The desert greenhouse is great innovation to turn the waste sandy land into arable land to plant vegetables, fruits, increase the area of arable and output of agricultural products with high quality.
According to scientific inspection and verification, many desert areas possess good natural conditions which can be developed and utilized to build greenhouses. Due to the scarce rainfall, wheat, straw, twigs and other organic materials are valuable building materials in desert areas. Especially sand is an inexhaustible source for construction and cultivation substrate.
Using these cheap resources to construct greenhouses, planting can not only save costs for construction and operation, but also achieve organic cultivation. Thus, building greenhouses for vegetable production in the desert has very good social, economic and ecological benefits.
Few organic substances are required for the growth of crop on sandy land. Grooves of a certain size and depth are dug, which can hold tree bark, sawdust, poultry manure or oil cake mixed evenly with sandy soil. When fully fermented, this mixture creates a vegetative environment in which seedlings can be planted.
The temperature in the desert greenhouse is usually between 15 centigrade degrees and 25 centigrade degrees for most kinds of planted fruits and vegetables, while the humus balance is usually not less than 3%.
There are an increasing number of waste desert lands in the world, reducing the availability of agricultural land and agricultural yields. Thus, prices for agricultural products go up and the quality of life for low-income people decreases. Furthermore, people in many developing countries are forced to leave their previous habitats because of the threat of desertification.
This solution will help overcome the challenge of desertification by turning the waste desert land into productive agricultural land. People will be able to make a better living from the so called “useless desert land” because of this innovative and profitable application.
The costs for a typical desert sunlight greenhouses are 45,000 Yuan (or 7,150 USD), which includes building materials and construction worker salary. If build in a larger number, the costs for greenhouses can be further reduced because of economies of scale.
These expenses are affordable in the proposed sales market, particularly when the investment return period is considered. Typically, a desert green house investor can recover his investment within 2 years.
Stage of Development: produced in serial production
In one of our typical greenhouses in China, eggplants, peppers, watermelons, tomatoes and other crops flourish. Data shows that the quality and yield of these plants are far better and higher than that of products from regular ground greenhouses. The annual amount of real harvest from each of these desert greenhouses is at least 20,000 Chinese Yuan (or about 3,200 USD)
Organization: The Desert Green House Project
Contact: Gang Chen
Used by: China
Water & Waste Water