Table of Contents
Preface vii
Acknowledgments ix
1 Greenhouse Structures
What Is a Greenhouse? 1
Freestanding Greenhouses 2
Gutter-Connected Greenhouses 5
How High? 9
Going Up? 9
Open Roof Greenhouses 11
Open-Minded 14
Shadehouses 16
The Headhouse 19
2 Greenhouse Glazing
Glazing: It's What Makes the Greenhouse 23
Polyethylene Film 28
Rigid-Plastic Glazing 32
Glass Glazing 35
Greenhouse Glazing 101 37
From the Top Down—Recovering Poly Greenhouses 38
3 Curtain Systems
Curtains? In a Greenhouse? 43
Types of Curtain Systems 44
Photoperiod Control 52
4 Benches, Floors, and Baskets
Greenhouse Benches 55
Ebb-and-Flood and Trough Benches 59
Growing on the Ground 63
Growing Overhead 65
5 Irrigation
The Science and Art of Watering 69
The Top Three Ways to Water: Hand, Overhead, and Drip Irrigation 71
Boom Irrigation 73
Subirrigation 78
Capillary Mats: Another Way to Subirrigate 83
Drip Line or Flood Zone? 83
Mist Systems for Propagation 84
Hydroponics 87
Fertigation Equipment 89
Understanding Turndown Ratio 93
Water Recycling and Sanitation 95
6 The Greenhouse Environment
Greenhouse Ventilation 107
Greenhouse Cooling111
Greenhouse Heating 114
Biomass Heating 122
Four Levels of Climate Control 125
The Latest Horizontal Airflow Technology 128
Supplemental Lighting 129
Carbon Dioxide: Building Block for Plant Growth 132
Alternative Energy: Does It Pay? 134
7 Mechanization
Introduction 139
Media Mixing 139
Flat and Pot Filling 142
Seeders 143
Automatic Transplanters 146
Extras 151
Machine Vision in the Greenhouse 155
Ten Ways to Figure Payback 160
Lean Flow in the Green Industry 162
8 Internal Transport and Logistics
Walons, Carts, and Monorails 167
Keeping Track 168
Conveyors 169
Movable Benches 171
Forldifts, Cranes, Wagons, and Robots 173
Case Study: Barcode Tracking in a Modern Plug Facility 175
Bar Codes Stink 179
9 Pest Control Equipment
The Basics of Greenhouse Pest Control 183
Pesticide Application Equipment 185
Insect Screens 187
Chemical Storage Facilities 191
EPA Worker Protection Standards 194
10 Greenhouse Sustainability
The Concept of Sustainability 197
11 Specialized Facilities
Storing Seeds Successfully 201
The Proper Boiler Room 204
12 Putting It All Together
Site Selection and Analysis 209
Growing Your Business—For the Right Reasons 212
13 Managing Your Business
The Greenhouse Office 219
14 Marketing Your Business and Your Products
Building Your Businesss Image 229
Ten Laws of Niche Marketing 232
15 Retail Facilities
Retail Greenhouse Design 235
Index 245
