Introduction to Horticulture, Landscape and Sportsturf Management

Vegetable Crop Production

Vegetable Production
What is a vegetable?

Olericulture vegetable growing - deals with the culture of non-woody (herbaceous) plants for food Olericulture includes the planting, harvesting, storing, processing, and marketing of vegetable crops

2009-2010 Increase in domestic vegetable growing

Allotments
Less money more time

Vegetable Classification
1. root (e.g. beet, carrot, turnip) 2. bulb (e.g. leek, onion, garlic) 3. stem (e.g. asparagus) 4. flower (e.g. cauliflower, broccoli)

5. tuber (e.g. potato)

6. fruit (e.g. cucumbers, green peas, summer squash, sweet corn, tomato) 7. leaf (e.g. cabbage, lettuce, spinach) 8. petiole (e.g. celery)

9. seed (e.g. bean)

Seedbed Preparation
Vegetables

Seedbed Preparation
Unsuitable soils cause major technical and management problems Texture important
Sands, loams, silts, clays etc.

Thickness of horizons
Topsoil Subsoil

Drainage Water holding capacity Presence of stones

Seedbed Preparation
Intensive production
High input high output Rapid turn around between crops Can lead to soil structure being damaged Potential of soil drops

Soil must be easily cultivated between crops

Coarse textured, large particled sandy soils are preferable Clays have small size particles

Sandy Soils
Moisture holding properties poor Organic matter and nutrient levels are poor hungry soils Large amounts of organic matter over lon term needed to improve status Nutrients (water soluble) are readily leached

Sandy soils
Residual herbicides
Not allowed to be absorbed by soil

Irrigation is essential

Loams
Horticulturally more desirable
Sandy loam
Silt, clay and organic matter but dominated by sand fraction

General purpose soils

Workability of sandy soils better moisture retention

Silts
Larger proportion of smaller sized particles Undesirable properties
Capping Slow drainage Surface crust or cap forms after heavy rains that does not crack after drying

Interferes with aeration, water penetration and seedling emergence

Clay and Clay Loams

Larger proportion of small sized particles Sticky when wet Hard and cloddy when dry

Clay particles mush more chemically and biologically active that silt or sand particles Important source of plant nutrients
Potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron and sodium

Clay and Clay Loams

Careful management needed to maintain their structure Timing of cultivations important Usually necessary to improve drainage

Maintenance of Soil Structure

Sensible husbandry
Drainage Cultivation Addition of organic matter

Ploughing when too wet causes deterioration of structure

Horizontal smears Free soil particles washed down to form pan

Maintenance of Soil Structure

Continual use of rotovators
Same depth Causes pan to be created

Excessively high rotor speeds

Shatter soil crumbs

Only cultivate when soil is sufficiently Damage can also occur during planting
Transplanting machines slit soil causing smearing