THE GUIDE / growing
Polytunnel ventilation and watering: plan a clear care routine (UK)
Record observations, connect decisions to crop and equipment instructions, and keep watering and ventilation actions separate.
A care routine should let another person trace why an action is listed and what to do when the next check raises a question. Keep four steps visible: observation, decision, action and feedback. The observation says what someone saw or measured. The decision connects that evidence to guidance for the actual crop or equipment. The action follows that guidance. Feedback records what was done and what needs checking next.
Research status: this is an unapproved planning draft. It does not prescribe ventilation thresholds, watering quantities, crop-care intervals or equipment settings. Primary crop and maker sources have not been retrieved or verified.
Record the place and system first
Give each growing area a stable label, such as Bed A, Container C2 or Tray T1. Use the same names on the map, labels and handover sheet. Record the crop and exact variety, its growing method and the source that applies. Keep unknown details visible rather than transferring instructions from a different context.
List the installed openings, irrigation parts, monitor or controller by their actual product names and locations. Keep the corresponding instructions accessible. Reference the relevant instruction on the care sheet. If the system or its instructions are unclear, mark that as a question before asking a helper to operate it.
Separate observation from judgement
An observation is a record of what was noticed at a particular place and time. Include the date, time, location and relevant context. If you take a measurement, include its unit, the instrument and where it was positioned. Keep a photograph reference if it helps someone compare the same area later. Do not label an observation with a cause or treatment unless a source or qualified person supports that interpretation.
A decision answers, “What does the applicable guidance say this observation means for this plant or system?” Record the source title, exact variety or equipment model it covers, its date or revision, and any qualifications. If the source does not address the situation, the decision is still open. A familiar number or a note copied from another crop is not a substitute for the missing link.
Preserve the conditions and cautions attached to any source-backed action; a copied number without its context is an incomplete instruction. Feedback records what was done, by whom and when, with the observation or question to carry to the next visit.
A traceable handover example, with gaps left open
In this fictional paperwork example, Container C2 has a variety label and two dated photographs showing that its leaves look different. The proposed handover says “check C2, water if needed and adjust the opening”. It supplies neither crop guidance for the watering decision nor model instructions for the opening.
That wording leaves two decisions for the helper to invent. Replace it with separate entries for the container and the opening. Mark both actions unresolved, name the person who will obtain the applicable guidance, and agree where the helper should report observations. The completed routine needs supported actions and a way to seek further advice when the guidance does not answer a question. Merely recording a gap does not meet the plants’ ongoing care needs.
Build the routine as a small record
Give watering and ventilation separate entries. A decision about one should not silently trigger an action for the other. For each check, keep these fields together:
| Field | What belongs there |
|---|---|
| When and where | Visit time and the bed, container, opening or named item |
| Observation | What was seen or measured, with unit and context if relevant |
| Source and scope | Exact crop/variety or product model, document title, revision/date and relevant instruction |
| Decision | What the source supports, or “unresolved” and the question to answer |
| Action and owner | The source-backed action, who is responsible and when it was done |
| Feedback | Resulting observation, report, photo reference or next check |
A blank source field remains an unresolved action. An observation-only task should say what to report and to whom; it should not leave an implied care decision for the helper.
Plan an absence and keep one current version
Walk through the sheet as if you were the person arriving without prior knowledge. Can they identify the right bed or container? Find the instructions? Tell an observation from an action? Know which decisions remain open and whom to contact? Replace broad wording such as “check the tunnel” with the named location and the observation requested. Update the dated copy when instructions change and mark the old version superseded.
An automatic timer or irrigation control is part of the equipment record, not proof that a routine will cover an absence. Check the exact product instructions and the crop source before describing its role or an operating setting. Keep any unresolved item with a named person and a due date rather than leaving it as an implied task for the helper.
The printable planning worksheet pack includes a dated growing diary for observations, actions and follow-up. For planning the spaces and unknown dates behind a seasonal routine, use the bed calendar. The calendar is a blank record: check overlaps yourself and keep assumed dates marked as assumptions.