COMPARATIVE EFFICIENCIES OF HORIZONTAL VERSUS VERTICAL HYDROPONICS PLANT GROWTH SYSTEMS

 Today, I had a meeting with my supervisors Prof. Ekwue and Ms. Bharat to discuss the progress on the project.  Progress: -Introduction, research questions and start lecturer review.

  Background on Floating gardens: According to Coe, Michael D (1964,90) a small semi-barbaric tribe commonly known today as the Aztecs were very poor and in search for a place to call home. They were forced to retreat to two small islands situated in the lake of Mexico after tribal fights against neighbours. Upon adaptation of the wetland soil condition, the Aztecs used a form of land reclamation and agriculture known as Chinampa system. Today, this type of system is referred to as the “Floating Gardens”. Chinampas are narrow elongated strips of land which are surrounded by a body of water. The gardens were separated by canals to allow canoes to sail between for harvesting, care taking and replantation of crops. Coe, Charles H. (2000,44) quoted Abbe Francesco Clavigero, “They plait and twist Willows and roots of many plants, or other materials, together, which are light, but capable of supporting the earth of the garden firmly united. Upon this foundation they lay the light bushes ...

 Upon doing research about hydroponics, nearly all journals their introduction has  Dr. William Gerickle and his research was the first time the word "Hydroponics" was used. Numerous   attempts  were made to try an receive  a soft copy of his book but it not available online. UWI library  has access to the hard copy however, Ms. Bharat indicated that due to the pandemic  no one can get access to the school.  Draft Introduction: Hydroponic design techniques have been evolving for thousands of years. However, in the year 1940, Dr. William Gerickle was responsible for the creation of the Greek word “Hydroponics” by publication of his book, which translate to “working water”.  There are six main minerals that are required for plant growth and metabolism.   Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, Magnesium, Sulfur and Calcium.  Besides nutrient solution, a steady supply of oxygen to the roots and sunlight exposure are vital for development...

 Lecturer: Dr. Ellis  Today sir join the class late and he told us, I just got a call from the department saying I have to present to you today. It was the first time I was lectured by him, he said just give me a few minutes and his presentation was really good and interactive for last minute. He referred to his FYP students and how he ask them to approach the project.   Title of the lecture: Managing your final year project Life cycle of the project consists of: concepts, planning, execution & control and close-off Project proposal: -Define problem, issues (need to be addressed by project) -Suggest hoe the project would be done -Perform background reading on the theme of the project -Suggest possible outcomes mention about pandemic being a limitation so I had some thoughts on limitations for my project: - not obtaining maximum sunlight exposure of 24 hours due residential buildings blocking off a few hours of sunlight as the sun obits. v   - The systems wil...

 List of research questions: What area are you from?  Do you prefer using soil or soilless farming techniques?  If the option soilless was chosen, what type of hydroponic system to do have? Is the system horizontally or vertically oriented? v   What types of crops are grown in the system?      How would you describe the quality of the crops grown on a scale? v   What problems are faced during the plant growth process? v  

 An attempt was made to create my Gantt chart on excel. Upon doing it, I ask Ms. Bharat if the entire table plan must be fill out or only what I plan to do this semester.   Fixed Gantt chart

 After completing the proposal, the problem definition was formed using the problem statement.   Problem Statement: To educate horizontal and vertical hydroponic gardening to urban residents and farmers who are experiencing poor to no soil conditions, space constraints and reduce labouring to improve efficiency for plant growth. Problem Definition: As hydroponics is trending nationwide, only a few citizens and farmers are unaware of the effectiveness and efficiency of growing crops hydroponically. Based on secondary research conducted, horizontal NFT system are widely know for commercial farming in large scales thus most systems require a large area for the system to be built. Where as, a vertical system is built in such a way that requires less space for plant growth. 

This was the completed proposal form, that was emailed to Prof. Ekwue to be confirmed and signed. RATIONALE: Trinidad and Tobago have a highly densely populated twin island with a steady rise in population. As a result, agricultural land for small scale faming is limited. More housing development has little to no gardening space, forcing residents to rely solely on markets and groceries for produce. Moreover, Trinidad’s soil type is approximately seventy percent of sandy or clay like soil which is not good conditions for farming. Therefore, farmers in Trinidad undergo laborious and expensive farming practices to improve these conditions by investing in manure, tilling, ploughing, fertilizing and pesticide uses. This style of farming demands long tedious hours in the field. However, growing food hydroponically can simplify this process significantly. Hydroponics uses no soil. Thus, weeding out unwanted plants and pest control is no longer an issue. There are two main types of hydroponic...

 Critiques for proposal form from Ms. Bharat are highlighted in red below.    RATIONALE:   Trinidad and Tobago, for its size has a high population density and is quickly rising. Trinidad’s soil type is typically sandy or clay like. These are not good conditions for farming. As a result, farmers in Trinidad undergo laborious and expensive farming practices to improve these conditions by investing in manure, tilling, ploughing, fertilizing and pesticide uses. This style of farming demands long tedious hours in the field. Growing food hydroponically can simplify this process significantly. Hydroponics uses no soil. Weeding out unwanted plants is no longer an issue. Hydroponics can be grown indoors so no fertilizers is needed because there are no pests in the soil. Many seedlings planted in soil die due to pests, intense heat, poor soil conditions. Hydroponics yield and quality is much greater than soil and uses about 99% less water. Apartment buildings /tow...

  Draft for Proposal   Title : Comparative efficiencies of horizontal versus vertical hydroponics plant growth system.   Objectives 1)     To design, construct and test horizontal and vertical hydroponic plant growth systems. 2)     To compare the economic production quality and efficiency of horizontal and vertical system.   Rationale (need/ justification) Trinidad and Tobago, for its size, has a high population density and is quickly rising. Trinidad’s soil type is typically sandy or clay like. These are not good conditions for farming. As a result, farmers in Trinidad undergo laborious and expensive farming practices to improve these conditions by investing in manure, tilling, ploughing, fertilizing and pesticide uses. This style of farming demands long tedious hours in the field. Growing food hydroponically can simplify this process significantly. Hydroponics uses no soil. Weeding out unwanted plants is no longer an issue. Hydroponics can be g...

 A general meeting was held with all final year students.  Lecturer: Prof. Pun His lecture entails about conducting research to obtain problem definition, scope, rationale. The lecture notes were informative. 

  Problem statement What is the problem? Most citizens of Trinidad and Tobago are unaware of the effectiveness and efficiency of hydroponics plant growth systems. Focus on Caroni district due to the Caroni Fields is mostly used for farming. Also, downscale the target audience.   Many persons have little to no space to plant due to the type of housing development such as apartments and townhouses.   Urbanization and industrialization increase rapidly, which results in a decrease in cultivational land for farmers to plant in the Caribbean.  Proposed Problem Statement: To educate horizontal and vertical hydroponic gardening to urban residents and farmers who are experiencing poor to no soil conditions, space constraints and reduce labouring to improve efficiency for plant growth.

Draft for Proposal   Title : Comparative efficiencies of horizontal versus vertical hydroponics plant growth system.   Objectives 1)     To design, construct and test horizontal and vertical hydroponic plant growth systems. 2)     To compare the economic production quality and efficiency of horizontal and vertical system.   Rationale (need/ justification) Trinidad and Tobago, for its size, has a high population density and is quickly rising. Trinidad’s soil type is typically sandy or clay like. These are not good conditions for farming. As a result, farmers in Trinidad undergo laborious and expensive farming practices to improve these conditions by investing in manure, tilling, ploughing, fertilizing and pesticide uses. This style of farming demands long tedious hours in the field. Growing food hydroponically can simplify this process significantly. Hydroponics uses no soil. Weeding out unwanted plants is no longer an issue. Hydroponics can be grown in...

 Date: Wednesday 9th September, 2021 2:30 pm Supervisor:  Ms. Bharat Prior to this meeting, Ms. Bharat wanted a general view of the objectives for the project proposal. The meeting was mainly for brainstorming. Notes presented: Title : Comparative efficiencies of horizontal versus vertical hydroponics plant growth system. Brainstorming: Purpose of project: To design, build and test both systems. Compare Efficiencies : Cost efficient system, Production quality of crops grown, efficiency of the systems compared to other studies (maybe in soil). Target population: Residents of hometown (Cunupia) Moving from soil crops to soilless quality differences. Objectives 1)     To design, construct and test horizontal and vertical hydroponic plant growth systems. 2)     To compare the economic, production, quality and efficiency of horizontal and vertical system. Advise by supervisor: -Ensure to do analyze the links that was sent to help understand the study. ...

 General Faculty Meeting : Final Year Project (FYP) Lecturer: Dr. Bridge The purpose of this meeting was to gain general information for the FYP.  Discussion:  Purpose of FYP Online Logbook   This is proper documentation of the entire project.                                                                          - Justification methods taken                                                                                                                - Project objectives        ...