The ABC of NFT

The ABC of NFT

INTRODUCTION
Dr Cooper devised the Nutrient Film Technique and the existence of NFT cropping is to a great extent due to his persistence and determination in the face of intial scepticism. With the spread of NFT, his experience has become international, ranging from NFT tomato and cucumber cropping under artificial light in Alaska to the production of NFT hybrid Napier grass for feeding the milking herds of India. He has a unique understanding of NFT cropping which is evident in this book.
First published in 1979, The ABC of NFT quickly established itself as the 'hydroponic NFT bible' throughout the world. It can be fairly said that many of the world's commercial NFT growers used this visionary work as their inspiration. Today, Dr Cooper's extraordinary vision has become a reality. In this new edition, Dr Cooper looks at the development of NFT, and challenges conventional hydroponic thinking in a forward that suggests that further research work is needed to explore the use of non-chemical nutrition.
The ABC of NFT is arguably one of the most important documents published in hydroponics literature. For the commercial NFT grower, it is essential reading.

CONTENTS
Part I: THE SYSTEM
- Definition of the nutrient-film technique
- The basic layout of an NFT installation
- Header tank versus direct pumping
- Filtration
- Method of emptying an NFT installation
- The maintenance of solution circulation
- Phytotoxicity testing
- The design of a universal NFT channel
- Support structure for universal NFT channel
- The design of NFT channels for use on a prepared surface
- Flow rate and channel slope
- Water consumption by NFT crops
- Multi-channels
- Methods of supporting young plants
- The use of capillary matting
Part II: OPERATION OF THE SYSTEM
- Automated crop handling
- Small catchment tank versus large trench
- Volume of solution per plant and frequency of renewal
- The measurement of pH
- The adjustment of pH
- The measurement of electrical conductivity
- The adjustment of conductivity
- The formulation of nutrient solutions
- The formulation of stock solutions
- The form of the nitrogen supply
- The ratio of potassium to nitrogen in the nutrient solution
- Deficiency and toxicity limits of nutrients
- The tolerance of NFT crops to nutrient range
- The removal of nutrients in an NFT tomato crop
- Ready-mixed chemicals versus on-site mixing
- The use of organic sources of nutrients for NFT cropping
- The automatic control of pH and cF
- Water quality
- Water quality control
- Desalination of water
- Water from rainfall
- Water from condensation
- The nutrient-film technique as a method of irrigation
- Diurnal control of cF in relation to radiation intensity
- Water purification by NFT
- NFT cropping without the addition of nutrients
- The temperature if the recirculating nutrient solution
- The interaction of solution temperature with night-time air temperature
- Heating the nutrient solution in the catchment tank
- Heating the recirculating solution in the NFT channels
- The effect of warming the nutrient dolution on the design of greenhouse heating systems
- Root exudation and nitrogen fixation
- Root death
- Isolation of the root system from the soil
- Disease occurence in NFT crops
- Disease control
- Regions of high tropical rainfall
Part III: USES OF NFT
- Pot plant production
- Crop production in a totally controlled environment
- The production of hardy nursery stock
- Domestic uses of NFT cropping
- An NFT channel based on capillarity
- Indoor NFT gardening
- NFT bulb production
- Ornamental NFT gardens
- NFT and the pharmaceutical industry
- The influence of NFT cropping on marketing
- The use of NFT cropping in strawberry-type tunnels
- NFT fodder for milk or meat production
- The use of universal NFT channel under difficult conditions
- Rubber production and latext flow
- The control vegetative vigor in poor light
- Single truss tomato production
- Nutrient film layflats
- Safety precautions
- What does a solid rooting medium do?
Appendix I:
Historical view of crop production and water culture and aggregate culture
Appendix II:
The concept of pH
Appendix III:
Second generation NFT for emergent countries
References
SPECIFICATIONS

Size: 275mm x 210mm
Weight: 565 grams

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr Allen Cooper was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1942, seconded to the Indian Army and served with the Royal Bombay Sappers & Miners until 1946. He then read for a B.Sc. in Horticulture at Wye College from 1947-1950, after which he was awarded a post-graduate scholarship to study plant pathology at Reading University from 1950-1953 for his Ph.D. In 1953, Dr Cooper was appointed plant physiologist at the Chesnut Experimental Station, and in 1955 he joined the staff of the Glasshouse Crops Research Institute. In 1978 he became Managing Director of Nurtient Film Technology Ltd., one of the companies of Ariel Industries of Leicester. He retired in 1989 at the age of 65 years.