Sheltered farming (SF) and protected cultivation. Benefits and pitfalls of SF. Cropping and production of high value horticultural crops in plastic tunnels, shade houses and greenhouses. Types of structures and their characteristics. Design and site considerations. Greenhouses and their operations. Cladding materials. Climate control. Industrial crop production. New farming systems. New trends in vegetable crop production. Plastic mulching. Plug production. Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) in crop production. MauriGAP standards and certification. GlobalGAP. Principles and techniques hydroponics. Plant nutrition and hydroponics fertilisers. Fertigation. Hydroponics substrates. Hydroponics systems (recirculating and non-recirculating). Cropping and production of selected fruits and vegetables in soilless culture systems: water and substrate culture systems. Hydroponics leachate management. Aquaponics. Deep water culture (DWC) and Nutrient film technique (NFT). Internet of Things (IoT). Sensors. Applications of Smart technologies.
