Practical ways to cut glasshouse energy use was the topic for a recent GrowSave workshop..
The GrowSave programme, which has run for the past 10 years with AHDB Horticulture levy funding, is continuing until September 2024 under a pre-existing contract, after AHDB Horticulture itself wound up at the end of March. It’s programme of events, on-line training courses and best practice guidance is being run by NFU Energy.
The Kent event was at fruit grower Clock House Farm’s soft fruit production glasshouses, which use water-source heat pumps, but organiser Nathalie Key says it was of interest to growers of all protected edible and ornamental crops. A similar event at a nursery in the north will be held later this year.
Recent technical blogs and articles on the GrowSave website cover solar panels on greenhouses, and heat pumps, while coverage of issues such as solar installations on reservoirs, heat recovery from chilled areas, and alternative sources of CO2 are being prepared.
Online training courses available include air movement in greenhouses, lighting calculators and basic humidity control while the website is also the place to catch up on energy market movements. The website is at www.growsave.co.uk.
