"A new and very simple way of growing without substrate." This is how Perry van Adrichem describes the cultivation method of Horti-Technology’s new cultivation system. Thanks to a capillary cloth in the profile, each plant gets the same amount of nutrition and oxygen.
Beans, tomatoes, lettuce, chrysanthemums, lisianthus, strawberries: they can all be grown on water, without substrate. This is evident from the trials that Horti-Technology performed this year. Perry van Adrichem: "It is not like the substrate-free cultivation we currently know. In existing systems water comes in at the beginning of the gutter and seeps through to the back. The further back, the less energy there is in the water. This leads to an irregular growth."
Horti-Technology’s new system prevents this. Van Adrichem: "The system uses two channels in a profile: one with fresh water and one for the plants. A capillary medium ensures that the water from the fresh water channel draws toward the plant channel. As a result, the composition of the water in the whole profile remains equal." According to Van Adrichem the system’s strength is its simplicity. "You don’t have to drip per plant so you don’t need a high-pressure system or drippers. There is also no risk of clogging: it runs just past."
The system explained schematically
Easy start-up local4local
This year, the profile has been extensively tested and developed for different applications. Adrichem sees opportunities for the simple system in the US. "We have contacts in America. California is the garden of the US, but they have major water problems. We're also seeing a large growth of small nurseries with local companies. We have developed a starter kit that services that group." The starter kit consists of a set of 7x6 meter profile. "You fill your water tank every few weeks and that’s about all you have to do."
Home Cultivation
The other target audience operates on an even smaller scale: home growers. For these Moeskas (www.moeskas.nl) was developed. The system has a cultivation area of 1x1m2 and is available in various versions. With Moeskas consumers, as well as restaurants and retailers, can start a simple cultivation themselves. "It is a system for simple, substrate-free cultivation anywhere in the world. We think there is a great need."
More information?
