How to choose the right technology for intensive greenhouse farming
Source: HD.com
Sensors, monitoring tools, software, automation, and AI are now more widely available to growers. "The first question should be: What is currently limiting the farm's yield or profitability?" If water availability is the top priority, accurate monitoring of irrigation and drainage can improve returns.
I've always believed that effective technology should make greenhouse management easier, even if the underlying technology is sophisticated." This is one aspect Stroot values in his work with INTA: their approach isn't simply to add more equipment, sensors, and screens to a greenhouse, but to integrate functions so managing the farm as a whole becomes easier for the grower. Growers often use separate systems for climate control, irrigation, crop-monitoring sensors, energy management, and data analysis, creating complex, fragmented setups.
In contrast, a system that integrates several previously separate processes and offers the grower greater control with less manual effort can provide substantial value, even if that benefit can't be summed up in a single KPI." Technology should simplify greenhouse management "Ultimately, I believe the best technological investment is not necessarily the most advanced. Data points as technological solutions for optimizing fruit production lines Related Articles Transforming greenhouse production through AI and precision irrigation How to choose the right technology for intensive greenhouse farming Machine learning automates settings on blueberry harvesters Growers in Australia raise concerns over seasonal worker visa changes Fresh vegetable prices rise 6.3% in the U.S.
Why this matters: For operators, this is a water-management story. The useful signal is that direct substrate measurements can help cut drain loss materially without giving up yield or fruit quality, which is exactly the kind of controllable efficiency gain a facility can build on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does substrate sensing matter in free-drain strawberry systems?
Because drain percentage tells a grower what already happened, while substrate moisture and EC data show root-zone conditions directly. That makes it easier to cut water loss without guessing.
What is the operator takeaway from this trial?
If the thresholds are understood well enough, growers can reduce drain water materially while protecting yield and fruit quality, which makes sensing an operational tool instead of a reporting tool.
