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International Development Advisors |
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Building training and research standards for innovation and sustainable outcomes |
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Urbanoponics for the temperate home and kitchen |
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Copyright Nakhlatec 2018® 01 January 2018 |
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The Veggling™
(Produced in partnership with electronic specialists and plastic manufacturers based in Malaysia, Japan and Hong Kong) |
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Made out of white injection-moulded, easy-to-keep-clean, smooth plastic, the veggling can produce a crop of lettuce or other leafy vegetables (like ruccola, basil and leaf rocket) within 3-4 weeks under normal conditions on a work surface in the kitchen. It can also speed up seed germination for use in salads. The Veggling draws low levels of power (5Wh-1).
No natural daylight is required since all of the plants’ photsynthetic requirements are provided by a low energy requiring LED (light emmitting diode) system which has been especially developed and designed for achieving optimal plant growth indoors year-round.
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Ideal for producing your own fresh vegetable foods in the kitchen as part of a more sustainable life style, helping reduce CO2 emissions and environmentally negative food delivery costs |
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10cm |
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This makes the Veggling™ ideal for use in countries within temperate zones where natural daylight of appropriate quality accompanied by equable temperatures is unavailable in many cases for 5-7 months of the year.
The nutrients needed for healthy plant growth are supplied by a solution of regular plant nutrient mixtures similar to those used for fertilising pot plants around the home. The leafy vegetables and herbs are raised from seeds planted in small sponge plugs that fit snuggly into floating rafts. This arrangement allows the plants to take up all of the nutrients required for healthy growth and development. |
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Just the right proportion of LED light sources required for healthy plant growth |
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.....and for germinating leguminous seeds to enhance digestibility and nutritional added-value |
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Ruccola produced within 4 weeks from sowing |
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Fully germinated chickpea seedlings providing a tasty addition to salads |
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A simple urbanoponics set-up consisting of standard 75-cm diameter plastic rain-gutter down-pipes fed with circulating liquid nutrient solutions using the Nutrient Film Technique principle. Lettuce plants had three weeks earlier been raised in moistened coconut dust blocks under the Veggling. The assisted indoor growth of seedlings in the Veggling meant earlier plant production under protected outdoor Swedish conditions have been achievable. Emergence of roots at the bases of the growth tubes into the flow of nutrient solution (shown in lower picture) took 20 days at ambient temperatures around 8—10 deg centigrade. Total time from sowing to first harvest of salad was 35 days even under these relatively cool conditions. |
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The ToatubeTM system developed here uses basic materials available around the home and produces a compact plant structure with a balanced root and shoot development. The roots are guided rapidly into the recycling liquid nutrient medium through the combined use of solid and absorptive materials. |
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Recent contributions made by Professor Mantell at international conferences on production of food in cities and on other aspects of urbanoponics can be found here |