AUTOPOT Media-less Sweet Melon Project Banting, Malaysia  Saturday, 18 July 2009
Not long ago I reported the first commercial crop of Sweet Melons being successfully grown in Autopot System without any growing medium in Malaysia. Recently I visited this farm, Demeter Farms Pty Ltd, to record their incredible achievement in producing top quality Sweet Melons with consistent sweetness of Brix reading of 12 to 15 under tropical conditions.
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		Picture taken August 2008. Sweet Melons without any growing medium. Note the consistency of the crop. Comparing the picture left below, the media less crop is surprisingly performing  much better.
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		That was 3 years ago when Autopot started producing quality fruits in commercial quantities using broken bricks as the growing medium. At the moment, there are more than 200,000 Autopot units under such cultivation in the Malaysia.
Saturday, 18 July 2009 DEMETER FARMS PTY LTD Banting, Malaysia.          Located an hour's drive from the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, this farm has made a remarkable achievement in modern hydroponics. They have succeeded in producing sweet melons of consistent sweetness of brix 12 to 15 without any growing medium in Autopot System.          This 5-acre farm has 14 units of 850 sq. m rain-shelters ("hot-houses") housing 28,000 units of single 12-inch Autopot Hydrotray growing units. Each Autopot unit is planted with one sweet melon plant bearing only one fruit. Another 200 sq. m rain-shelter is dedicated for raising seedlings.          Their current production is 2.5 tons of fruits per week with an average fruit weight of 1.5 kg each tailored to meet consumers fruit size preference. Fruits that are too big or too small are considered off-grades and will not fetch premium prices (4 times higher than soil grown). Each crop cycle is 65 days for Kuning Jati variety. A new crop is planted in the same Autopot units within 7 days (clearing, cleaning & sterilizing) from harvest. There is quite a bit of skill involved in controlling the size of fruits to fall within the preferred weight range of 1.3 to 1.7 kg.          Doing away with the bricks or any growing medium is a real big plus for them. It not only saves money on acquiring the growing medium, it also has tremendous reduction in labour costs involved with the supply and removal or recycling of the growing medium particularly those that are heavy, such as broken bricks.

Click here to view Gravity Fed Commercial Sweet Melon Project in Malaysia.

		Grown in Hydroponic Greenhouses For  Consistent Quallity PREMIUM GOLD Brix Level 12-15 Sweetness Assured Product of Malaysia
Mr. Lee and his team - I am very proud of their performance. More so when you take into consideration of Mr. Lee's and his partner's background - semi-retired entrepreneurs in advertising and  having no prior knowledge whatsoever in farming, were able to transform this "troubled" farm into a very successful Autopot Melon hydroponic business within a year!          Not only that, they discovered how to grow top quality sweet melons without any growing medium, that is, doing away with broken bricks.         Congratulations! What an achievement.    Jim Fah 20.07.2009.
		Each unit of the 850sq.m rain-shelter is being fed by gravity from these two 2,500 litre tanks which sit on a meter high metal stand. Nutrients were pre-mixed into the tank on a weekly basis.      Pic. left - showing the farm layout.
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		Rainwater is directed to the water storage tank (pic. left). The heavy and frequent rainfalls in Malaysia ensures an adequate supply of good quality freshwater year round.
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		Melon seeds sown in Jiffy pellets received capillary watering from below by the Autopot Caplus tables. These seedlings were 7 days old and ready for transplanting.
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		Pic. above shows the black netting 50% shade rolled up after use. It is needed for the first one to two weeks immediately after planting. Pic. left - shows a melon plant just one week after planting.
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		Pic. above - melon plants about 3 weeks from planting. Pic. left - melon plants about 4 to 5 week from planting.
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		Pic. above - Climate control within the rain-shelter is very basic. Two units of the above fans to each 850 sq. M shed for air movement. Pic. left - plants above 5 to 6 weeks from planting with one flower being per plant hand pollinated.
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		Pic. above - melon fruit about 2 weeks from pollination. Pic. left -  Neem extracts used for controlling diseases (mainly powdery mildew) & some pests.
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		Pic. above - Mr. Lee's  routine - checking crop on a daily  basis for early signs of "problems". Pic. left - mature plants with fruits ready for picking in two weeks'  time.
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		Pic. above - sliced melon served chilled. Kuning Jati variety has white flesh, crunchy and excellent flavour. Pic. left - melons were graded and packed in cartons of 8 fruits to a carton.
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What can we learn from this story?         1. You do not need to have any prior experience in farming to be successful with commercial Autopot hydroponic crop production. All you need is passion and dedication.          2. Having agricultural background does not guarantee  success with this form of farming. As in this case, this farm was in "trouble" for not being able to produce melons to required standards despite being managed by an agricultural graduate. Mr. Lee and his partner, without any past experience in farming, turned the farm around within 12 months to full production capacity (2.5 tons per week) producing top quality melons with guaranteed sweetness.         3. Autopot critics have been too quick to rule out Autopot System as a serious commercial hydroponic system. Just because most of the conventional hydroponic growers are not getting their expected results with the Autopot System does not mean the Autopot technology is inferior and not up to standards. What they did not realized is that they were actually testing their skill which was obviously lacking due to their inability to produce to expectation.  The point I would like to make here is that Autopot is a new technology and requires a new protocol to get it to perform to its potential.          4. If you are able to produce good consistent quality melons, you will be able to sell your fruits at a premium. These fruits are enjoying good premium at retail prices of Rm10 (equivalent to Aus $3.50) per kg as compared to Rm2.50 (equivalent to Aus $1.00) per kg. for locally soil grown crop. In fact, the farm is not able to produce enough to satisfy demand by 10 tons per week.
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