Urban farmers have been able to grow more food in less space and time using fewer resources. Latest technology in urban farming has made it easier to produce fresh local food, which is healthy for you.

Nothing excites me more than innovations in urban farming that help us to grow healthy food faster. Recently, I have found some products designed to help people grow their own food that are sheer genius. It seems like the green revolution of today is gaining popularity and it’s easier than ever to grow food in small spaces with urban farming techniques.

People today need healthy food more than anything as they are becoming more and more aware of what they are putting into their bodies. There are also questions about how and where food was grown and what methods were being used. Questions regarding environmental impacts of agriculture, chemical use and toxicity of food are also being raised. This encouraged a number of urban farmers to go into agriculture, growing food in organic methods, and serving the local area.

It used to be that people who liked gardening but didn’t have a garden at home grew plants in containers as a hobby. It filled their spare time and made their homes look better. But today there are people living in the cities who grow food at home for profit.

Devices for urban farming

There have been numerous research projects done in agricultural sectors where scientists came up with new techniques and gadgets to grow food indoors and in small places. It’s amazing to see how the urban farmers are using all the available spaces in the city. There are rooftop farms on high rise buildings and tower gardens where hundreds of pounds of food are being grown for the local communities or CSA members. Some of the methods used by urban farmers are really innovative. Some of them are discussed below.

Aeroponic Tower Garden Systems

Aeroponic Tower Garden is a Tower Garden® technology developed by Future Growing® LLC. This plastic made vertical tower is attractive and portable. It can be placed anywhere indoors, on rooftops in your backyard, or in your living room. It can also be used for small scale farms in commercial growing operations.

The basic structure

Basically a tower garden has a base unit, which has a reservoir, fitted with pumps. Then modular stackable growing pots are placed on top of this base. It circulates nutrient rich liquid throughout the system with pump.

Tower garden’s size and growing capacity will vary depending on the number of cylindrical or circular growing modules added. Tower gardens from Future Growing can hold up to 11 pots, with a total height of up to 8 foot, and it can grow up to 44 plants per tower.

The Benefits

According to Future Growing it can produce fresh local food in half the time as conventional growing, with 90% less water and in 90% less space.

Nutrition

Future Growing® LLC uses a specially formulated liquid to feed your plants growing in tower. The liquid is called Power-Gro ionic mineral nutrient solution. A small, low wattage submersible pump circulates nutrient rich liquid throughout the tower. It draws the nutrient solution up through the center of each pot all the way to the top.

Manufacturers and Pricing

The major company building the vertical aeroponic garden systems is Future Growing® LLC. Juice Plus+ has also designed an Aquaponic Tower Garden® that uses a similar type of design. These towers are currently priced at $525 one time payment or 12 payments of $45 a month.

(Click Here to learn more about Aquaponic Tower Garden®, pricing and payment options )

A Soil Based Garden Tower Project

A small company in Indiana developed a soil based vertical garden system called the Garden Tower this is also a plastic made vertical tower that can grow 50 plants in just 4 square foot of area. It uses a stacking system for variable tower heights. Plants are grown in pockets around the core unit, which is a cylindrical column. Then seeds, water and compost is added to the system and it works automatically with very little supervision. The Garden Tower 2 will sell for $350 to $400.

Tower Gardens® at The Green Bronx Machine

Video Credit: Future Growing LLC

Growing your own food has never been so easy. Now with the latest innovation, you can grow food almost without paying much attention to your plants. These devices almost work on their own, with great end results. You are able to grow a variety of plants, including fresh herbs, vegetables with less time, energy and money.

To learn more on growing plants, or if you would like to learn about aquaponic system, call us at 303-495-3705 or Click Here to book a meeting with us. We’d love to hear from you, so please add your comments in the comment box below or visit our Facebook page.

Source: Nourish the Planet

Related articles and resources:

• Urban Farming for a Great Green Future
• Grow Vegetables, Fruits & Herbs | Aeroponic Tower Garden Vertical Garden
• 5 Reasons Why You Should Grow Your Own Food
• Small Farming Benefits – Easily Grow Food & Feed Your Family
• Urban farming in your backyard? There’s a vertical aeroponic garden for that : TreeHugger
• 5 Very Useful Container Gardening Tips
• Urban Rooftop Gardening in High Rise Buildings
• Future Growing® LLC
• The New Garden Tower
• Aquaponic Tower Garden