Dyson Farming’s Lincolnshire glasshouse in the U.K. is already home to 1.2 million strawberry plants and produces 1,250 tons year-round. The company’s latest innovation aims to increase that number. Dyson Farming unveiled its new Hybrid Vertical Growing System. In a pioneering trial, the Ferris Wheel-like growing system achieved a remarkable 250% yield increase.
Hybrid Vertical Growing System
Dyson’s system is about 18 feet high and rotates strawberry plants, unlike traditional flat rows. Gently rotating the strawberry trays allows for each plant to get a sufficient amount of sunlight. During winter months, LED lights supply the plants with artificial sunshine. Its vertical arrangement utilizes the full height of the glasshouse and increases the number of plants that can fit on the system.
According to Dyson Farming, the Hybrid Vertical Growing System integrates seamlessly with the glasshouse’s high-tech solutions. The glasshouse uses advanced robots equipped with vision sensing and robotic tools to select and pick the ripest strawberries. It also uses an automated UV light system to prevent mold and ensure crop health, while avoiding pesticides.
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The system is also sustainably powered. Crops are fed into the digester, where microorganisms break them down to produce gas. This gas fuels a generator that produces electricity and channels excess heat into the greenhouse to create ideal growing conditions. According to Dyson Farming, the generator produces enough electricity to power 10,000 homes.
“Sustainable food production, food security, and our environment are vital to the nation’s health and the nation’s economy,” said Sir James Dyson, who founded the Dyson company. “There is a real opportunity for agriculture to drive a revolution in technology and vice versa.”
Over the 12-month trial, the giant vertical system produced 6,000 strawberry plants. Robert Kyle, a Dyson engineer, says the innovation is unlike anything he has ever seen and doesn’t stop at strawberries.
“The trial shows how the yields of delicious, high-quality fruit grown vertically under glass in the right conditions can be significantly increased,” Daniel Cross, from Dyson Farming, added. “This need not only apply to strawberries.”
