Vertical Farming- Meaning & Advantages
What is Vertical farming?
Vertical farming is farming on vertical surface or say it is the practice of growing crops in vertically stacked layers. It means it is different from traditional, horizontal agriculture with respect of growing practices.
In fact, vertical farming is much more than just stacking plants. It often incorporates controlled-environment agriculture, which aims to optimize plant growth, and soilless farming techniques such as hydroponics, aquaponics, and aeroponics.
It means, this practice requires artificial temperature, light, water, and humidity control.
Some common choices of structures to practice vertical farming systems include buildings, shipping containers, tunnels, and abandoned mine shafts.
The modern concept of vertical farming was proposed in 1999 by Dickson Despommier at Columbia University.
Advantages of Vertical Farming
- The main advantage of this technology is the increased crop yield that comes from smaller unit area of land requirement.
- Second, the increased ability to cultivate a larger variety of crops at once because crops do not share the same plots of land while growing.
- Additionally, crops are resistant to weather disruptions because of their placement indoors, meaning fewer crops are lost to extreme or unexpected weather occurrences.
- Because of its limited land usage, vertical farming is less disruptive to the native plants and animals, leading to further conservation of the local flora and fauna.
Challenges
- Vertical farming technologies face economic challenges with large start-up costs compared to traditional farms.
- Vertical farms also face large energy demands due to the use of supplementary light like LEDs.
- Moreover, if non-renewable energyis used to meet these energy demands, vertical farms could produce more pollution than traditional farms or greenhouses.
See also…
INTENSIVE FARMING-FEATURES, ADVANTAGE & DISADVANTAGE
What is Aquaculture- Methods and Types
HYDROPONICS-TECHNIQUES, WORK PROCESS & ADVANTAGE
Cropping Systems- Meaning Types & Advantages