agriculture tips

It has always been a challenge to develop sustainable food sources in order to meet the needs of a growing population. Fresh water is not readily available in urban areas and so is land and other resources needed to produce food. One solution to this problem is aquaponics and especially in its scaled down form, which can be practiced in one's backyard. Aquaponics is a technology that combines the cultivation of fish, which is known as aquaculture with the water-based cultivation of plants, which is referred to as hydroponics. It allows the efficient production of fish and vegetables since its basis is the symbiotic, a relationship between plants and fish. Aquaponics allows people to raise plants and fish together in natural balance. When the two are combined, they equal out their negative aspects. How aquaponics works? In an aquaponic system, the fish live in a pond and their waste provides nutrients for plants. The plants, on the other hand filter the water in the pond. The plant...

There is an assortment of heirloom vegetable seeds which are available in the market today. Some of these consist of carrot seeds, tomatoes, melons and peas. Heirloom vegetable seeds are those which may be self cultivated. The same vegetable / fruit can be grown with the same seed again and again and the produce will not be any different each time it is grown. Heirloom seeds are the kinds which generate their own seeds as well which further help in growing a greater number of vegetables and fruits. These seeds do not need any kind of fertilizers to help in their growth and can easily grow in different climates. Pesticides are also very rarely needed when growing fruits and vegetables with these seeds since their resilience to pests is quite high. It is because of these characteristics that vegetables and fruits grown from such seeds are organic in nature. Vegetables which are a result of such seeds are very unique in terms of texture and their taste is quite rich which is why most ind...

Fresh fruit and vegetable packers have always been somewhat limited in how they can sanitize their product after their product has been harvested and before it is packed. The most common method of post harvest sanitation is to immerse the product in a dump tank or flume, or run the product over a series of rollers and have spray bars overhead. The dump tank and spray bars are injected with food-grade sanitizers to kill any lingering pathogens or spores that are on the product. Though the above method of sanitation is a generally acceptable post harvest handling practice that is endorsed by many food safety auditing agencies, it is not without some faults. One of the primary challenges of any post harvest technology that involves the immersion of the product in a sanitizer, is that most sanitizers still require a potable water rinse, after the product has been sanitized. This rinse can reduce the time the sanitizer has to do its work of killing and preventing the growth of spores and p...

A successful rabbit feed program will not only help you have overall healthier rabbits, but will also help you cut costs. Lower feeding costs result in higher net profits, and a higher quality feed will result in higher quality rabbits that can sell for more. Rabbits have sensitive stomachs, so feeding them properly is also important for keeping them healthy. The most important staple of a rabbit's diet is hay. They should be given hay freely and in large quantities. Your breeding stock that are older than 6 months will need timothy hay, which will keep them from getting too fat as it is low in calories. Your younger rabbits that are being raised as broilers need alfalfa, which has a higher calorie count that will help them put on weight, and more calcium which will help their bones keep up with their growing bodies. A good supplement to hay is commercial pellets, which should also be given to all rabbits. With your breeding stock, you can feed 1/8 of a cup per day per 5 pounds (2...