What is a Vertical Farm or Farmscrapers and its Advantages

Although agriculture is eminently classic, today we can enjoy things like this. An article that we are delighted to write, as it combines agriculture with design and architecture. It’s about vertical farms . If you do not know what it is about, let us tell you what it is about. It looks like a futuristic thing right? Today, at Gardenprue , we tell you about a new way to grow your favorite plants.

GROWING PLANTS IN BUILDINGS AND SKYSCRAPERS

We get on a spaceship that takes us to the year 2,150. We land and see how many buildings have trees and plants, as if it were a forest formed through vertical levels. Well no, it is not a novel by  HG Wells , if not a concept developed more than 10 years ago (oddly enough), in 1999.

In Spanish we can know it as a vertical farm , but they are also known as farmscrapers.  

 

WHAT IS A VERTICAL FARM OR  FARMSCRAPERS?

As part of their name indicates, vertical farms or  farmscrapers  are buildings designed to function as a large greenhouse. For this, innovative irrigation and nutrition technologies such as hydroponics would be used . 

Not everything ends in agriculture, because there are also designs in which gardening and growing plants can be combined with livestock. That is, imagine the first 10 floors of a skyscraper dedicated to a bird farm, and the rest of the plants to the cultivation of vegetables and greens. Interesting right?

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF GROWING VERTICALLY?

Well, as you can see, population density increases exponentially throughout the world, so there will come a time when there is a lack of land to cultivate and all resources and technology must be used to increase production ( this is where  the agricultural engineers ). This vertical growing model, although it may sound a bit fictitious, is a real and interesting alternative to this problem.

Also, the acreage may not be a problem in many countries, but… what about Japan and other islands?

The problem or drawbacks that we are going to find, above all, is the energy expenditure involved in maintaining a giant greenhouse with good lighting and temperature, such as a skyscraper or a large building. To date, many solutions to the problem are being studied, such as the use of solar energy or wind energy, but the project still has deficiencies.

OK, BUT DO VERTICAL FARMS REALLY EXIST?

Sure. We would not be counting all this if in the end we did not come to fruition. We can see an example of farmscrapers , since we have just touched on the subject of the Japanese country, in Tokyo. Specifically in the Pasona offices , where 20% of the building space in these vertical farms has been dedicated to growing vegetables . Use a hydroponic system , which we remember does not mean that there is no type of substrate. That would be pure hydroponics.

There are also other types of vertical farms that we can find in horizontal farms (what a pun intended), the use of which is given to these plants is to feed animals.

WE GO EVEN FURTHER, THE  SEAWATER VERTICAL FARM

If so far the vertical farm system has seemed as interesting to you as we do, there are still more novelties, the Seawater Vertical Farm . It is a new concept of vertical farm with the particularity that it uses sea water and not drinking water, making it a totally modern and efficient system . However, some problems related mainly to the amount of energy required for the system to work are still being studied. 

There is another variant that is also very efficient and inaugurated in Europe, specifically in England, where the plants are exposed to their minimum dose of light , so that energy costs are considerably saved.

To finish, we leave you a video related to urban farms in Tokyo . As always, pioneers in solving space problems using technology.

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