October 03 2018
Plant Empowerment launched during the CGC in Niagara
During the Canadian Greenhouse Conference, the official North American launch of Plant Empowerment took place.
Together with the current partners of Plant Empowerment; Ludvig Svensson, P.L Light Systems (Hortilux), Koppert Biological Systems, Hoogendoorn, LetsGrow.com and Cultilene, the new book about Plant Empowerment was promoted.
A diverse group of growers, production managers and associates from all sectors of horticulture gathered on Wednesday October 3rd at the Canadian Greenhouse Conference in Niagara Falls for the official North American launch of the brand new book Plant Empowerment.
Author Jan Voogt, representing fellow writers Peter Geelen and Peter van Weel, started off the afternoon with an introductory lecture on the principles of Plant Empowerment. After his interesting sneak preview, Jan Voogt presented the first signed copy of the book to Hilco Tamminga, owner of Truly Green Farms. Hilco was very honored to receive the first copy: “It is an honor to receive the first book. We endorse the principles of Plant Empowerment. This theory helps us to grow better without forgetting the 3 Ps; People, Planet and Profit. With Plant Empowerment we can achieve all 3!”
Plant Empowerment: a plant production strategy that combines the power of physiology and physics. What is the most sustainable way of growing in my greenhouse, to convert the available resources into maximum production and quality? In the book “Plant Empowerment; the basic principles” , methods are explained to give your plants the right energy. Empower your Plants!
Why Plant Empowerment?
Typically, traditional plant production methods are based on a mix of blueprints, best practices, common knowledge of plant physiology, as well as the ‘green fingers’ and ‘emotional perception’ of the growers. This approach has been successful, but also has several limitations:
- Blueprints are valid only under specific (outdoor) climate conditions
- The human sensory perception provides false information about the plant status
- Sensor-based climate control is not directly related to plant growth or plant status
- Most of the physiological knowledge is based on mono-factorial plant research
What is Plant Empowerment?
Growing by Plant Empowerment (GPE) brings the different pieces of experience and knowledge together in an integrated approach. Its starting point is the natural behaviour of plants related to the greenhouse environment described by six balances concerning energy, water, CO2 and assimilates. Monitoring these balances utilizing sensors, combined with crop measurements in a coherent framework based on physical and plant physiological knowledge and insights, provides hard facts required to control and improve the cultivation process.