There are some really intresting stuff going on in this field.
For example the Green Ocean movement that are devoloping the "Seawater Greenhouse" as a potentiall open source technology that can effectivly provide desalinated water, dehumidification, humidifacation, food and irrigation in an integrated system. This may be an option in coastal areas where freshwater is deficit and rains unreliable, thus providing a irrigation system that is independant of the rains.
greenocean.org
Love wikipedia? Check out Akvopedia, this being an open source for information on water managment and sanitation, the link to sustainable agriculture is obvious and it will be intresting to watch this source develop and hopefully win ground. If this hands-on information source could expand and be translated to as many languages as Wikipedia... The organization behind Akvopedia is Akvo and there is a great deal of intresting projects to read up on. All for developing open source technology.
akvo.org/
Check it out!
söndag 31 maj 2009
söndag 24 maj 2009
From the muds of Finland to contemplations on development of open sourcing agriculture
Little of intrest has been going on lately on the project and it has consisted mainly of delays of all kinds, delays in installation, getting the measurement system complete, kalibrating intstruments, and so forth. But it seems to be picking up speed now and tomorrow, Monday, we are hoping to have it running and the next question is about getting a control system working. More on that as it progresses.
My initial thought of this blog was to put down and share my thoughts on the project I work on but also to try to find a relation to what’s going on in larger scale in the global food system. Working on this small greenhouse project in the quiet countryside in northern Europe may not seem to have anything to do with mass starvation in developing countries that have been desperate and war torn, and are subject to misgrowths, trade barriers and dept burden. Could it though? If we can use our technological advances to not only sustain our own farms where we are but also share our success with those struggling to stay afloat.
This is a beautiful idea. If every country had it’s base source of food products coming from local farms, the need to keep successful agro technologies to ourselves would not apply, we would all have our basic needs sustained. A bit of fair sharing just might get us all on a better way to success. What this boils down to is of course the question about open sourcing technology and how this may apply to agriculture and the global food system. Since it often costs a fair bit of investment to bring forward new technology, the inventors file for patent. They may choose to licence their technology to others depending on the scene of competition.
There is nothing saying that open sourcing agro technology will actually work for boosting development in countries where yields cannot feed population. Differences in climate, existing technology, type of crop and access to equipment may call for modifications to fit application. Open Sourcing knowledge in agro-technology may give the opportunity for these people to get a foothold on to development if appropriate technology is applied to the problems. Where does this take us in development of technology? What can it do for development in places where it is implemented?
My initial thought of this blog was to put down and share my thoughts on the project I work on but also to try to find a relation to what’s going on in larger scale in the global food system. Working on this small greenhouse project in the quiet countryside in northern Europe may not seem to have anything to do with mass starvation in developing countries that have been desperate and war torn, and are subject to misgrowths, trade barriers and dept burden. Could it though? If we can use our technological advances to not only sustain our own farms where we are but also share our success with those struggling to stay afloat.
This is a beautiful idea. If every country had it’s base source of food products coming from local farms, the need to keep successful agro technologies to ourselves would not apply, we would all have our basic needs sustained. A bit of fair sharing just might get us all on a better way to success. What this boils down to is of course the question about open sourcing technology and how this may apply to agriculture and the global food system. Since it often costs a fair bit of investment to bring forward new technology, the inventors file for patent. They may choose to licence their technology to others depending on the scene of competition.
There is nothing saying that open sourcing agro technology will actually work for boosting development in countries where yields cannot feed population. Differences in climate, existing technology, type of crop and access to equipment may call for modifications to fit application. Open Sourcing knowledge in agro-technology may give the opportunity for these people to get a foothold on to development if appropriate technology is applied to the problems. Where does this take us in development of technology? What can it do for development in places where it is implemented?
måndag 13 april 2009
Project slowly in process
Not to much is cooking yet due to a delay in the installation and automation of the dehumidifiers (24 of them) in the greenhouse. See a picture of one of them below this post!
Going to Närpes tomorrow to visit a greenhouse which has its main heating from heat pumps based on solar heat store in soil! Keep eyes peeled for postings about this!
Going to Närpes tomorrow to visit a greenhouse which has its main heating from heat pumps based on solar heat store in soil! Keep eyes peeled for postings about this!
Introduction to the ventilation system
The idea of 'Closed greenhouse managment' is to cool and dehumidify the air with this machine. Air is taken in at the center and is sprayed with water that is below dew point of the air inside the greenhouse. This causes the air to cool down and vapour in the air to condensate. Hence the swedish term for the construction kylavfuktare which means cooling dehumidifier.The water used for cooling is carried outside where it's cooled of and re-circulated.
söndag 5 april 2009
TomatoTech
Welcome to TomatoTech! This site will be kept and updated though a 6 month period I am working with this project in greenhouse technology in Vasa, Finland.
In this project we are going to test and reasearch about the oppurtunities of growing in 'Closed Greenhouse Managment'. This means all cooling and dehumidifying is done by machinery inside the greenhouse.
Today, the most common method of ventilation in commercial greenhouses is through opening vents on the roofs and letting moisture out that way. The downside of this system is that CO2 aswell as alot of energy is let out, and bugs and diseases are carried in.
Closing up the greenhouse may not lead to great amounts of energy saved in operation since it also takes energy for mechanicially dehumidifying the air. But when plants photosynthesize they require CO2 and the more they get, more tomatoes are produced! Today, commercial greenhouses spend a fair deal of money on buying CO2, only to let most of it out through vents. So, if we can get higher yields of tomato this may be a way of saving energy per kilo tomato that's grown.
That's the technical aspect of the project. I also find it intresting to discuss the way we farm in a local and global context and would love if those reading would like to discuss this and give their point of view. Are we going for big industrial farms and extensive shipping across the world or can we somehow find the technics and economy to farm locally..?
In this project we are going to test and reasearch about the oppurtunities of growing in 'Closed Greenhouse Managment'. This means all cooling and dehumidifying is done by machinery inside the greenhouse.
Today, the most common method of ventilation in commercial greenhouses is through opening vents on the roofs and letting moisture out that way. The downside of this system is that CO2 aswell as alot of energy is let out, and bugs and diseases are carried in.
Closing up the greenhouse may not lead to great amounts of energy saved in operation since it also takes energy for mechanicially dehumidifying the air. But when plants photosynthesize they require CO2 and the more they get, more tomatoes are produced! Today, commercial greenhouses spend a fair deal of money on buying CO2, only to let most of it out through vents. So, if we can get higher yields of tomato this may be a way of saving energy per kilo tomato that's grown.
That's the technical aspect of the project. I also find it intresting to discuss the way we farm in a local and global context and would love if those reading would like to discuss this and give their point of view. Are we going for big industrial farms and extensive shipping across the world or can we somehow find the technics and economy to farm locally..?
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