Navigating Economic Uncertainty in the Commercial Greenhouse Business: Turning Challenges into Opportunities in the Greenhouse Industry

Here, we'll discuss the greenhouse essentials to create a sustainable controlled environment greenhouse.

Commercial greenhouse growers, for the most part, have had a good 2021.  With everyone still hesitant to change their tendencies of staying close to home, spring plant sales were good. Potted crops and other floral crops have moved well.

Energy cost increases, supply chain delays, labor shortages and significant jumps in most input and shipping costs are potential issues affecting the industry.

From our perspective as greenhouse manufacturers specializing in greenhouse production and management, at GGS, this series of articles has covered most of the key inputs needed for setting up and preparing for greenhouse lettuce and leafy green production. We have a team of very experienced staff and partners that know how to plan and implement the manufacturing, construction, and management necessary for starting up greenhouse growing plans for a facility.

We want to be able to produce a top quality crop of leafy greens economically, quickly, and repeatedly. In Part One of the Lettuce Blog Series, we discussed the importance of Greenhouse Structures and Crop Management to provide the best possible space for growing. Now, let's consider setting up the inputs to create the best possible growing environment in that greenhouse, focusing on optimizing lettuce growth stages.
 

Leafy Greens and lettuce, among the best greenhouse crops, have been an established greenhouse-grown product for some time, but it has only been in the last short while that its potential as a major greenhouse crop has begun to be realized with expanding growth and opportunity, especially for beginners looking into lettuce in a greenhouse.

We have seen the greenhouse lettuce production take off, mature, and modernize almost overnight thanks to a number of influencing factors, making it a prime example of success for those seeking greenhouse tips for beginners.

Year-round commercial greenhouse operations require reliable structures and heating systems that will ensure optimal growing conditions through the winter season. To accommodate the amount of energy that’s required to operate a greenhouse in the cold season, it’s important that your heating system is running as efficiently as possible. If you don’t, an inefficient heating system in your greenhouse will result in wasted energy that will negatively impact your bottom line. You can maintain and increase efficiency in your greenhouse by following the recommendations below:

The demand for cannabis is increasing exponentially but unfortunately the same cannot be said for the research to accompany that demand. As acceptance increases and more people turn to cannabis to treat a variety of medical symptoms, it seems there is more confusion than ever which is largely due to a lack of resources and government funding to provide quality research that provides information beyond mere anecdotal evidence.

With the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill last year, the United States gave the green light for farmers to begin cultivating hemp by removing it from the list of Schedule I Controlled Substances. Hemp has been grown for hundreds of years all over the world due to its versatility as a textile and for its health benefits, but because of its similarity to marijuana, hemp was made illegal in 1937 under provisions in the Marihuana Tax Act. The 2018 Farm Bill allows hemp to be treated as the agricultural commodity it has always been.