Controlled Environment Agriculture or CEA refers to the method of indoor agriculture (IA) and vertical farming for food production while regulating specific elements of the environment to eliminate pests and diseases, improve efficiency, become more sustainable, boost yield, or save money. We should understand the environment, such as humidity, carbon dioxide, light, nutrients, temperature, and more. Crops can be cultivated for food, nutritional, or medicinal purposes using data and technology.
Here is the Controlled Environment Agriculture in India:
Growing Environments:
Different words are being used to characterize the same product based on the location, area, or type of grower. Here’s a quick rundown of the many CEA growth environments:
Indoor Growing:
Indoor farming and growing relation to crop cultivation that uses supplementary lighting rather than daylight, such as LED lights, allows for environmental control. Rooms, containers, warehouses, factories, and other transformed indoor spaces not normally used for cultivating crops are examples of controlled environment agriculture.
Greenhouses:
Greenhouses are structure made of glass or plastic that uses sunlight to grow plants. When producing food in greenhouses, factors like temperatures, moisture, and sunlight must be carefully managed, especially during the summer.
Vertical Farming:
Crop production that takes advantage of vertical space is known as vertical farming. Placing plants lengthwise or in high rises is an option. Because it needs less ground to produce, this type of farming is ideal for small locations such as shipping containers or even other high-density areas.
Protected Cropping:
Crops that are produced outside with minimal protection from the elements, such as beneath hoop houses, canopies, or tunnel houses, are referred to as protected cropping. Pest control is more difficult to handle because the crops are exposed to the weather, but the protection might be beneficial in the event of rain, frost, or hail.
Growing Methods:
Crops can be produced in a variety of ways in a crop production environment. In agriculture, there are a few different types of cultivation techniques you can choose:
Hydroponics:
Growing crops without soils while giving water, oxygen, and nutrients are known as hydroponics. Plants can be cultivated in the sand, coconut fiber, oasis cubes, and gravel, among other mediums. It is a wonderful and successful option to grow with water, having potential savings ranging from eighty percent to ninety percent depending on the type of plant and particular setup. Microgreens, tomatoes, strawberries, leafy greens, herbs, medicinal cannabis, and peppers are just a few of the crops that can be cultivated this way.
Aeroponics:
Aeroponics is the method of growing crops without the use of soil and with a little amount of water. The plant’s stems are hung in the air while being treated with a fertilizer and water combination. To guarantee that the nutritional mist is caught by the root systems, the roots are usually kept in an enclosed area. Aeroponics is commonly employed in greenhouses, with sunshine as the primary source of illumination and supplementary lighting as needed. Aeroponics has been identified as the most water-efficient method of cultivation, requiring ninety percent less water than many of the hydroponic systems, that are already known to be good for the environment.
Fogponics:
Fogponics has been regarded as the next stage in the process of aeroponics. Fogponics works on the same basic principle as hydroponics, keeping the root system in the airflow in an enclosed area and giving the plant nutrients and water through drops that are almost mist. For better and faster absorption, the nutrient-rich mist is given to the stems, roots, and leaves.
Aquaponics:
Aquaponics combines hydroponics and aquaculture to create a controlled environment for agriculture. In a healthy environment, fish wastes and microorganisms in the system provide all of the necessary nutrients to the crops. Aquaponics uses fast-growing fish to meet the needs of the plants and maybe done indoors because it does not need soil. After that, the water can be returned to the fish. Every species takes care of the other without the use of chemical fertilizers.
Conclusion:
India is the most populous nation on this planet. Each day, something new appears in India. In addition, industrialization is rapidly rising, putting many arable lands at risk. In India, controlled environment agriculture is the solution to all of these issues. Controlled Environment Agriculture is a unique approach to keeping agricultural techniques alive. In India, polyhouse farming is the most common type of controlled environment agriculture. Poly-house agriculture is a protected method of increasing veggies and fruits output and yield in India.
