Hydroponics
We are currently making progress on setting up a hydroponics* system on a trial basis.
Hydroponics involves growing vegetables in water, rather than in the earth. Chemicals and nutrients are then
carefully added to the water supply.
We are confident that within the near furture most of our 8 acres of glasshouses will be converted into
hydroponics to provide vegetables for our customers who prefer all year round UK grown crops rather than
sourcing from surrounding European countries.
Potential Advantages:
 Increase annual productivity by more than 20%
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Improve crop quality
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Save on water usage
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Reduce pesticide input
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| And also create a more comfortable working environment for harvesting
since employees will be able work with the vegetables at bench height |
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In the nursery close to the main office, there is a site called "Hydroponics system" -
a growing technique that uses water rather than the earth. The seedlings are placed on floating re-usable polystyrene
foam and sit in what is like a large water bath (with added nutrients), allowing the plants to absorb them easily.
This system has great advantages for the business from increasing productivity, water saving, reducing pesticide
use and more importantly as the vegetables are grown at waist height on benches, a much more comforting experience
for the workers during harvesting.
[Click to enlarge] |
[Click to enlarge] |
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"Hydroponic" comes from Latin and means "Working Water". In reality hydroponic is the growing of plants without DIRT.
Today this technology is widely used to grow lush, healthy indoor plants and premium vegetables, fruits and herbs.
The physiological requirements of plants can be met without the use of soil or natural sunlight. Plants are rooted (and thus supported)
in an inert medium and nutrition is provided by water soluble mineral elements.
Years of research has determined which elements and their combinations affect plant growth
(hydroponic formulas).This allowed for greater control over plant nutrition and therefore increased production.
The plants can have an ideal environment since we can determine everything which is normally up to
mother nature. In a complete controlled environmental agriculture system you control: light, temperature, water, CO2, oxygen, pH and nutrients
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