China: Unmanned “plant factory” – production line of vegetables

Plant factories feature accelerated growth of crops, said Wang Sen, a researcher with the Institute of Urban Agriculture.

By You Yi
People’s Daily
April 29, 2024

Excerpt:

As the chief scientist of the Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Yang and his team have been dedicated to the plant factory for nearly 20 years.

The plant factory runs this way. A computer commands robotic arms to plant lettuce seedlings onto plates, and then the plates are sent to designated tiers of the racks, where the seedlings receive lighting and nutrient solutions. When the lettuce plants mature, they are withdrawn from the racks and packed after their roots are cut off. Thanks to intelligent management and assistive robots, the plant factory is completely unattended, from seeding to harvesting, and to packing.

Traditional agriculture often faces reduced yields due to meteorological disasters, pests and plant diseases. It’s always difficult to maintain a sound environment for crops. Greenhouse cultivation is an exploration that allows for the cultivation of off-season vegetables, but it is still susceptible to adverse weather conditions such as high temperatures and snow.

Plant factories have shattered the constraints of natural conditions. As an efficient agricultural system that achieves year-round continuous crop production through precise control in a closed environment, a plant factory can adjust environmental factors such as light, temperature, humidity, and nutrients in real-time according to the specific requirements of different crops. This precise supply enables high-efficiency production.

Additionally, plant factories can induce flowering and promote rapid growth, significantly shortening crops’ growth cycle.

Plant factories feature accelerated growth of crops, said Wang Sen, a researcher with the Institute of Urban Agriculture. This type of facility, which is free from the limitations by land, space, and climate conditions, accelerates the growth of crops through a light-nutrient coupling technique. It can shorten the growth period of crops such as rice, wheat, corn, soybeans, cotton, and rapeseed by more than half, providing effective support for accelerating crop breeding.

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