استخدامات
2-Profit In Potatoes
If you sow a 30 gram potato seed in one square foot (less than 1/10 of square meter) you’ll likely harvest 2-3 Kg (3 -5 Kg reported by many growers) within 75- 80 days.
Let's assume you get only 2 Kg from each of the 14 plants in a container as in the picture. Ten containers in one stack give us 280 Kg. Allowing 90 days for each cycle of growing we can grow and harvest 4 times per year. One tower of 10 containers produces 1120 Kg.
If hot days are not suitable for growing potatoes you may alternate growing. You may grow potato one time in the winter and another time in the spring. You'd grow different kind of vegetables during the six months of hot days. Other vegetables should be able to bring similar return to that you'd receive from potatoes
For the sake of simplicity we'll assume you grow four crops of potatoes. If you use 400 square meters (4400 Square feet) with one tower in center of every two square meters your total production in one year would be 224 tons.
Assuming a ton of potatoes brings only $500, your return will be $112,000 Per year.
Require Investment
1- 2000 containers x $10 = $20,000
2- 200 tower legs x $50 = $10,000
3- Plastic sheets and miscellaneous = $2000
4- Plastic sheets for winter protection = $10,000
Total onetime cost = $42,000
Repeat cost of potato seeds $2000
Fertilizer, Water, grow bags $2000
Labor assistance $10,000
Total Capital Investment in the first year would be $56,000
Allow investor to receives $10,000 return
Net income in the first year $56,000
Net Income every following year $98,000
For sources of Pictures Above Please Click Gallery
3-Profit In Radish
This Shelf structure and the tray on the side can be used to grow radishes. Build the trays with 5cm sides from wood, metal or plastic walls and fasten wire mesh (window screen) at the bottom. Fill the tray with peat moss, crushed trunk of palm tree or other growing medium such as pea gravel or course sterilized sand. .
Place containers on shelves then fill with nutrient liquid (water+ fertilizer). Fill the trays with growing medium and sow Cherry Bell radish seeds 4 cm apart then place the trays on top of the containers. The liquid in the containers should cover the bottom 1.5 cm of the tray. Alternatively, the grow medium in the tray can be kept wet by using a wick from cotton cloth or paper towel.
The radishes should be ready to harvest 22 days later. This means you can seed and harvest 17 times every year. We'll assume you'll do only 15 times.
This Shelf structure and the tray on the side can be used to grow radishes. Build the trays with 5cm wood, metal or plastic walls and fasten wire mesh (window screen) at the bottom. Fill the tray with peat moss, crushed palm tree trunk or other growing medium such as pea gravel or course sterilized sand.
Place containers on shelves then fill with nutrient liquid (water+ fertilizer). Fill the trays with growing medium and sow Cherry Bell radish seeds 4 cm apart. Hang the trays to the container wall with tray top even with container top. The liquid in the containers should cover the bottom 1.5 cm of the tray bottom. Harvest the radishes 22 days later. This means you can seed and harvest 17 times every year. We'll assume you'll do so only 15 times.
The design on the right is a suggested way to maximize your annual production. The plastic grow boxes are 30 cm x 60 cm x 15 cm high placed on the shelves back to back. The shelves are 40 cm apart with total height of the five shelves160 cm. Your tray size should fit well in the box to allow no nutrient evaporation from the sides. Use wire hooks to hang the tray to the box walls as in the picture of our experiment on the right
With seeds 4 cm apart in the special tray each container will grow 105 radishes. The ten containers on one rack will total 1050 Radishes. If you repeat growing every 24 days this is15 times in the year. Your one rack of 10 shelves will produce 15,750 radishes.
Considering the height is only 160 cm you can double this height and still reach the top shelf with a short ladder. From two stacked racks you’d harvest a total of 31,500 radishes. If you make bunches of 10 radishes you get 3150 units. 50 of these stacks will occupy 100 square meters. Total production would be 157,500 bunches of radishes. If each bunch's whole sale price is half a dollar your gross income would be $78,750 per year
Required Investment
1- 1000 containers x $10 = $10,000
2- 50 Racks x $200 = 10,000
3- 1000 trays x $5 = 5000
4- Plastic covers for winter protection $2000
Total one time investment $27,000
Repeat Cost of seeds. Fertilizer, and labor $10,000
Allowing $10,000 return on the investment
Net income first year would be $41,750
Net income the years after would be $68,750
Please Note:
1- This design uses Krytky hydroponics. Because of the weight it may not be suitable for your roof top. We recommend you consult with a local structural engineer who is familar with local codes and construction norms
2- You need to pay attention for lateral support against wind. You'd decide what support to provide at what height based on the wind velocity in your area. That too would need engineer's advice
4- More Ecnonomical Way To Produce Radishes
