The fruits and vegetables here are planted in the air

"Fog cultivation technology is a new crop cultivation technology that uses the root system to suspend the air and realize the supply of fertilizer, water and gas through atomized irrigation. Mo Guanhua, director of the Liandu Branch of the Ecological Environment Bureau of Lishui City, Zhejiang Province, introduced, "In 2023, the 'Thousand Mu Ecological UAV Fog Farming Demonstration Project Construction Project', which is researched and promoted by this technology, has been successfully selected as the second batch of collaborative benchmarking projects for pollution reduction and carbon reduction in Zhejiang Province." ”

In recent years, Liandu District of Lishui City has taken the cooperation between mountains and seas as an opportunity to actively build an academic research and exchange platform for low-carbon industries, and strive to promote the implementation and flowering of fog cultivation technology, and has achieved phased results.

Fog cultivation technology is applied in Yeosu

Jiushan is a typical feature of Lishui Mountain City, and the problems of limited cultivated land resources and concentration in mountainous areas and low soil fertility level have always restricted the development of green agricultural industry and the transformation of ecological value.

"Fog cultivation technology, making full use of space for off-site cultivation, and replacing pesticides and fertilizers with full-price nutrient solution, effectively solves some bottlenecks. Xu Weizhong, the founder of fog cultivation technology and senior agronomist of Lishui Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, introduced, "This technology has been applied and promoted for 19 years, and can effectively prevent and control greenhouse gas emissions caused by pesticides and fertilizers." ”

It is understood that the fog cultivation technology is free from the inherent meteorology, soil and other environmental restrictions, and builds a soil-free, non-substrate, and water-free growth environment for crops, and has the characteristics of low investment cost, short growth cycle, high management efficiency, and multiple use scenarios.

In the greenhouse of Xiandu Township Fog Farming Agricultural Science and Technology Park, a thick cultivation frame stands up, and the nutrient solution at the top emits fine water droplets through the aerosol device, which is evenly sprayed on the roots of lettuce, tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables only need to rely on the aerosol nutrient solution sprayed from the greenhouse pipes to grow.

The staff regularly came to observe the growth of these fruits and vegetables and check the operation of the nutrient solution circulation system in the pump room of the base. In the science and technology park, rows of fruits and vegetables are growing well. Wave after wave of citizens have come to visit and pick.

"After each atomization, the excess water will flow back to the control center, where it will be re-proportioned and recycled by trace elements, which can achieve high yields in harsh climatic and geographical conditions. Xu Weizhong said, "Compared with traditional planting methods, fog cultivation technology can reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides by 870 tons per 1,000 mu, and reduce water consumption by 90%. ”

At present, Lishui City has built a total of more than 1,000 acres of fog cultivation bases, with an annual output of about 7.5 million kilograms of fruits and vegetables.

Realize the dual benefits of developing ecological economy and reducing carbon emissions

It is understood that mountain orchards are conducive to the cultivation of high-quality fruits, but the slopes of mountain orchards are too large to be difficult to manage, and soil erosion will also be caused by farming. "In order to solve the problems that arise when cultivating mountain orchards, riser aeroponic cultivation technology can be used to give full play to the effect of vertical farming. "This can release more mountainous land with large slopes, without the need for fertilization, weeding and irrigation, reducing resource consumption and ecological damage." ”

Xu Weizhong introduced that the Xiandu Township Fog Farming Agricultural Science and Technology Park, which covers an area of about 30 acres, was a barren mountain that no one cared about many years ago. Since the use of fog cultivation technology, the vertical space has been fully utilized, and the column riser has been used for off-site cultivation to achieve fertilizer, water and gas supply, which can realize the original ecological preservation of the land and the zero damage of the cultivated layer while maximizing the use of space, and the ground ecological preservation rate can reach more than 85%, which not only effectively solves the dilemma of abandonment of mountainous land, but also breaks the confinement of traditional agriculture of "relying on the sky to eat".

On the mountainous land contracted by the fog cultivation base, the colorful fruit trees and flowers on the three-dimensional culture rack come into view. Mo Guanhua pointed to the hillside in front of him and said: "The original barren mountain has now become a 'forest' of vegetables and fruits. According to the annual output of 1,000 mu, 10,000 tons of vegetables and fruits can achieve 10,000 tons of carbon sequestration, release 20,000 tons of oxygen, and increase the unit photosynthetic carbon sequestration capacity by more than 5 times, realizing the dual benefits of developing ecological economy and carbon reduction and emission reduction. ”

Drone integration technology allows fruits and vegetables to "fly".

Behind the increase in production capacity per unit area and the remarkable benefits of pollution reduction and carbon reduction, there is another secret weapon hidden in fog cultivation - drone integration technology.

Above the fog cultivation base, a drone flew through the air. Subsequently, a mature lettuce culture rack was lifted as a whole and slowly transported by drone from the mountain to the assembly line workshop below. Local farmers skillfully pick lettuce and sort it into boxes.

"On the basis of the original mountain fog farming, we also combine drone technology to use cruise drones, foliar fertilizer drones and cargo drones for daily inspection, fertilization, transportation and other links. Jiang Yuemei, head of Lishui Wuchen Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd., said, "For example, cruise drones can check the growth status of cultivated fruits and vegetables, and transmit the on-site situation to the base's digital control center." In this way, barren hillside land without irrigation guarantee can be produced efficiently by simply collecting rainwater. ”

According to reports, through the integration and application of UAV integration technology, a new fog cultivation model of spatial planting and air transportation farming has been created, which can reduce production costs by 50%, labor costs by 70%, and carbon dioxide emissions generated by personnel management have also been greatly reduced.

"In the future, we can also develop picking gardens and build new vegetable supermarkets. Jiang Yuemei said, "Fog cultivation technology will strongly promote the sustainable development of green and low-carbon agriculture in Lishui in the future." ”