertilisation of ovulated eggs. Currently, we are in the process of rearing the thousands of larvae that were produced,” Mr Lau says.

“This effort will lead to becoming self-reliant in producing seed for further expansion of our Chinese catfish enterprise.”

Tours of the aquaponic facility are available where an in-depth explanation of how aquaponic systems work is given as well as a talk on why the system is the most sustainable method of farming possible. Fees from the tours are used to help perpetuate ongoing research and development of aquaponics.

Tours of Mari’s Gardens are available where an in-depth explanation of how aquaponic systems work is given as well as a talk on why the system is the most sustainable method of farming possible.

Like Dr Tamaru, Fred Lau believes that aquaponics is more than a just commercial venture.

“The basic principles of aquaponics allow you to tailor it to just about any situation or environment and, with decreasing available land, that’s very important,” he says.

“In terms of being an efficient and sustainable food-producing technology, it’s the way of the future.”

For more information about the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) at: Website: www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/site/

More information about Mari’s Gardens at: Website: www.marisgardens.com

About the author
Christine Brown-Paul is a Sydney-based journalist and regular contributor to PH&G with a special interest in the environment and sustainable technology (email: c.brown.paul@gmail.com).

PHG May 2013 – Issue 131

A practical conference for greenhouse, hydroponic and aquaponic growers

The biennial Protected Cropping Australia Conference will be held in Melbourne from Sunday 28 to Wednesday 31 July 2013.

Program
This is the 12th conference (previously the Australian Hydroponic & Greenhouse Conference). With one significant addition, the organisers have retained the very popular format of earlier conferences. That is: the trade exhibition opens on Sunday afternoon, followed by presentations on Monday and Tuesday. Monday has the keynote and plenary sessions in the morning, then splits into concurrent sessions in the afternoon. However, this time on Tuesday we have added four streams of special interest topics. These are aimed at developing the skills of the following grower groups:

• Fruit and vegetables
• Cut flowers
• Leafy greens (lettuce, herbs, Asian greens)
• Aquaponics

In total there is a choice of over 30 technical topics presented by internationally acclaimed industry researchers, consultants and growers, sharing their practical experiences. There is a wide range of topics on Monday, then on Tuesday there will be mainly the special interest streams.

Speakers
An example of the internationally recognised experts presenting is Dr Nick Savidov, a Canadian Senior Research Scientist specialising in advanced commercial aquaponic systems. He has modified older versions of aquaponics by introducing aerobic bio-digestion to recover nutrients and water, and improving oxygenation. This has led, for the first time, to a system, which is virtually sustainable; that is, capable of converting virtually all the input organic fish food into fish and plants.

There will be a fascinating keynote speaker in Jurgen Kleinwachter—a German professor who, together with his late father, is considered to be the European pioneer of solar technology. Their company has been at the leading edge of developing innovative solar technology for 30 years. Jurgen has a far reaching insight into the use of light and optics in horticulture. He has a grand vision of our future world and especially isolated communities and how we will use the power of the sun to heat, cook and generate electricity.

Organisers are delighted to have three highly respected Dutch consultants involved. Ben van Onna is presenting ‘Consequences of climate differences in greenhouses’ and ‘New greenhouse air handling systems for Australia’. Wim van der Ende is presenting ‘Plant physiology for flowers (temp, water and CO2)’. Herman Eijkleboom is presenting ‘Nutrient deficiency in floricultural crops’ and ‘Irrigation strategy in substrates’.

For the detailed program please visit the Protected Cropping Australia website www.protectedcroppingaustralia.com

Exhibition
As usual there is an exciting exhibition as part of the conference. There are 50 booths including more than a dozen from overseas, mainly from Holland. The exhibition opens on Sunday afternoon, when it is open to all growers. It remains open for delegates on Monday and Tuesday, giving ample opportunity to have all your questions answered.

For any company interested in being a sponsor/exhibitor, at the time of going to press there were fewer than 10 booths available, so please follow up before you miss out. Contact Rick Donnan 02 4567 7685 or email: pcaconference@westnet.com.au

Venue
The conference will be held at the Pullman Melbourne Conference Centre (previously the Sebel Albert Park). This is a great venue for the for the conference, having been recently renovated, as well as being attached to the Pullman Melbourne Albert Park and Mercure hotels. There is also plenty of other accommodation nearby at all price levels.

Networking
If you have not come to a PCA conference before, then you may not realise that usually the most important benefits you gain comes from the fantastic opportunity offered to network with exhibitors, presenters and especially other growers. One small idea put into action can save you many times the cost of attending.

To help provide networking opportunities the conference format allows extended lunch and afternoon and afternoon tea breaks. There are also two very sociable functions—a welcome function on Sunday evening and the conference banquet dinner on Monday evening.

Farm tours
Flowers Victoria has sponsored a breakfast tour to the Melbourne Flower Market early Tuesday morning, to arrive back in time for the start of presentations.

On Wednesday 31 July there will be three different tours to visit farms—a fruit and vegetable tour, a flower tour and a general mixed tour. This is a great opportunity to see commercial hydroponics at work. The tours are an optional extra and are strictly only available to conference delegates.

Information
For more detail check out the PCA website www.protectedcroppingaustralia.com, or contact the organisers, Rick Donnan and Rosemary Viggers 02 4567-7685 or email: pcaconference@westnet.com.au

Rick Donnan

Question

From a NSW hobby grower. Why are my tomato plants not fruiting? 

My tomato plants look healthy, but the flowers are not forming any fruit. There are plenty of flowers and the first two or three trusses produce fruit, but there is no fruit forming on the later trusses.

I grow the plants on reused coco slabs using a recycling drip irrigation system, feeding in an EC of 2.8 mS/cm. I use a general purpose two-part ‘Grow’ nutrient available from my local hydroponic store. I grow outdoors in a protected sunny spot and run the plants up a single string. There is no evidence of pests or diseases. Plant stems are thick and the leaves are dense and dark green in colour.

What is my problem?

Answer
Thanks for your detailed information, although there are a few areas where I need more. However, you have given me enough that I am confident that I can suggest the probable cause of your problem.

Reused media
Firstly—what about the cocopeat? There are risks attached to reusing any medium, especially an organic one such as cocopeat. The two major risks are: the retention of disease, especially to attack vulnerable young plants; and possible breakdown of its structure leading to inadequate aeration in the medium, which will in turn lead to stressed and probably diseased plants.

Does this apply in our case? No! You highlight that the plants are healthy, so this is a very unlikely influence.

Vegetative crop
Your description of thick stems and dense dark leaves is the classic description of a strongly vegetative plant. It is OK for a young plant to be like this, as it establishes a strong plant for extending and increasing your fruit yield longer term.

However, you want to produce fruit. This requires that the plant later becomes much more ‘generative’. Maintaining a reasonable balance between ‘vegetative’ and ‘generative’ is essential to have your plant produce well.

What is happening is that the continuing strong leaf growth is overpowering the fruiting capacity of the plant. It has some fruit, but struggles to make any more. I would expect that the last truss to fruit would have had smaller and/or fewer fruit than the earlier trusses.

Generative influences
What can you do to make the plant more generative and produce more fruit? To avoid your problem this should have been done from the onset of fruiting.

Firstly, your plant probably has far too many leaves. Commercial tomato growers regularly leaf prune to retain a standard number of leaves. How many are kept depends upon the variety and the plant vegetative/generative balance they are trying to achieve. Typically, it is around 25 leaves for a single stem plant. So that is my recommendation—leaf prune. I guess that many hobby growers are reluctant to leaf prune, probably because they aren’t aware of this aspect, but also because the plant looks quite attractive and they don’t want to ‘despoil’ it.

You mention a single string. Presumably you are removing the laterals (side shoots), but if not the plant may well be spreading too far and getting too leafy. Depending on how close together are your plants (plant density), you may be able to keep one extra lateral on a separate string. A plant stem density of 3 to 4 per square metre is OK in summer. If you have only one or two plants with plenty of light, plant density is irrelevant.

EC (Electrical Conductivity)
The strength (indicated by EC) of the solution that you have around your roots has an influence on plant balance. The higher the EC around the roots, the more generative is its influence.

Depending upon how you recycle your nutrient solution and how often, you could run at a higher EC. It is essential that you measure the EC of the solution running off before you recycle it. This is your best indication of what is around the plant roots. I suggest that you aim to have a run-off EC of above 4 and no higher than 5. Depending upon several factors, such as the weather and especially the proportion that you run off, this may require a feed EC between about 3.0 and 3.5. Take care here because the run-off EC could get much higher if not checked daily, leading to problems such as blossom end rot and even plant death.

An important warning to other growers—only try this if you are conscientious about measuring your run-off solution. Otherwise, keep to a feed EC of around 2 and a run-off no higher than 3. Also, tomato is a plant which is very tolerant of high EC. Do not go this high with most other crops—they are safer with a feed of about 1.5 and a run-off no higher than 2.0.

(The root zone solution is the one that needs to be managed. Many growers give all their attention to the feed, but this is only important as to what influence it has on the root zone solution, which will be different in terms of EC and especially nutrient balance. Remember that its EC gives no indication of the nutrient balance of a solution.)

Nutrient balance
One difficulty that any grower faces with a recirculating system is keeping the nutrient balance of the root zone solution within a reasonable range. The run-off balance will always be different to the feed balance because of the different relative rates of uptake of individual nutrients. Each time you return the run-off the nutrient balance of the root zone solution will continue to change until it can finally go too far and begin to impact on the plant through individual nutrient deficiencies and/or toxicities.

In your case, I suggest that you change to a ‘bloom’ formulation soon after fruiting starts. It is important to realise that ‘grow’ and ‘bloom’ formulations do not force the plant, they are followers of the changes that the plant is demanding. With a crop such as tomato, it goes from vegetative through flowering to fruiting. The result is a steady change of different uptake nutrient balances, not just two distinct formulations. To keep the root zone solution from getting too far out of balance you need to occasionally discard the daily run-off. Dilute it and use it to fertilise your garden.

PH&G May 2013 – Issue #131

“The Australian horticulture industry is suffering from massive injury to its industries with the flood of imported produce that is wrecking regional businesses, employers and families and we support the calls for emergency taxes on cheap imported food,” said AUSVEG Public Affairs Manager William Churchill.

AUSVEG is the National Peak Industry Body representing Australia’s 9,000 vegetable and potato growers.

As in today’s The Australian newspaper, fruit growers in the Goulburn Valley are calling new cuts to their contracts a “decapitation”.

“Decapitation couldn’t be a more accurate description of the situation we are facing here in Australia. We are seeing a consistent message of despair around the country as more and more farmers are being paid less and less for their produce as processors here in Australia try to compete on cost,” said Mr Churchill.

For farmers and processors, Australia is becoming an extremely difficult environment to grow and process food in. In a Federal Department of Agriculture report released this year, data shows that imported fruit and vegetables has increased by $264 million over the past five years.

“In this current economic climate other countries are able to use Australia as a dumping ground for product and wipe out local competition allowing them to monopolise supply. If the local competition is exterminated we’ll have no other choice but to import all of our food,” said Mr Churchill.

“This not only raises uncertainties around the future of many regional economies who survive on agriculture, but also raises questions about Australia’s food security,” said Mr Churchill.

AUSVEG is calling on the Federal Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig and Trade Minister Dr Craig Emerson to implement the safeguard actions while the government is setting up the Anti-Dumping Commission that Prime Minister Gillard announced last December.

“The injury being caused to industry by dumped produce is so significant that many processors are questioning their future here in Australia,” said Mr Churchill.

Vegetable processor Windsor Farm, located in Cowra NSW, went into voluntary administration in March this year, months after iconic sauce company Rosella also shut its doors. Windsor Farm made canned tomato soup from local tomato growers for Rosella.

“If the Government was to do one thing to truly benefit agriculture it would be implementing these safeguards,” said Mr Churchill.