This presentation is about the production of quality planting material of fruit crops by Hi-tech methods. Hi-tech nursery needs special attention for plant material production in polyhouse, greenhouse, insect proof house. Layout and establishment of hi-tech nursery are discussed in this presentation.

1. LAYOUT AND ESTABLISHMENT
OF HI-TECH NURSERIES: PROS
AND CONS
Prof. Parshant Bakshi
Head, Fruit Science,
SKUAST-J
KARYASHALA on
Hi-Tech Nursery techniques for
Production of Elite clones & New
Varieties of Temperate Fruits at SKUAST-K
on 24-07-23

2. Speaker Introduction
✉ parshantskuastj@gmail.com
📞 +91 - 9419101601
2
https://www.krishisandesh.com
• Prof. Parshant Bakshi, Head, Fruit Science and Head, Centre for
Organic and Natural Farming, SKUAST-J, J&K is having more than 20
years of experience in research, teaching & extension activities.
• Dr. Bakshi is having more than 120 publications in national and
international journals of repute.
• He has been adjudged for best poster and oral presentation at various
national and International platforms.
• He has guided 14 research students (08 M.Sc. and 06 Ph.D.) as
chairman and 60 as co-chairman and authored 12 books.
• He handled 03 externally funded project as P.I. and 14 as Co-P.I. He
is the life member of 12 societies of Horticulture and is the fellow of
Hi-Tech Horticultural Society.
• He has been nominated by Ministry of Agriculture and represented
India in FAO, workshop at Beijing, China 2018 and also attended
training in Volcani Centre, Israel in 2012
• He has RG score of 23.59; planted 12,000+ fruit plants under Save
Horticulture mission and awarded best video by MANAGE in 1st Agri
Film Fest in 2022

3. Introduction
Challenges
Layout of nursery
Components of Hi-tech Nursery
Hi Tech propagation
Care and Management
Legal authorization
Advantages
Disadvantages
Content

4. Introduction
• Nursery is defined as an area where plants are raised
for eventual planting out.
• The planting materials for horticulture crops are raised
from seeds or vegetative parts. Most of the perennials
are propagated through vegetative means while
annuals through seeds.
• Hi-tech horticulture can be defined as the precision
techniques used for production of crops by efficient
use of inputs at proper time and quantity for
improving the yield and quality of the produce as well
as to get quality plant material.

5. Why Hi-Tech Nursery ?
High Tech Nurseries
over come the
limitations like
Low germination
percentage
Poor
adaptation of
advanced crop
management
Poor control over
climatic factors
Longer
duration

6. Challenges in Hi-Tech Nursery
• High pressure on land due to urbanization.
• Reduced gross cropped area.
• Poor adaptation of advanced crop management practices.
• Shortage of labour force.
• Lack of training facilities
• Uncertain market prospects and income.

7. Establishment of Hi-tech Nursery
Feasibility Study and Business Planning
Site Selection and Infrastructure Development
Greenhouse Construction and Layout Planning
Installation of Climate Control Systems
Implementation of Automation and Control Systems
Technology Integration
Staffing and Training
Crop Selection and Production Planning
Monitoring and Evaluation

8. Selection of site
Site is the basic requirement of a nursery
Site is a place upon which one can produce
seedlings of plants
Nearness to Road
Suitable climate: Neither shady nor exposed area
Sufficient sunlight
Good irrigation facilities
Good soil condition
Good transport facility

9. Layout of Hi-Tech Nursery

10. Layout of Hi-tech Nursery
Greenhouse
Design and
Infrastructure
Automation
and Control
Systems
Technology
Integration

11. Physical Resources for Nursery
Land
Irrigation Facilities
Labour
Electricity
Road and transport
Mother plant
 Mother bed
 Propagation structure
 Hedge and compound
 Hardening of Nursery Plants
 Store and Office

12. Hi-Tech nursery components
Protected cultivation
Glass house
Poly house
Shade net house
Propagation unit
Hydroponics
Aeroponics
Vertical farming

13. Protected Cultivation
• Growing crops in a controlled environment in
which the temperature light relative humidity etc.
can be controlled.
• Types: greenhouse, glass house, shade net, fully
automated greenhouse
• Advantage:
• The crops can be protected from adverse weather
condition and can be cultivated in off season with
use of suitable varieties.
• Hybrid seed and seedling can be produced for high
value horticultural crops.

14. Propagation
 Raising of seedling
 Runner production in Strawberry
 Budding
 Grafting
Production
Uses of protected structure in Fruit crops
Protection
 Frost
 Heat
 Rain and hail
 Pest and diseases

15. Uses of protected structure
Planting material Propagation Strawberry

16. Quality planting material
Mango Aonla
Guava

17. Green House
In the Greenhouse, the crops are
grown in a controlled environment
under naturally ventilated wooden, or
bamboo, framed structures.
It is covered with UV-stabilized plastic
sheets.

18. Shade Net Houses
• In the shade net houses, the grafts and
hardening of various crops are achieved.
• Normally, the seedlings require a
specific temperature to grow but in
shade nets, they can be grown in any
climatic conditions.

19. Walk-in tunnel
• It is built with an iron frame
and covered with UV film.
• Almost every type of crop can
be grown in the shade nets.
Also, they protect the crop
from high winds.

20. Plastic Tunnels
• These tunnels are almost similar to
mini-greenhouses. The carbon dioxide
is trapped in the tunnel to promote the
photosynthetic activity of crops.
• Moreover, these tunnels protect the
plants from climatic extremes such as
hail, snow, and wind.
a. Plastic low Tunnel
b. Plastic high Tunnel

21. Hi-Tech Poly House
• This protected farming structure is the costly and
latest technology in all the structures.
• All the operations used in it like irrigation,
temperature controls, raising and lowering plastic
walls, etc. are all operated by computers.
• The use of such structures is highly valued to grow
crops.

22. Hydroponics
•It is a way of developing plants without soil and
instead of the use of mineral nutrient solutions in water
solvent.
•The idea at the back of hydroponics is to dispose of
the obstacles that exist among the roots, water,
vitamins and oxygen for correct growth.
•The vitamins utilized in hydroponic system can come
from different sources like from fish excrement, duck
manure or bought chemical fertilizers.
•Plants usually grown hydroponically consist of
Strawberry.

23. Aeroponics
•Developing plants in an air or mist
surroundings without the usage of soil.
•Unlike hydroponics, which makes use of a
liquid nutrient solution as a developing
medium and important minerals to sustain
plant growth.
•Water and nutrient are sprayed on plants in
form of mist instead of the use of any root
feeding med

24. Vertical farming
Vertical farming is the preparation of growing crop in
vertical layers with the plants grown in temperature,
moisture and nutrition managed indoor
environments also can assure enhancements in yield
while on the equal time restricting environmental
externalities.
Advantages
• Better use of space.
• Minimize water usage.
• Environmentally friendly.

25. Hi-tech nursery raising techniques
•Covering with polythene sheets (ensure early germination, thatching can be swapped with
transparent/white polythene sheet (150 micron thickness).
•Poly tunnels for normal weather (The nursery beds are covered with pre fabricated tunnels of size
3m long, 1.5m wide and central height of 1.0m)
•Sunken nursery for weather extremes (Prepare a trench of any length, 1.2m wide and 50cm deep.
Prepare a raised bed of 5-10 cm height at the bottom of the trench. The soil should not be imported
from outside the trench. Albeit, FYM (25kg) and inorganic fertilizer mixture (100g) may be added as
recommended earlier. Precautions must be observed in applying FYM. It may be treated with
fungicide/Trichoderma (1kg/100kg dung) at least 15 days prior to bed preparation.
•Naturally ventilated polyhouse (For commercial nursery production, naturally ventilated polyhouses
can be used. In a polyhouse of 100 m2 area, 40,000 seedlings can be raised in one batch and we can
have a total of five such batches per year.

26. Hi-tech Propagation
• In recent time, micropropagation has come out as one of the important tool for
easy and quick production of large quantity of plant material and has been used
in crops like banana, strawberry, citrus etc.
• There is a high scope in our country for micropropagation of crops specially in
clonal apple rootstock, banana and strawberry.
• Protray growing of seedlings (guava, citrus etc.) can be practiced where the
large number of high quantity and quality of seedling can be grown in less area
and time without much labour required.
• Growing of grafted seedlings and propagation of cutting can be done by use of
poly bags.

27. Container for propagation and growing young
plants
• Earthen pots
• Seed pan and seed boxes
• Polythene bags
• Plastic pots

28. Potting mixture
Different greenhouse production systems are:
Soil system/ Ground culture/ Geoponics: It involves growing of crops directly in
the natural soil under the greenhouse cover.
Soil-Less Culture: Growing of crops in the media other than soil is called soil-less
culture which include peat with perlite, vermiculite, sawdust, rock wool, rice
hulls, pine bark, peanut hulls, or other mixtures.
Cocopeat Rice hull Perlite Vermiculite

29. Care and Management of nursery plants
Handling of plants
Shading
Thinning
Watering
Weeding
 Hardening of seedlings
 Staking
 De-shooting
 Disbudding
 Pinching
 Pruning

30. Nutrient Management in Hi-tech Horticulture
• Judicious application of irrigation and nutrients to horticultural plants
consequently use of drip irrigation has led to excessive yields and higher
quality in fruits like banana, grape, papaya, etc.
• For efficient nutrient ability site particular application of recommended
dose of fertilizers.
• To conserve time, water and increase the nutrient performance
fertigation with drip irrigation additionally been followed which ends into
30-50% water saving.

31. Legal Authorizations for Starting Nursery Business
• Requires a business license
• Permits regarding establishment of green houses must be taken before erection of a green house,
storage building or warehouse for storing materials
• Equipment required in a nursery require a property hazard insurance, workmen's compensation if
you have paid employees
• Permissions are also required from the local authorities for availing electricity, water and other
facilities.

32. Investigation of Potential Market for Plant
Nursery
•Production of sufficient quantities of good quality
material in order to satisfy the customer needs is
essential.
•Advertising is costly but effective in horticulture nursery
business.

33. Pros/ Advantages
Enhanced Crop Quality and Yield
Efficient Resource Utilization
Big savings in key inputs such as water, fertilizers and pesticides
Better quality growth and uniformity
Less environment-dependent can be cultivated round the year
Reduced labour requirement

34. Cons/ Disadvantages
High cost of initial infrastructure
Non availability of skilled human
Require close supervision and monitoring
Few pest and soil borne pathogen difficult to manage
Repair and maintenance are major hurdles
Require assured marketing

35. Assurance of Quality seeds/nursery/ other planting material suitable
for protected structures
 Regular uninterrupted power and water supply to maintain optimal
growing conditions in protected structures.
 Self help group with scientific support for multiplication of quality
planting material, Large-scale motivation and training of educated
unemployed youths in the field of protected cultivation.
 Government should support needs to be extended for self fabrication
module of temporary low cost structures.
Measures to boost Hi-tech nurseries

36. Boom Irrigation: Demonstration in Poly house for Seed Germination
https://youtu.be/QSOIVas8xJU

37. https://youtu.be/g7nqxCwBALE

38. Quality planting material is seed of
best quality fruit

39. 1. Water-based farming system is known as ------------------------------
2. -----------------------------------is the preparation of growing crop in vertical layers with the plants
grown
3. Micropropagation Technology park is located at----------------------
4. Mist chamber is mostly used for---------------------------
5. Common growing media for sowing of seed in portray-------------
6. Application of fertilizers through irrigation water is known as-------------
7. -------------is a place where seedling, sapling or any other planting material are raised.
8. The growth of plant tissues in artificial media is known as-------------
9. 3 P’s of protected structures for fruit crops are -------------, ------------, ------------
Questions
Prof. PARSHANT BAKSHI, HEAD, Division of Fruit Science, SKUAST-Jammu, Chatha

40. 1. Hydroponics
2. Vertical farming
3. TERI, New Delhi
4. Rooting of leaf cutting
5. Coco Peat
6. Fertigation
7. Nursery
8. Plant tissue culture
9. Propagation, Production, Protection
Answers
Prof. PARSHANT BAKSHI, HEAD, Division of Fruit Science, SKUAST-Jammu, Chatha

41. •During lockdown period, videos of Web lecture, Competitive videos, High density planting and Fruit
production are of great help to students and talk show and demonstration to fruit growers and field
functionaries.
• The total views of my YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/parshant bakshi) are 3,05,000
which showed an increase of viewed videos by 65 per cent from March, 2020 to July 2023
•This is the top watched video
on YouTube with 29,152 views
You Tube

42. www.krishisandesh.com

43. Hanging Strawberry in Israel