STAGE 03 · ROOT

Misting, benching, irrigation and monitoring.

A freshly grafted plant cannot drink yet, so the air around its leaves has to stay wet without the base of the cell ever sitting in water. Holding both at once, for three weeks, is the hardest thing a propagation house does.

DRAWING
PA-005
SUBJECT
PROPAGATION ENVIRONMENT
BASIS
SPECIFIED AND SOURCED
CONTROL
VAPOUR PRESSURE DEFICIT
SHEET
05 OF 14
1.1 m pitch SENSOR, CANOPY HEIGHT VALVE

FIG. 05

The sensor belongs at canopy height, not at the gable. The two read differently, and the plant lives at the canopy.

What we specify and source

Equipment at this stage is designed around your house and sourced to that design. It is not held in stock.

  • Misting and fogging — nozzle selection, line layout, pump and filtration
  • Climate control — heating, cooling, ventilation, humidity domes and covers
  • Benching and racking — fixed, rolling, and heated benches
  • Irrigation — drip, ebb and flow, capillary matting
  • Shade and screening — internal and external, by light transmission
  • LED growing lights and control
  • Automation and control panels
Propagation monitoring
MeasurementWhy it is measuredLogging interval
Air temperature and humidityThe two inputs to vapour pressure deficit1 min
Vapour pressure deficitThe variable the misting decision is actually made on1 min
Substrate moistureWaterlogging at the base of the cell5 min
Substrate conductivitySalt build-up under repeated misting5 min
Light, PARThe load driving water loss from the leaf1 min

Moisture sensors are calibrated to the substrate actually in use — coco peat, a vermiculite blend and a peat formulation each read differently, and a sensor calibrated for one is wrong in another. Supplied as hardware, dashboard and support together, with threshold alerts and export of the full history.

THIS IS THE ONE STAGE WHERE WE DESIGN BEFORE WE QUOTE. SEND US THE HOUSE DIMENSIONS AND THE CROP.