The future of growing melons and strawberries without soil

Fruits hanging in the air, literally. This is the type of sight you will see at the 2nd Beijing Agricultural Festival. Hosted by the Beijing Changping Strawberry Park, the expo and has attracted nearly 700,000 visitors. The event showcases the latest new technology in modern agriculture. Professor Hao Tianmin of the China Agricultural University says, "This is the direction the future of agriculture is going, technology”.

In the strawberry exhibition area, there are more than 70 species and 130,000 strawberry plants. Strawberries can grow “up in the air” as seen in the expo. Using soilless cultivation technology, it has 7 different types, including suspension type, column type, support type, electric lifting hanging type etc. These models have a lot of advantages; they are easy to manage, easy access to lighting, spaces can be fully utilized, improved planting density and increased fruit yields. The expo mostly showcases soilless cultivation technology from Holland.

The greenhouse management of the pavilions at the expo are all fully automated. No need for irrigation and fertilization, as everything is automated. Everything is monitored by the greenhouse automatic weather station including temperature, humidity, CO2 concentration, radiation and other factors.