Establishing Organic

Nursery

ORGANIC AGRICULTURAL CROPS PRODUCTION NC II

TRAINING AND ASSESSMENT CENTER
Surallah National Agricultural School
Surallah, South Cotabato
 Learning Outcomes of Produce Organic
Vegetables

 Establish nursery
 Plant seedlings
 Perform plant care and management
 Perform harvest and post-harvest
activities
 Performance Criteria
1. Establish 1. Seeds are selected in accordance with
nursery the PNS.
2. Seedbeds are prepared in accordance
with planting requirements based on
Vegetable Production manual (VPM).
3. Care and maintenance of seedlings
are done in accordance with enterprise
practice.
4. Potting media are prepared in
accordance with enterprise procedure.
 What is a Nursery?
The nursery is where young plants are raised and
taken care of until they reach the right size for
outplanting. It also provides enough supply when
the need arises which is more economical than
procuring them from commercial sources. The
production of planting materials requires a nursery
to protect them from natural destructive elements
such as typhoons, floods, or droughts. It also
protects the seedlings from roaming animals and
insect pests to ensure their safety and quality.
 Selecting the Site
 Clean and free from contaminants
 Establish buffer zone if necessary
 Put up shade
 Avaialability of clean and unchlorinated water
 Availability of concoctions
 Provision of clean garden tools
 Secured area from stray animals
 Strictly maintain proper record keeping
 Selecting the Site
 Area should be large enough to accommodate
the required seedlings and facilities
 Area could be flat or slightly inclined to allow
sufficient drainage
 Area must be accessible or close to the road
 Area must have good soil condition, i.e. dry
sandy loam or loam, topsoil of about 30 cm,
with 5.5 to 6.5 pH and high quantity of organic
matter
 Site Preparation
 After a suitable nursery site
is selected, remove stones,
rocks, stumps and roots, and
all undesirable vegetation. If
it is sloping, construct bench
terraces following the
contour. Use soil covered
with grasses or dry stones
(riprap) as terrace walls.
Hollow blocks may be used
in exceptional cases.
 Nursery Construction
 Seedbeds/germination beds are one (1) meter
wide with about 0.6 meter pathway between
them.
 Nursery Construction
Germination shed is an enclosed structure for
protection and with windows for adequate ventilation,
and waist-high benches for germination trays.
 Nursery Construction
 Potting shed is an open-sided structure for
mixing, storing of potting materials, and filling
of plastic bags and other containers.
 Seed Selection
 The use of genetically engineered seeds,
transgenic plants or plant materials is not
allowed.
 Seeds and plant materials shall be from
certified organic producer, if available.
 When certified organic seed and plant
materials are not available, chemically
untreated conventional materials may be used.
 Seedbed Preparation
 Clear the area
 Prepare the beds using indigenous materials
 Prepare the growth media
 Sterilize beds
 Introduce beneficial microorganisms
 Provide clean and unchlorinated water
 Stricly record the activities
 Potting Media Preparation
 Collect growth media components (ordinary
garden soil, coco coir dust or carbonized rice
hull, vermicompost)
 Mix using the ratio of 1:1:1
 Introduce beneficial microorganisms
 Potting Media Preparation
 Put the mix media in the seedling tray, seedling
box, “arorong” and other growth media
containers.
 Sow the seeds.
 Provide necessary moisture.
 Care and Maintenance
of Seedlings
Watering

Most vegetables require consistent moisture to

produce well. The exact amount to apply
depends on soil type, weather conditions, and
what kind of vegetables you're growing. One
general rule is to apply enough water to
moisten the root zone.
 Care and Maintenance
of Seedlings
Hardening

One week before you're ready to transplant vegetable

seedlings into the garden, start hardening them
(acclimating them to outdoor conditions before planting
them in the garden). Find an outdoor location that's
protected from wind and receives morning sun. Place the
seedlings in this location for a few hours the first day,
then bring them indoors. Gradually extend the amount of
time they're left outdoors so that by the end of the week
you can leave them outdoors overnight.