GRASS FODDER BY HYDROPONICS
IN 8 DAYS.
Grass fodder is used as an animal feed and can be produced in great numbers within 8 days from seed to grass for all livestock & even quicker with Co2 added. Various varieties of grass fodder include, but are not limited to, barley, oat grass, lucerne grass, rye grass or whatever grass one wishes to grow in ones country. Growing grass fodder hydroponically is now becoming popular in drought prone areas but growing hydroponic grass fodder can require a large investment in a commercial hydroponic greenhouse. In places the west the cost to setup are too high and the buyer is at the mercy of expensive materials, goods and service costs, franchises or grain that can climb within 1 yearcosts. This makes grass growing not very feasible apart from where arid conditions prvail. For commercial setups we import all our materials from overseas but have a ready supply to build in Algeria, we make our own plastic tanks and we are offering you the farmer an alternative in countries reknown for drought conditions. Australia & USA have been making this grass fodder for quite a number of years now and the USA sell systems on the back of trucks or in shipping containers & in India they use large glassed front coke fridges to sprout so theres many ways one can start the seed raising if they want to without buying expensive system setups. In Spain they cultivate grass on their side, & in Canada we have seen simple but effective grass fodder growing so many different ways to grow grass fodder. Grass can be grown using the conveyor belt method, the sliding method of starting one end & finishing at the other end by pushing the trays out as in a shipping container.
We have a system to help the small hobby farmer in arid countries but we specialize in large commercial grass fodder production on a big scale mainly in the middle east.
Feeding out in winter means hay, silage for cows. This is mainly roughage with limited goodness eg protein but with grass fodder the stock have access all year round.
BUILDING YOUR HYDROPONIC GREENHOUSE: the home handyman way
Hydroponics has been around since babylon days & is the art of growing plants and grass without soil---very easy. In soil the plants are supported & in water you need a medium for the plant to grow to stop it moving and for support which can be eg perlite, vermeculite, stones, water perferated material, cellulose which is bio degradable & edible etc just to support the plant. Why its easier is you can feed the plant nutrients & you know what the plant needs & requires to automated systems but with soil you can't tell & you add, amend etc year in and year out costs increase. But remember its only viable where drought is prevalent. Given the right conditions the plants utilize what they need for optimal growth. Theres no soil, no soil pests and worries about mother nature destoying your plants, no stress as when water dries out, no issues with non-porous soil, acidic soils killing your plants, bad weather or bad water contaminating the plants. Water loss is due mainly to evaporation but because hydroponics is a closed system the plants have water as they need and nutrients. Easy it may sound but starting small is a good idea.
As we have mentioned with global warming, more land based disasters, water shortages, ground water contamination from agriculture & industries, pestidices & herbicides on the increase ---now hydroponically growing vegetables for human consumption and grasses for animal feed are our thing for our future especially in arid countries like the Middle East where hydroponics was born in the "gardens of Babylon". In fact it is our intention that hydroponics is the future of agriculture feed in the Middle East like Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran etc - & especially in regions of the world where soil conditions are poor; temperatures are extreme, and water supplies are limited. We are presently working on a commercial system for Algeria and Libya but our grass growing & from there we will include such places as Saudi Arabia and all the middle east and African countries
For the home gardener growing its easy and its an art as theres so many systems good and bad in the world today. There are a vast array of hydroponic techniques, with many saying they have the right formula but done right and you see the results, then its all worth it. But its a matter of starting small to see if you actually like the idea, if it suits your needs, time and pocket.
Automated air, temperature and water
Small kits are available for the home gardener but on a major scale its not practical as the costs are far too exepensive for what youre getting.
When buying a Grass Garden kit in the USA make sure they have this safety standard in the USA. An added benefit to the consumer is that kits e comply with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA, 2008). All of our kits are made in the USA.
COSTINGS:
The installation of the building and complete system in western countries can cost $50,000 - 150,000 ouch!!! for just a small setup but remember you need Council approval in the West and the costs for most are not cheap at all and some will try to lock you in to buy shares, franchises etc so then you have to buy off them even when prices fluctuate. In Australia same deal and in the USA you can do cheaper due to the availablility of materials online & they sell complete systems to the home handyman. On top of this is the cost of the concrete base, the green house material costs and the costs if you use alternative power means like solar power and windmill for your pumping but remember electricity is a must & the others are good for backup etc. The ongoing running costs are the cost of the nutrients, electricity, gas, tray replacement and seed - but also remember these costs will vary with the number of cattle, sheep, goats, horses being fed. The biggest cost factor will be the barley and oat seeds which will vary every year but you will need storage if you are buying in for the year at harvest time which is practical and you can buy from stock agents by ordering. Other major costs are that of quality nutrients, PH levels maintained, electricity to run the cooling and watering system. Anheuser-Busch provide good-quality barley seed at a good price in the USA & so do we. However on the good side once you have your system & water supply worked out the ongoing expense is minimal apart from the seed buying & the time per day spent is minimal.
All in all its a fun way in arid places to have such a system as backup but in NZ its far too expensive due to the costs and services to erect and of course GST, tax etc that is now burdening these western countries. We can build cheaper and our systems are ideal in arid conditions like deserts hence the Sahara.
COST SAVINGS:
The installation of the building and complete system complete and all systems go this is what one can now save. The system itself only needs one person to run it so the cost to maintain labour is minimal. If one has an adequate water supply then you have no worries with water your main source. Closer to agents and where you live is an added plus as your delivery costs are reduced. Alternate power sources again drop the cost but whatever you think regarding the costs etc you make it up on the fact you have feed all year round-- your stock are healthy and easy to care for and you do not have the problems faced with grazing animals on arid country. No worries with pests, disease, mother nature & droughts but read on.
[ Construction ] [ Seeds & Trays ] [ Nutrients ] [ Fungus & Important points ]
