Vertical agriculture has become one of the buzzwords of new modern agriculture. It can allow one acre of crops to be planted in an area of ​​about 300 square feet, which is roughly the same area as a container. It is in a closed environment, usually super-insulated, and used for plant growth. The structures for growing crops for vertical farms can range from modified buildings to modified containers.

Vertical agriculture has become one of the buzzwords of new modern agriculture. It can allow one acre of crops to be planted in an area of ​​about 300 square feet, which is roughly the same area as a container. It is in a closed environment, usually super-insulated, and used for plant growth. The structures for growing crops for vertical farms can range from modified buildings to modified containers.

The “inputs” of normal farms (light, air, water, fertilizer) are now the responsibility of farmers, not Mother Nature, because the farm is out of touch with Mother Nature. Therefore, automation is required. Once the vertical farm is installed, these previously free "inputs" will be regarded as "operating costs."

If you live on a vertical farm, the temperature will remain the same throughout the year, LED lights will be turned on and on at the scheduled time, plants will be stacked on top of each other, fertilizer will come and go, and irrigation may be hydroponic or aeroponic. Or traditional. All these factors will be sensed and controlled by the electronic "brain" that controls the entire system.

But is vertical agriculture the gospel of "feeding the world" as it claims? Is vertical farming economically feasible? Many of these answers are still up in the air, because the concept is so new that what we call "vertical farms" can be so changeable. Vertical agriculture is still in its infancy.

Ten years ago, the vertical farm successfully planted a variety of leafy green vegetables, such as lettuce, spinach and arugula. Just like in a home garden, fruiting crops such as tomatoes, pumpkins and raspberries are more difficult to grow. There have been some discussions in the academic community that the crops grown on vertical farms aimed at "feeding the world" should be higher-value horticultural crops or staple foods like many kinds of wheat, but it requires a turnaround time of 70 to 80 days.

Vertical agriculture has a future, but it remains to be seen how it will be.

Q: I keep receiving emails about preparing asparagus for winter. They recommend cutting the stems 2 inches off the ground, then applying compost and then mulching. Is this what I should do to prepare the plants for winter?

A. That's not what I like to make with asparagus. I found that the 2-inch "stubble" created by cutting the stems on the ground interfered with my preparations for next spring crops. I prefer to use a thick knife or asparagus knife to cut this woody stem growth about an inch below the soil surface around January 1. If we had a cold winter, these stems (called fronds) would freeze and turn yellow. In warm winters, they stay green.

Due to allelopathy, do not reapply the asparagus stems as a mulch on the old asparagus bed or any vegetables. I would rather burn it.

No matter how they appear in winter, these ferns still need to be cut to prepare for next year's production. After cutting, fertilization is required, such as rich compost or ordinary compost, plus mineral fertilizers with high nitrogen content.

Bare soil heats up faster than cold winter soil covered with mulch. Warm soil means earlier harvest of asparagus spears. If you can pay close attention to the emergence of asparagus, then when you first start to see the spears, if you want to produce as early as possible, and not earlier than that, use mulch. Next year's production can start as early as January. If you want to produce later in the spring, cover them immediately after applying compost or fertilizer.

Q: I have a Bearss linden tree. Its small fruits look more like lemons than limes. What can I do to make them bigger instead of yellow but green?

Answer: Your Bearss lime is classified as a Persian lime or sometimes called Tahiti lime. It is different from other types of limes, so make sure you compare the same varieties. The diameter of the fruit is usually between 2 and 2.5 inches. To obtain large fruits, about one-third of the fruits need to be removed in a planting operation called thinning in about April.

It takes three to four months for limes to ripen. Because the fruit is smaller than some other citrus, it is harvested earlier, usually sometime in late summer or autumn. But if it blooms and bears fruit in spring or early summer, the fruit can also be picked later.

When the fruit is over-ripe, it will turn yellow and the inner pulp will slowly dry out. The color of the fruit is usually green: it is dark green when it is young, and turns light green when it is close to harvest. It is important to remove it from the tree before it becomes overripe or yellow.

Do you know the risks involved in growing tender subtropical citrus in Las Vegas? The most suitable climates for citrus cultivation in the United States are in the low-elevation regions of Southern California; the Salt River Valley, near Yuma, Arizona; the lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas; and the lower half of Florida. I am not opposed to growing citrus here, but I am aware of the limitations of growing citrus in this climate. Don't blame the nursery. you buy it.

Question: I wrote a letter about my plants before, and you said you want to move them to a cool place. You also said that if they are healthy, they can go to hotter places. I don't want to move these plants, so can I improve their health without moving them? What about different irrigation strategies?

A. The relationship between plant health and how much heat stress it can withstand is tricky. The most common reasons for poor plant health are its location in the landscape, soil improvement or lack of soil and irrigation. It is very helpful to know where the plant originated. The origin of the plant tells you its best location in the landscape, how much soil improvement is needed, and its irrigation requirements. This prior attention to detail reduces your participation in the landscape.

If the plant originated in a colder climate but can withstand the heat, it works best when planted in a colder part of the landscape. It is best planted on the east side of the landscape so that it can be shaded from the hot afternoon sun.

All plants benefit from a certain amount of structure modifier (think compost) that is added to the soil at planting. The correction amount should vary from 10% to 30% (one-tenth of the shovel is full, and one-third of the shovel is full). Desert plants in the southwest benefit from 10% of soil improvement, but plants from non-desert countries benefit from 30%. Also sprinkle a few handfuls of high-phosphorus fertilizer.

As far as irrigation is concerned, what is the size of the container during planting? Plants purchased in 5-gallon containers should receive 5 or 6 gallons of water each time they are irrigated. Plants grown in 15 gallon containers should receive 15 or 16 gallons of water. When irrigating new plants larger than this, you should use at least half of the container's volume to determine how much water to spray for the first planting. How often this water is used depends on the time of year or season. This is the seasonal variation of the irrigation clock.

Q: Since I have several neglected external plants that need attention, I cleaned up their dead growth and replaced any missing soil with new potting soil. Is it safe to fertilize and water with Miracle Gro and tonics at this time of year?

A. You didn't tell me which plants you have. I don't know which Miracle Gro fertilizer you want to apply. I don't know what "nourishing" means. To be safe, do not apply anything to the soil or plants until the winter temperature rises sometime in February or early March.

More specifically, if the plants are tender in winter (frozen above 25 degrees Fahrenheit), don't use nitrogen fertilizer to stimulate any new growth. Wait till spring comes. Do not apply any high-nitrogen fertilizers (the fertilizer with the highest number on the bag) before the end of February or the beginning of March. Fertilize later in winter, the better. The same is true for the "tonic" you mentioned.

Do not use "potting soil" to fill holes or voids in the soil in the future. Try to match the soil texture you apply to the soil texture surrounding the plant. Potting soil is usually too "fluffy". If you already have this kind of potting soil or cannot do so for some reason, make sure that the potting soil is well mixed with the surrounding soil, and then water thoroughly.

Bob Morris is an expert in gardening and an emeritus professor at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. Visit his blog on xtremehorticulture.blogspot.com. Send questions to Extremehort@aol.com.

The angels will soon flock to the Boulder Dam Credit Union to collect labels for Boulder City’s annual Angel Tree emergency assistance. This activity provides holiday gifts for local children and elderly people in need.

Celia Shortt Goodyear/Boulder City Review

Once the seat of the Humboldt County government with a population of over 8,000, Unionville, Nevada is now a small village south of Interstate 80 and west of Interstate 400 Unionville Road in Pershing County.

For those who cannot make a traditional Thanksgiving meal or have nowhere to go, members of Boulder City Elks Lodge 1682 invite them to sit at the table.

Harry Bernsteincellor/Boulder City Review

Caboose traditionally marked the end of the train, but thanks to donations from the Boy Scouts of America, people have recently found themselves at the beginning of something new.

A Boulder City man known for his family restaurant is showing his unknown artistic aspects in an upcoming show designed to benefit local non-profit organizations.

In the past week, a bag of ant-infested corn flakes put me on high alert-the most immediate problem is that I ate half of the bag before I realized it. When we were out of the city for a few days, the ants got into our cupboard. Come and see, the other two neighbors in this neighborhood had the same unwelcome visitors last month.

Thanks to a partnership with a popular soda company, the famous Boulder City role has reached new heights.

The Dam Short Film Festival in Boulder City created a new way to watch some films made by filmmakers in Nevada.

Copyright © 2019 Las Vegas Review-Journal, Inc. | Privacy Policy

This site is supported by WordPress.com VIP