Basil Production in Alaska?!
While Alaska may not be the top grower-friendly location in the country, there are plenty of plants and vegetables that do thrive that far north. However, basil is not one of them since it requires a decent amount of heat and sunlight. Two Alaska locals have figured out a unique way around this climatic hurdle.
Trevor Kirchhoff, opened up Get Growing, an indoor garden and hydroponics store in February 2013 and shortly after set up demonstration gardens where he experimented with hydroponic and aquaponic systems. “They just got bigger and took up too much of the store,” he said.
As his experimental gardens took on lives of their own, his friend, Greg Smith, took notice and encouraged Kirchhoff to sell the plants he was growing. And that was the beginning of Evergreens Herbs & Produce, a joint business between Kirchhoff and Smith. In March, they sold their first harvest of living basil to a local grocery store. Plants are sold with roots still attached and a little water at the bottom of the package. They last up to two weeks.
And just last month, Kirchhoff doubled his existing 1,000-square-foot shop space and built a six-bed indoor aquaponics garden that contains rows and rows of basil. He says the six beds is just the beginning and has no idea where the business will go.
“We’re indoor gardeners and we want to grow what’s a) useful and b) profitable, so we’ll see what happens in the future,” Kirchhoff said.
Growing specific types of plants can be challenging, no matter the region. But the great thing about hydroponics is that it gives the grower more control over the environment. What plants do you avoid growing because of the climatic challenges? Hey, if these guys can grow basil in Alaska, maybe implementing a hydroponics or aquaponics system could be worth considering!
Texas Farmer Combats Drought with Hydroponics
In a recent study to be published in next month’s issue of the American Meteorological Society’s Journal of Climate, scientists report the current drought will likely continue into years to come. In the Southwest United States specifically, climate model projections suggest an 80-percent risk of a decade-long megadrought. Lead author of the study, Toby Ault with the department of Earth and atmospheric sciences at Cornell University said, “Farming may become very challenging, and it emphasizes just how precious water will become in the region.” One Texas farmer, Marshall Hinsley, decided to conduct an experiment using hydroponics to test out water efficiency. He admits he “abused the system” and “failed to follow the mandatory practices” he’s read regarding hydroponics. Yet, his plants flourished. For example, “In years past, sweet peppers from my raised beds tasted horrible,” he said. “Hydroponics cured this, producing fruit fit for the market.” Best of all, his water usage was cut in half in the hydroponics system, yet the harvest was several times greater than before.
First Living Wall Installed in Chicago Area
Root 66 Garden Shop recently completed the installation of a living wall system that is the first of its kind in the Chicago area and possibly all of Illinois. The 7×50-foot automated outdoor hydroponic wall at Plymouth Place Senior Living retirement community in LaGrange Park has drawn a lot of attention lately. The entire wall waters and feeds itself automatically. “We use a 300-gallon water reserve, able to automatically ‘top-off’ from a rain barrel,” said Shawn Odneal, vice president of sales and operations at Root 66. The technology allows it to bloom all summer with no soil. The living wall features salvia, geraniums and begonias precision grown in Grodan rockwool imported from Europe. “I have not found a plant that cannot grow hydroponically,” said Odneal. “But it takes experience to know what grows well in specific situations and exposures.” To learn more, go to www.root66gardenshop.com.
Integrated Wireless Systems Now Available
Swarm Technologies LLC recently announced that many hydroponics stores have signed up to be authorized SmartBee dealers and offer the complete line of totally integrated wireless sensor technology from SmartBee. Green Acres Hydro, located in Woodland Hills, California, is one of the largest stores to offer SmartBee products. Owner Tay Glass said, “We have many, many customers who have been asking for an integrated wireless system that would allow them to monitor and control their growing environment remotely from their home.” All of the controllers are connected via a wireless mesh network to the growers’ smart mobile device, giving the grower complete control of his production.
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