13 best urban farm plant management practices for fast growth and enormous yields

Urban farm plant management practices are activities that are done on a daily or scheduled basis to nurture plants for proper growth and high yields. Such activities ensure that plants have optimum conditions for growth in their growth medium (soil/ water), are growing well physically and are free from pests, diseases and parasites.

Growing medium optimum conditions for growth include; water, PH, aeration, nutrients and support. External environment factors include; light required for photosynthesis etc. these should allow for optimum plant growth but not pests, diseases and parasites to thrive and destroy the crops for example too much humidity and improper lighting allow fungi to thrive and destroy the crops.

Different plants thrive better in different environmental conditions and have different nutrient requirements for proper growth depending on their biology i.e.

1. Herbaceous or woody plants

Herbaceous plants have weak stems and require more care and management than woody plants which have strong stems, sturdy and can withstand most harsh environmental conditions

2. Perennial or annual plants

Annual crops grow in a short time and require immediate nutrition for growth than perennial crops which grow for more than one growing season.

3. Aquatic or terrestrial plants

Some plants are more naturally adapted to grow in water than in soil medium so can survive a lot of water. However, with the rise of aquaponics and hydroponics, it’s possible to grow any type of plant in a controlled water environment medium and achieve even better results than in a soil medium. Aquaponics and hydroponics have numerous advantages but can be a bit expensive to set up. You can make a DIY setup however but it’s not as effective as the modern setup. Be it so, consideration should be made for proper plant type selection before choosing the growing medium

4. Adaptive capabilities

Evolution has naturally modified plants to survive in different environmental conditions i.e. some can grow well in dry conditions while others cannot. On the other hand, some are naturally enhanced to resist particular pests and diseases. It’s therefore important to test the following factors before setting up a farm in a new area and periodically analyze them to stay ahead of the curve.

1. Soil profile test: moisture, PH, organisms, hardness
2. Environment: climate, water quality, sunlight, wind, humidity
3. Pests, diseases and parasites profile
4. Previous crop profile

In the modern era plant engineering and science have greatly modified plant biology and the resulting genetically modified plants can do extremely well in harsh environmental conditions and are highly resistant to most pests, diseases and parasites. These however have some disadvantages compared to traditional crops. Be it so the analysis has to be made to be on the safe side.

Furthermore for plants to grow and yield well urban farming has to be streamlined in order to;

1. Balance crop production growing season and activities
2. Balance crop production and market demand
3. Balance crop production costs, inputs and outputs

A farmer, gardener, urban farmer, plant mom, plant dad, allotment or backyard gardener, therefore, has to be thoroughly equipped, knowledgeable and hard working to ensure that their plant or crop babies grow extremely well. They, therefore, need to implement the following activities.

The best urban farm plant management practices for faster growth and high yields

These are the best plant management practices done by farmers in urban farming to ensure proper plant growth and very high yields.

1. Manuring/fertilizing  

This is done in the growing medium to provide plants with the nutrients required for proper growth. Traditionally organic manure or fertilizer is applied and mixed in the soil before planting is done. In an aquaponics or hydroponic setting, inorganic fertilizers like NPK or superphosphate are applied to the crops with the water in the growing medium.

Plants need more of essential nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous to grow and non-essential nutrients like magnesium are also supplied. Depending on the growth stage, it’s essential to balance the nutrients to provide optimum conditions for plant growth. At the very young stage and fruiting stage is when plants take up more nutrients. It’s therefore very important to keep them available at all times. Your agriculturalist will give you a nutrient plant requirement chart for the different stages of plant growth.

2. Watering

Plants need enough not too much water to grow. In a soil medium too much watering causes;

1.  Dampness which allows fungal, viral and other disease growth
2. Leaching of essential nutrients deep within the soil away from plant roots
3. Allows for the growth of parasites and pests
4. Weakens the plant root support system and plants might fall
5. Affects essential microorganisms in the soil like insects, and earthworms.

In a water medium i.e. aquaponics and hydroponics, plants are adapted and get enough water for them to survive. 

In absence of water plants:

1.  Wilt and die
2. Are susceptible to pests and diseases
3. Have stunted growth
4. Essential soil microorganisms like earthworms die

Watering should be just enough. In a soil medium, the intensity of watering depends on:

1.  External environment climate factors e.g. wet and dry seasons and farm area
2. Plant growth stage: young or old
3. Costs of watering or irrigation
4. The number of plants

Under normal circumstances, watering or irrigation is done once or twice a week for optimum plant growth.

3. Pruning

This is the removal of extra or unwanted plant parts. It’s done to:

1. Remove diseased plant parts to avoid further spread
2. Reduce excess growth to allow optimum growth
3. Landscaping in ornamental plants
4. Grooming trees and fruit tree branches for optimum future plant growth and fruiting support.

4. Thinning

Thinning is done to remove extra plants in the garden. It’s done to:

1. Ensure proper plant spacing for optimum growth
2. Reduce competition amongst plants for resources
3. Remove poor-performing and sickly plants leaving those that are doing well
4. Remove sick plants from the garden to control pest and disease spread.

5. Plant spacing

Plant spacing is done to ensure proper plant growth through:

1. Reduce plant completion for nutrients and resources
2. Reduce disease and pest spread by avoiding overcrowding
3. Allow for enough space to spread and fruit well

Plant spacing depends largely on:

1. Plant requirements e.g. the size of the plants upon maturity. The larger the more spacing
2. Size of the farm and farmers’ goals
3. Plant pests and disease profile and farm established control measures.
4. Short-term or long-term growth requirements. E.g. it wouldn’t be wise to cramp fruit trees together in an orchard upon transplanting.

6. Supporting

Plants need support when fruiting especially herbaceous plants like tomatoes. These need to be staked to support the heavy fruit. Trees need to be pruned and groomed in the early stages to leave a strong branch canopy system that will support the plant upon fruiting. The growing medium especially in water has to have extra means to support plant roots and hold the plant in an upright position.

7. Lighting

Sunlight is need by plants to carry out photosynthesis to grow. It should be just enough as over exposure to heat can wilt the plants. In indoor urban farming and vertical farming, the lighting should be enough, well maintained and provide the appropriate wavelength required for plant growth. Plant biology should also be considered as some plants require more light than others to grow well.

8. Mulching

Mulching involves covering the soil around the plants with dry grass or saw shedding. It’s done to conserve moisture in the soil by keeping it damp enough and preventing evaporation into the atmosphere.  The mulch also acts as organic fertilizer when it decomposes.

9. Spraying

Spraying with pesticides and herbicides to control pests, diseases and parasites. Application should be done periodically not regularly and with care to ensure that correct amounts are applied depending on the

1. Plant stage. Young plants may not be able to withstand heavy concentrations and applications. They can also get scorched by the chemicals and die.
2. Pest and disease growth stage: adult pests and diseases are more resistant than young ones.
3. Time and season: application is not effective in windy and wet rainy weather
4. The number of plants. More plants require more application than fewer ones.

10. Potting and repotting

As potted plants mature, they will require bigger containers to grow due to size increase and more nutrient demands. Roof top or balcony urban farmers should regularly pot or repot their plants for optimum growth.

11. Weeding

This is the removal of unwanted plants in the garden. Especially in soil growing medium, unwanted plants not sown by the farmer sprout in the soil eventually and need to be removed. Depending on the size of the farm this can be done through:

1. Hand weeding or using traditional  gardening equipment like hoes
2. Using farm weeding commercial machinery
3. Using selective herbicides that target the weeds and leave the crops

Weeding helps to:

1. Reduce competition for nutrients and resources for plants with weeds
2. Avoid overcrowding reducing disease and pest spread.
3. Provide plants with enough space to grow and expand. 

12. Sterilization

Modern urban farm equipment and systems need to be sterilized and cleaned periodically or often to maintain them so that they last long and more so to prevent clogging and buildup of pests, diseases and parasites which can attack crops in the next growing season. This helps to curb disease spread.

Sterilization and cleaning can be done manually by hand for smaller systems or flushing and cleaning machinery for larger systems in aquaponics and hydroponics. Acceptable amounts of cleaning chemicals and detergent can be used during the process as not to have adverse effects on the plants.

13. Liming

Liming is done to maintain growing medium PH in acceptable ranges of acidity or alkalinity. Plants thrive well in medium with ideal PH levels besides PH affects:

1. Availability of certain nutrients
2. Water quality
3. Prevalence of certain pests and diseases

Calcium carbonate is applied in recommended levels as per the

1. Soil scientist directions,
2. Growing medium profile
3. Plant growth stage
4. Pest, disease and parasite prevalence.

Liming helps to fix the PH of the growing medium and to control certain pests and diseases.

Conclusion

Plant care and management is a pretty simple but big deal. Equipped with the right urban farm plant management practices, the farmer, gardener, or plant grower can nail crop production right and yield greatly. The above management practices can help you get started or add more to your arsenal so that your plants grow well.