The Hydroponic Advantage
A controlled system
While the main function of a greenhouse is meant to trap the heat from the sun, growing in a large indoor space has many benefits. And they’re all about CONTROL! It allows Naked Greens to grow sustainably and rely on a multi-faceted integrated pest management (IPM) program to manage all types of common vegetable and flower pests. IPM is a system of using the predator/prey relationships that form naturally to our advantage, like how ladybugs hunt aphids. Not only do Naked Greens require 90% less water than an average field crop[1], but most of our water is provided by our built-in rain catch systems. This allows us to not only provide a product that is clean, but also has the added benefits of controlling temperature, moisture, nutrition, outside contaminants and runoffs.
Year-round production
Hydroponic farming can produce as much as 11x the yields of traditional in-ground greens farming![2] The Canadian winter plays a major role here in Alberta: the growing season is short, especially for tender and leafy greens. At best, you get only 6 months of viable soil, but with the volatility of the weather, it is closer to 4 months. Hydroponic ponds can continuously produce through all 12 months of the year, and with the starting/finishing pond setup at Naked Greens, a new crop can be ready each week. This means that when you buy from us, you will be receiving the freshest produce in ALL THE LAND!
A healthier product
Many companies boast that their product is the healthiest, but when it comes to local vs. imported produce, there actually is a difference! Studies[3] have shown that once greens are removed from their roots, they begin to lose some of their nutrients. With the average cut greens product sometimes being trucked and stored for a week or more, it can mean you are getting less good from your greens than you could be. Naked Greens are picked at the peak of freshness, and are still on their roots when you buy them, meaning all that green goodness is going to you!
A step toward local sustainability
Every year that passes, we need more space to satisfy the growing global food demands. Whereas traditional field crops can only be planted in certain types of soil or can only be planted every second or third year[4], a hydroponic greenhouse allows a variety of crops to be made available year-round on almost any ground. Harsh soils, rocky terrain, or even city rooftops can be converted to efficient growing space, leaving more existing farmland for field-only crops like grain. Beyond that, it means we can leave more lands in their natural state, and still meet the needs of a growing Alberta.
Buy Local
Buying locally produced food creates jobs in Alberta. It’s that simple. Not only does diversifying the types of food grown locally step Alberta toward a self-sustaining food supply, but it also helps us toward economic sustainability.