JPH02222625A - Hydroponic culturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To increase effective culturing area with simple method by forming culturing tank installing going and returning ways with dividing wall, transferring a fix planting panel of fixed shape from starting end in the going way to end of the panel in the returning way and harvesting. CONSTITUTION:A culturing tank having going ways and returning ways is formed with dividing walls 4 and fix planting panels 3 are installed from ends S of the going ways in turn, then transferred along the dividing walls, thus transferred to returning way side at connecting parts U of the going and returning ways and transferred to harvesting ends H in the returning ways.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a hydroponic cultivation method that increases the effective cultivation area and reduces production costs in submerged hydroponic cultivation.

(Conventional technology and its problems) In contrast to the cultivation of agricultural products using soil, planting panels (planted at regular intervals) in which plants are planted in a cultivation tank (nutrient solution tank) that stores the nutrients required for plant growth and an aqueous solution containing them. There is a hydroponic cultivation method in which a tool (a tool to hold the plant by inserting it into the hole) is placed in a hole that has been drilled into the fruit, allowing the plant to absorb nutrients in the tank, allowing it to grow and be harvested. This is usually called submerged hydroponic cultivation.

Hydroponic cultivation, including submerged hydroponic cultivation, currently occupies only about 0.7% of the area of cultivation facilities in greenhouse horticulture using glass chambers, greenhouses, etc., and its spread is slow. One of the hindrances is that production costs are generally higher than other cultivation methods.

Factors contributing to the high production costs include the fact that the capital investment is large compared to other cultivation methods, and therefore the equipment depreciation costs are large, as well as the running costs associated with hydroponic cultivation (material costs such as fertilizers and covering materials, equipment maintenance costs, etc.) is considered to be large.

There are various possible solutions to this cost problem, but one of them is to increase the yield of crops per greenhouse area. to make it as large as possible, to practice dense planting cultivation (that is, a cultivation method that increases the number of cultivated plants per unit cultivation area as much as possible by always growing plants in a dense planting state according to their growth stage); A combination of these is possible.

Currently, the effective cultivation area per continuous room area in submerged hydroponic cultivation, which is the most commonly practiced method, is approximately 50 to 60%.
It becomes. As schematically shown in FIG. 13, planting panels 3.3 with plants planted thereon are fixed on the liquid surface of each cultivation tank 2A arranged at predetermined intervals in a continuous chamber l, The process from growing to harvesting is carried out in the same state. In this case, space is required on all four sides of each cultivation tank for transporting, setting, removing, and harvesting the planting panels, which ultimately reduces the effective cultivation area. This results in a wide compression.

On the other hand, there is a system in which a cart is attached to the cultivation tank so that it can move in parallel (JP-A-62-269630, JP-A-62-269630;
9631). If this is used, it would be possible to leave one cultivation tank and gather the others to one side, and it would be possible to increase the number of cultivation tanks arranged, but it would be possible to increase the number of cultivation tanks arranged. There are cost issues such as installing the
In other words, the problem is that you have to leave space only around the tank you are working on, and put the rest of it away.

Regarding dense cultivation, there is a trough method that moves on a screw shaft, although it is not a flooded type.

The main body is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 55-24000, and uses a tubular screw as a moving device for a trough in which plants are planted. However, in this method, the trough is in the form of a gutter, and the nutrient solution for growing plants is supplied to each of these many gutter troughs. The piping, control equipment, etc. are extremely complex. This method also supports the tubular screw with a complex device using rollers in the middle. Because the trough itself moves directly on top of the tubular screw,
It seems necessary to devise ways to prevent the trough from collapsing.

Furthermore, this technique is only intended for dense cultivation, and has no intention whatsoever of increasing the effective cultivation area.

The present invention aims to reduce production costs by increasing the effective cultivation area and, if necessary, increasing the number of cultivated plants in conventional submerged hydroponic cultivation using a simple method. The challenge is to

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention is a method for increasing the effective cultivation area in submerged hydroponic cultivation, in which a communicating outward path and return path are formed by a partition wall provided in the central longitudinal direction. Cultivation tanks (nutrient solution tanks) are arranged in such a way that they are in contact with each other in the longitudinal direction, and for each of these cultivation tanks, fixed-shaped planting panels with plants planted in them are sequentially laid from the outgoing end of the tank, and the panels are placed on the partition wall. In addition, the present invention is capable of cultivating a larger number of cultivated plants in submerged hydroponic culture. In order to increase the amount of water used for cultivation, cultivation tanks (nutrient solution tanks) in which an outgoing path and a returning path are formed by a partition wall provided in the central longitudinal direction are arranged so as to touch each other in the longitudinal direction. From the outgoing end of the tank,
Expandable planting panels planted with plants are laid one after another in a contracted state, moved along the partition wall, moved to the return route side at the outbound and return route communication sections, and moved toward the end of the outbound route. No expansion/contraction at appropriate points in the middle,
It was decided to harvest at the terminal end.

(Function) In the present invention, a desired number of cultivation tanks are arranged in contact with each other along the longitudinal direction, and the cultivation tanks are arranged in such a manner that they are in contact with each other along the longitudinal direction, and are connected to each other by means of a partition wall provided in the central longitudinal direction. Panels are laid and moved sequentially from the starting ends of various outgoing routes, and are connected at the end of the outgoing route. Transfer to the starting point of the return trip and harvest at the end of the return trip.

In addition, in either case, when using a stretchable structure as a planting panel, the plants start out as seedlings at the beginning of the outward journey, gradually grow, and are in a state suitable for harvesting when they reach the end of the return journey. It is natural to adjust the moving speed of the planting panel.

Note that in this specification, a "standard planting panel" is in contrast to an "expandable planting panel", and means a planting panel whose shape is fixed in advance and therefore does not expand or contract.

(Example 1) The case of using a fixed-form planting panel will be explained.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of this example, FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a cultivation tank used in this example, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a regular planting panel used in this example.

Cultivation tanks 2 filled with nutrient solution are arranged in close contact with each other in a greenhouse 1 (Fig. 1). Each tank is made of styrofoam reinforced with lightweight steel, and is 26 m long and 3.9 m wide. It consists of a main body with a depth of 0.2 m (height with legs 1 m) and a partition wall 4 made of styrofoam with a length of just under 25 m arranged in the longitudinal center of the main body. On the other hand, a 100 C11 x 190 cra foamed polystyrene plate as shown in the third figure was prepared as a planting panel. Note that 5 is a stock hole provided in this panel 3.

On the other hand, for comparison, cultivation tanks 2A having dimensions as shown in FIG. 13 (completely partitioned at the longitudinal center) were arranged at intervals as shown in the figure. Note that this dimension is commonly found in current submerged hydroponic cultivation.

In the comparative example (Fig, 14) and this example (Fig, 1),
Since the dimensions of the tanks are different, the dimensions of the panels will also be different.

Next, a large number of regular planting panels used in the comparative example and the present example were prepared, seedlings of plants (in this example, medicinal onions, honeysuckle, and salad greens were used) were planted in each. The panels were fixedly placed adjacent to each other on the nutrient solution surface of the tank without any gaps, and kept as they were until they were grown and harvested.

In contrast, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
The planting panels 3 are sequentially set from the starting end S on the outgoing path side of the cultivation tank 2, which has an outgoing path and a returning path that are communicated by a partition wall 4, and the panels are pushed along the partition wall 4 once the growing plants are placed thereon. At the end of the forward/return communication portion U where there is no partition wall, the grains are moved to the return path side, moved toward the harvesting end H, which is the end of the return path, and are harvested in a fully ripe state. In this case, as can be seen from FIG. 4, as the previous panels are successively pushed toward the H end and removed from the tank for harvesting, new panels are set from the S end.

The planting panel in this example can be moved by floating it on the water surface of the nutrient solution tank or by attaching wheels, and it is driven by workers located on the S (H) side and the U side, respectively. This may be done by human power or by appropriate mechanical power. Further, the planting panels placed densely on the nutrient solution water channel are driven by applying driving force in a direction to push them from one end to the other end or in a direction to pull them closer to the front side from the end W. Note that when drawing the panels toward the front from one end, the panels must be connected to each other. When they are connected, in this embodiment, they are first separated at the U end, moved to the return side, and then reconnected to the preceding panel that is already on the return side. Of course.

Next, changes in effective cultivation area in the comparative example and the present example will be described. In the comparative example, as mentioned above, there is a work space between adjacent cultivation tanks, but in this example, there is no work space.

When this was investigated on a per building/1000nr basis, the effective cultivation area was 582 nf in the comparative example, but increased to 790 nf in this example, which is a 36% increase compared to the comparative example. Ta.

In addition, the number of cultivated plants has increased due to the increase in the effective cultivation area.
This has increased due to an increase in the number of planting panels used, and Table 1 shows the results obtained when this was actually applied to green onions, honey beetles, and salad greens.

Table 1 (l I[/1000rrr Atari t19 strain 1e0 (Example 2) In this example, the outgoing path side of the cultivation tank where the outgoing path and the incoming path are formed by a partition wall provided in the central longitudinal direction. The planting panels are sequentially laid from the starting end S, brought to the return side harvesting end H, and harvested in the same manner as in Example 1, and therefore, the result of increasing the effective cultivation area is also obtained in the same way. However, in this example, by using a stretchable planting panel, it was intended to further increase the number of cultivated plants through dense planting.

If the planting panel is of a fixed type that cannot be expanded or contracted, as shown in Figure 3, if you do not want to take the trouble of thinning out or replanting the plants during their growth, you should set the distance between the plants from the beginning at the time of harvest. , there is no other choice but to set the dimensions to accommodate the grown plants. However, since seedlings are generally much smaller than grown plants, it is clear that the distance between the plants will be unnecessarily large. In this case, if you use an expandable panel and expand it according to the growth of the plants, you can plant a much larger number of plants from the seedling stage (!plant cultivation), which will reduce the number of plants cultivated overall. It will increase.

As for where to stretch the panel, it is preferable to do it in several stages depending on the growth of the plant, but the simplest method is to stretch the panel when it moves from its outward journey to its return journey. The present example was carried out in this manner.

Now, examples of planting panels that were suitable for use in this example are shown: those using a type 2 slide frame (Figs. 5 to 10) and those using stays (Figs. 11 and 12).

FIG. 5 shows a frame 9 consisting of mouth-shaped frames 7 and 8 made of synthetic resin that slide against each other (to match the cultivation tank used in Example 1,
Height: 190 ell, Width: 100 (at time of harvest) ~180C1
(formed at maximum elongation), made of styrofoam reinforced with plastic plates etc., connected to each other by a light-shielding film 10 (which is flexible and foldable (see Figure 8.9)). prismatic plant support 11.
11... is a perspective view of a planting panel manufactured by storing. When this planting panel is in a contracted state, as shown in FIG. 8, the light-shielding film IO is folded and the respective supports 11, 11, . When 8 is slid in the direction of widening, the folded light-shielding film IO is stretched, and the spaces between the supports become wider (FIG. 9).

Figure 11.12 shows using a stay instead of a slide frame,
This shows a type that can be expanded by removing this, and retracted by attaching a stay.

Fig. 11 shows a stay holder 15 attached to the ends of the plant supports (slightly longer than the other supports) at both ends of the plant supports 11, 11, etc., which are connected to each other by a light-shielding film IO. A plan view (A) and a side view (0) are shown in which the stay 16 is installed, the light-shielding film is folded, and the whole is in a contracted state. Figure 12 shows the stay 16 removed and the whole expanded. A top view (inside view) and a side view (represented) are shown.

The procedure is the same for both sliding frame type planting panels and static planting panels, so we will describe the case where salad greens are grown using the former.

When salad greens grow and the time is suitable for harvesting, the distance between the plants D (Fig. 10) must be about 170 m, so the supports are connected with a light-shielding film 10 of a width corresponding to that distance, and the entire plant is It was placed in the frame 9 and shrunk so that the distance d between adjacent supports was approximately 40 mm (Fig. 8).
(This is because 11 is said to be sufficient.)

Panels with salad green seedlings 13.13... planted in the seed holes 12.12 of each support 11.11... are laid one after another from the starting end S on the outbound side of the cultivation tank 2 while maintaining the contracted state. and moved it along the partition wall 4. The speed of movement was adjusted so that the seedlings reached the forward and backward communication portions U when they had completed the first half of their growth process. When the panel reached U and moved to the return side, the frame 7.8 was slid to extend the space between the plant supports to a maximum. While this stretched panel was traveling on the return route, the salad greens had completed the second half of their growth process, and when they reached the harvest end H, they had completely matured. 14 indicates the grown plant.

The flow of the panel during this period is shown in FIG. Figure 10 (a) shows the first panel in the stretched state! (b) shows the state of all other subsequent panels when end H is reached; (b) shows that the first panel is only half taken out of the bath, so that it is forward. A state in which a blank space for one contracted panel has been created in the return path communication section U, (c) is a state in which a contracted panel has been moved from the forward path side to the blank space, and (d) is a state in which the first panel is Completely removed; the panel moved to the outbound side is stretched and the outbound start end S is blank, C-h) is a new panel with seedlings planted (in the contracted state). ) indicates the state in which it is laid, and this process will be repeated.

Table 2 shows the number of cultivated plants (per 1 building/1000 rrf) obtained for green onion, Japanese radish, and salad greens, respectively.

(Comparative examples are the same as those in Example 1) Table 2 Note that as shown in FIG. The transfer will be made easier. Needless to say, when moving the panel from the outbound side to the return side at the communicating part U, after cutting the connection and moving it to the return side,
It will be reconnected to the preceding panel.

Expansion of the panel and movement at the communicating portion U are as described in Example 1 above.
In 2, it was done manually, but it is also possible to do it mechanically.

(Effect) In the present invention, the planting panels are laid one after another from the starting end S on the outgoing side in the cultivation tank, are moved to the inward side at the outgoing and incoming path communication parts, and are harvested at the terminal end (harvesting end) H. . Since the outbound trip and the return trip are back to back, the starting end of the outbound trip and the harvesting end of the return trip are located adjacent to each other on the same side. Therefore, the work of laying panels and the work of harvesting are performed in the same place, and the effective cultivation area increases accordingly.

Furthermore, since each cultivation tank can be placed adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction, the space between the tanks, which was required in conventional technology, can be omitted, and the effective cultivation area can also be increased in this respect. becomes. Furthermore, since an increase in the effective cultivation area makes it possible to increase the number of panels used, the number of cultivated plants also increases.

Additionally, by using retractable planting panels that allow the panels to lengthen to accommodate plant growth during outbound and return trips, seedlings initially require less area to grow (i.e., grow and harvest (There is no need to plant seedlings in the large space required by the plants on the verge of planting.) The number of plants that can be cultivated per unit effective cultivation area is further increased.

Such an increase in the effective cultivation area and increase in the number of cultivated plants directly leads to a reduction in production costs.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the present invention (Example 1), Fig. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of an example of a cultivation tank implementing the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a planting plant used in the present invention (Example 1). A perspective view of the panel. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of the planting panel in the present invention (Example 1). FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of the extensible planting panel used in the present invention (Example 2). , Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the connected expandable planting panels, Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional (partially broken) view taken along the line ■-■ in Fig. 6, and Fig. 8 is a perspective view taken along the line ■-■ in Fig. 6. Figure 9 is a cross-sectional (partially broken) view similar to Figure 8 showing the planting panel in an extended state; ), (E) are explanatory diagrams showing the flow of the panel in the present invention (Example 2), and FIG. 11 is a plan view (G) and a side view when contracted of a planting panel that is made expandable and retractable using a stay. (Figure 12 is a plan view A and a side view during expansion and contraction. Figure 13 is an explanatory diagram of an example of a conventional method. ... Planting panel, 4... Partition wall, 9... Frame of sliding frame type planting panel, 13... Seedling, 14... Grown plant, 1
6...Stay S...Departure end for outbound journey, H...Harvest end for return journey, H...Partial agent for outbound and return journey, patent attorney Masamitsu Akizawa and one other person, left 1 Figure 7i 2 Figure 3 Figure 3 4 figure 7t'7 figure/l Bank 8 figure Piece 9 figure Valve 5 figure Valve 6 figure 7i10 figure left 11 figure (A) (Exit 2 Bank 12 figure

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In submerged hydroponic cultivation, cultivation tanks (nutrient solution tanks) in which communicating outward and return paths are formed by a partition wall provided in the longitudinal direction of the center are arranged so as to be in contact with each other in the longitudinal direction. For each of these cultivation tanks, from the end of the outgoing path, fixed-shaped planting panels with plants planted are laid one after another, moved along the partition wall, moved to the incoming path side at the communication part of the outgoing and incoming paths, and placed toward the end. A hydroponic cultivation method characterized by moving and harvesting at the terminal end. (2) In submerged hydroponic cultivation, cultivation tanks (nutrient solution tanks) in which communicating outward and return paths are formed by a partition wall provided in the central longitudinal direction are arranged so as to be in contact with each other in the longitudinal direction. For each of these cultivation tanks, extendable planting panels with plants planted on them are sequentially laid down in a contracted state from the outgoing end of the tank, moved along the partition wall, and placed on the incoming road side at the connecting part between the outgoing and incoming routes. 1. A hydroponic cultivation method characterized in that the plants are transferred, moved toward the terminal end, brought into a stretched state at an appropriate point in the middle of these moving processes, and harvested at the terminal end. (3) The hydroponic cultivation method according to item (1) or item (2), wherein the planting panels are connected to each other and move on the outward and return trips.