“Light-use efficiency essential in regions with limited and variable natural light”
Source: HD.com
James Fleet, Bloemteknik, on the new Grüne Fee Eesti project “Light-use efficiency essential in regions with limited and variable natural light” Designed specifically for challenging Northern European conditions, the new Grüne Fee Eesti greenhouse integrates multiple climate, energy, and automation subsystems into a single, coordinated control loop. © Bloemteknik Estonian cucumber producer Grüne Fee Eesti AS is expanding its facility with a new 8,200 m² high-tech Venlo greenhouse, scheduled for completion by the end of this year.
Greenhouse builder Topgreen is the main contractor for the project, and it's a remarkable one: the total design functions as a closed-loop energy-climate-crop optimisation platform, designed to reduce energy intensity per kilogram of yield while maintaining year-round production continuity under high-latitude conditions, such as extended periods of sub-zero external temperatures and low solar irradiance. "In winter, outdoor DLI can regularly fall below 2–5 mol/m²/day, creating a strong dependence on supplemental lighting to maintain crop balance, fruit set, and production continuity," James explains.
"Unlike conventional LED fixtures, our light engines can be tilted (0–45°), allowing growers to distribute light much more precisely throughout the crop. In cucumbers, this is particularly important because yield is highly sensitive to cumulative light, which affects fruit set, abortion rates, and cycle speed." The Top Crop fixtures are combined with GreenFingers™, Bloemteknik's autonomous lighting control system, allowing the fixtures to automatically adjust light intensity and spectrum in real time as greenhouse conditions change throughout the day.
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.
