Course Plan
Step 1 - Start right
Step 2 - Get proper ventilation
Step 3 - Irrigate better
Step 4 - The necessity of dehumidifying
Plants should transpire before giving the first irrigation of the day. If you don’t, root pressure will increase, causing fruit splitting and russeting. (Figure 1)
Wait 3 hours after sunrise to give your first irrigation.
The timing of the last irrigation of the day is crucial to maximizing yields.
If the soil is wet all night long, plants use their energy to grow vines instead of ripening fruits. Moreover, wet nights are perfect for botrytis and sclerotinia rot to thrive.
The last irrigation must be given no later than 4 hours before sunset.
How to know if you stopped early enough
To ensure you don’t irrigate too late, put a finger in the soil before the first irrigation of the day. It needs to be dry.
If it is still wet in the morning, give your last irrigation 30 min earlier.
Verify it a couple of times and adjust until the soil is dry in the morning.
Another indicator
Besides the wetness of the soil in the morning, look at your plants.
You want to see the first cluster of open flowers between 5 and 7 inches from the top. (figure 2)
Adjust the timing of the last irrigation, and you'll see the height of the flowering change within a week.
When the first flowering cluster is around 6 inches from the top, you know you’re good.
