FAQ
Frequently ask questions.
General Questions
We have a combined experience of more than 50 years in Hydroponics. Our members are all hands on growers, teachers and auditors in Hydroponics.
- Initial site visit and drawing up of plans
- Turnkey set up of Hydroponic Farm
- Training of Staff
- Agronomy Support
- Auditing
- Setting up a Farm Management Review Plan
- Setting up IPM (Integrated Pest Management)
- Training in Greenhouse Hygiene Management
- On Site Food safety training
- Help in attaining Global GAP
- Help with HACCP certifications
This is just a small list amongst many others.
That is decided based upon many factors like size of project, number of crops, time involved in setting up, geographical location and options selected by clients.
Yes initially it is as it’s not like a soil greenhouse system. Here there are many other material inputs to be installed inside the greenhouse and may need more automation for environmental and irrigation control. The costs depend on the level of automation that clients need and also on environment in their area as well as choice of the crop.
Yes and No. Yes it is for those who have passion for horticulture or even plants, are disciplined, devoted, dedicated and are willing to spend long hours if needed at the farm and are willing to sacrifice many other life’s goodies like partying, holidaying, and other such pursuits. It needs a lot of focus and is intensive horticulture. This is a good business for people who are process or procedure oriented.
Farming Queries
No. It is not true. That is a misnomer. Plants grow as per their genetic programming. When they have ideal nutrition as per their stages of growth and the right environment they grow exactly as per this programming. In soil since they do not get the ideal conditions they grow slower than they should be growing. So if you compare a plant growing in soil and in soilless media you will feel that the one in the soilless media is growing faster and it’s only a notional thing.
- No, it’s not that way. It depends from crop to crop. Like Tomato may give 15-20 times more yields whereas some others may be just twice the yields.
Yes. Definitely it is since all plants within the greenhouse are given the same nutrition and subjected to the same environmental conditions. Soil farmers hardly use any micro nutrients that are very important for better plant quality and nutritive value.
The crops are predictable to a large degree and since we use protected and controlled environment to grow crops we have full control on the inputs and the grower is not at the mercy of the elements.
No, the debate goes on all around the world all the time. In hydroponics we use refined salts that cover the macro-micro needs of the plant and we use 100 pc water soluble salts that the plant needs.
Yes and No. Growing these fruits & grains needs phenomenal amount of expenses and is not a viable methodology.
But almost all vegetables, flowers, herbs (culinary and medicinal) can be grown in hydroponics.
Service related Queries
Good question. Because we believe in absolute transparency with our clients. We tell our clients what they can expect of us right from the beginning. We take our client through the pros and cons of doing hydroponics, we speak more about the ground realities that our client will face so that he is not mesmerised into thinking that Hydroponics is a formula and a plug and play system. We explain that Hydroponics is a lot of mental work along with the attenti on to detail it demands. If we don’t know something we say we just don’t know. We never serve bullshit. In fact we are quite a pain for our clients by the way we hound them from the beginning of the project till it reaches its logical conclusion. They sometimes wonder why they chose us. Our services and the way we wish our client to do things are based on international standards and industry best practice.
- Yes, we do but only for clients who consult us for complete Turnkey Hydroponics projects. Our Consultancy includes training of personnel in handling the greenhouse operations and covers many subjects.
Officially we do not render this service, however, we do put our customer on to buyers when we know they are looking for premium produce.
No. We do not suggest to our clients what they must grow because we don’t understand the clients market and what kind of crops have high value in their intended markets.
Yes, our charges are definitely higher. We don’t sell our services on price but on the quality of delivery of the said deliverables. Taking a novice set of people or greenhorns into our fold, training them, mentoring them, tracking their every activity takes a lot of time and effort for us. This Hydroponics is highly process oriented and scientific in approach. We have seen in India acres of so called “Hydroponic Greenhouses” bite the dust for want of the right resource people. We believe that just setting up a greenhouse with hydroponics is not enough. We endeavour to make our clients successful.
Kindly consult us separately to discuss.
Business Questions
Yes you can if you produce Saffron in Hydroponics maybe. Although it must be looked at as a commercial business, Hydroponics takes time to learn and becoming a leader in the market needs a lot of hard work, zeal and enthusiasm. If one wants just to make money alone then he must look at other get-rich-quick schemes.
- No, although we do all we can to guide your team it’s up to them to follow our guidelines and follow the SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) we cannot be responsible for complacency, carelessness and mistakes made by your staff . We also cannot be responsible for the client using any substandard or cheap inputs just to save on costs.
See, any science normally goes out from universities and research institutions. In India, for reasons best known to these Institutions, this technology has not been researched nor encouraged at all. There is neither a single dedicated research laboratory nor a department for soilless cultivation in this country. Therefore the science has not found any commercial or even domestic applications.
Yes, of course we do. Considering the plight of horticultural growers in India today and that the way they continue to cultivate in the traditional way there is very little chance for any greater increase in yields or quality of horticultural produce. Soilless Cultivation is a way of growing pesticide free, nutritious vegetables and herbs and flowers and the quality, consistency and reliability can help growers earn a better remuneration for their produce. There is also a huge export potential.
Good question. 95 percent of the growers using hydroponics technology around the world are people who haven’t ever been in agriculture like the Founder of Envirevo Agritech who is a electrical engineer and is a grower, trainer, auditor, agronomist and turnkey project consultant for commercial projects.
Yes. We do. For seeds we suggest the best vendors and you can buy direct from them. However,
since our expertise is heavy in nutrients and substrates we supply you these vital inputs.
Thank You!
We appreciate your time and trust in our expertise. Our team will review your questions carefully and get back to you shortly
Other Questions
Most Popular Questions.
Not really, it can be brought to small and marginal farmers too. We have even gravity fed drip irrigation systems that need no fossil energy at all and give good yields. Even simple structures can be built using local wood or even bamboo.
One Grower/Farm Manager/Agronomist along with just 2 farm assistants are more than sufficient on a routine basis except when important occasions like seeding, end of crop sanitising, laying of coco peat in troughs, during harvest times and packing activities.
This depends on kind of crop, climate prevailing at site and stage of the crop. As a thumb rule on an average min requirement can be as low as 6000 litres per day to even as high as 16000 litres per day. It is prudent to have a reservoir capacity of at least 50-60000 litres just in case of borewell pump failure etc.
Yes it is for checking the minerals present in raw water as well as for microbiological contamination.
We must only grow one type of crop in one greenhouse. The reason is that two different crops may need two different environments and it’s not possible to have two environments in one greenhouse.
In Hydroponics we stress on the material factors like quality of substrate, water, seeds/planting materials and nutrients. The human factors which can cause problems are over confidence, complacence, carelessness, procrastination, lack of attention to detail, diligence, patience and devotion. This is a technology that is not for people who are not process and procedure oriented. It needs Team players.
