Horticultural Tech At Its Best At This Year’s GreenTech Show

Interest in the GreenTech show is stable.

The wide variety of new products and insights unveiled at this year’s GreenTech Amsterdam—held from 11 to 13 June at RAI Amsterdam—highlighted how controlled environment horticulture is continuing to thrive despite its challenges.

As countries around the world work towards achieving net zero carbon emissions, the  iinnovations being developed for this part of the horticulture sector strongly focus on sustainability and energy savings.

Visitors got to try out the Koppert’s new Digital Assistant. The device scooped up GreenTech’s 2024 Concept Award.

LED Improvements

To that end, improvements in LED lighting technologies are helping growers to both reduce their glasshouse’s energy usage and improve their crop’s performance.

Philips Horticulture LED Solutions, for example, promoted its new LED GreenPower toplighting force 2.0 at GreenTech. This model easily replaces old HPS (high-pressure sodium) lamps, as no new wiring is needed. With an efficacy of up to 3.9 µmol/J at 100% light output, the firm claims it is one of the most energy-efficient grow lights available.

Another LED innovator who attended the show was MechaTronix. Its Coolstack range of dynamic grow lights can replace the light level of a 1,000-watt HPS SON-T lamp with just 530 watts of LED grow light energy—a 47 per cent savings.

Mechatronix introduced its Coolstack range of dynamic grow lights.

Researcher Meets Innovator

MechaTronix was one of four companies that raised awareness of its innovative products and research efforts in front of an audience made up of academics/researchers, fellow innovators, and potential investors.

Also presenting at this GreenTech side event—Researcher Meets Innovator—was Skytree, whose machines use direct air capture technology to harness carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air. This CO2 is then heated up and released into a buffer tank, from which growers can withdraw it for use on their crops.

A third company to present is VitalFluid, which creates “lightning in a box” by using air, water, and electricity to create plasma-activated water (PAW). This PAW has temporary disinfecting properties, and trials have demonstrated that it can help plants, including roses, better withstand diseases like mildew.

A fourth innovation developed by Bogaerts Greenhouse Logistics also tackles mildew on crops – in this case, by using UVC light.
Modelling and sharing data

In a separate presentation entitled ‘A Climate Neutral Horticulture’, Prof Dr Jan van den Berg from Maastricht University emphasised that the deployment of these kinds of technologies – namely, those that strengthen plants and reduce the need for inputs and traditional chemical pesticides – will help the horticulture industry achieve net zero by 2040 (the date by which the Dutch government requires horticulture to become climate neutral).

Van den Berg also emphasised the importance of modelling and sharing this data with fellow growers and policymakers to better plan for a more sustainable future.

Helpfully, the new Priva One platform showcased at GreenTech will enable growers to create better and use models that can measure and predict their crop’s performance. Priva One will be particularly handy for those growers who are managing several sites – and producing a variety of crops – at once. This is because they’ll be able to view real-time crop insights and predictions, such as how to deploy energy cost-efficiently for the next 24 hours and how best to strategise crop yield for the year ahead. Handily, Priva One can incorporate the solutions of its partners Blue Radix, IUNU and Source.ag – each is shaping the future of autonomous greenhouse cultivation.

The ISO High Speed Grafter cleverly clips together the rootstock and the scion of tomato plants – checking that each graft is perfect.

Bioncontrols

Moreover, Koppert’s new Digital Assistant—winner of GreenTech’s 2024 Concept Award—will help growers use pesticide alternatives more confidently. When they ask this ChatGBT-style tool a question, it will be able to offer them personalised IPM advice by retrieving data from both the grower’s crop management system (such as climate, pest prevalence, chemical and biological interventions) and Koppert’s expansive IPM database.

The ClimaFlow system is developed in conjunction with the fan company Hinova, which is now part of Svensson.

Growing media

Clearly, popular new technologies are noticeably being adapted to meet the needs of the horticulture industry. For example, Klassman-Deilmann and Maan Biobased Products have created a sustainable substrate named Nygaia, which is made out of biodegradable and biobased raw materials. They’re aiming for growers (in a few years’ time) to be able to use state-of-the-art 3D printing technology to mould their own Nygaia substrates on their nurseries – a move that will further enhance the product’s sustainability credentials.

Automation/robotisation

New machinery that will automate daily tasks continues to be developed for the sector – with the new ISO High Speed Grafter being a prime example. This machine cleverly clips together the rootstock and the scion of tomato plants – checking that each graft is perfectly matched and, ultimately, reducing labour hours and helping to create stronger and more resilient plants. Its capacity is up to 1,000 grafs per hour by a machine manned by two persons. ISO Graft 1100 can be viewed on YouTube.

Technologies such as robotics and 3D printing remind us that the horticulture sector is technologically dynamic. However, as those who participated in GreenTech’s Power Day event discussed, the industry needs more ambassadors to advertise its innovation. This will help attract future talent and ensure that it can sustainably produce enough fresh produce and flowers for the world’s growing population.

Climate screens

As their energy-saving benefits are increasingly realised, climate screens are arguably enjoying their moment as the rising stars of the greenhouse—so much so that growers in the floriculture sector are commonly investing in a second or even a third climate screen. An extra climate screen can, for example, help to make screen opening/gapping a smoother process by preventing cold air from reaching the crop.

Helpfully, manufacturers of climate screens are continuously improving their products – many of which were on display at this year’s
GreenTech.

Ridder, for example, displayed its new RES 20 D FR at the show. The screen marks the expansion of its RES [Ridder Energy Saving] range of screens and offers energy savings of up to 47 per cent.

Visitors to Ridder’s stand were also able to view the company’s Sun Shading (RSS) screens, such as the RSS 16 DFR, which features aluminium strips weaved into the material. Given that it is good at deflecting the cold at night, the RSS 16 DFR is a popular choice amongst growers of ornamental plants.

Meanwhile, Svensson’s Luxous family of energy-saving climate screens remains popular; however, its new ClimaFlow system took centre stage at its GreenTech stand this year. The new system helps create a homogenous climate (and, in turn, a healthy crop) when growers choose to keep their climate screens closed. It sees a VentilationJet draw fresh air from above the closed climate screens that is then distributed horizontally and evenly throughout the crop canopy by the ClimaFlow fan.

Following feedback from growers of crops such as lilies, chrysanthemums and potted plants, a slim version of the VentilationJet – ClimaFlow VentilationJet Slim – has also just been developed to better fit into the trellis area of such crops. It has 65 per cent less width than the original VentilationJet but still delivers the same level of performance.

This article was first published in the July-August 2024 issue of FloraCulture International.