Exploring new sustainable growing media for ornamental crop production

目前，在加拿大，盆栽观赏植物的温室种植使用泥炭，这是一种从泥炭地提取的无土介质，泥炭地是具有独特能力的敏感生态系统，可以吸收大量的碳，并储存多余的降水。泥炭开采导致大量二氧化碳排放到大气中，从而造成温室气体效应，导致气候变化。因此，为了保护环境，应逐步淘汰以泥炭为基础的生长介质，并应开发无泥炭的替代品，最好是利用当地的生物质成分。阿西尼博因社区学院将与范德文温室有限公司合作，探索新的无土种植介质混合物，以部分或完全取代泥炭，以提高苗圃/温室中观赏作物的产量。选择包括木纤维和大麻纤维（分别是木材和农业工业的副产品）和亚麻灰（燃烧亚麻片的副产品）。拟议的项目将调查这些新的升级回收和当地可用的无土介质的不同特性，探索取代典型泥炭基介质的能力，并确定是否适合在温室/苗圃中种植作物。如果成功，Vanderveen's将成为加拿大西部第一个使用这些新生长介质混合物进行商业温室作物生产的温室。研究结果将鼓励加拿大和其他地方的其他苗圃/温室使用这些可持续和环保的做法种植作物。

Currently, in Canada, greenhouse growing of potted ornamental plants is carried out using peat, a soilless media, that is extracted from peatlands, sensitive ecosystems with unique ability to sequester considerable amounts of carbon, and store excess precipitation. Peat extraction results in the release of high carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, thus contributing to the greenhouse gas effect and resulting in climate change. Therefore, for environmental conservation, peat-based growing media should be phased out, and peat-free alternatives should be developed, preferably from local biomass ingredients. Assiniboine Community College will work with Vanderveen's Greenhouse Ltd. to explore new soilless growing media blends to partially or completely replace peat for improving the production of ornamental crops in nurseries/greenhouses. Options include wood fibers and hemp fibers (by-products of timber and agriculture industry, respectively), and flax ash (by-product of burning flax shives). The proposed project will investigate different properties of these new upcycled and locally available soilless media, explore the ability to replace typical peat-based media, and determine suitability for the crop cultivation in greenhouses/nurseries. If successful, Vanderveen's will be the first greenhouse in Western Canada to use these new growing media blends for commercial greenhouse crop production. The results will encourage other nurseries/greenhouses in Canada and elsewhere to grow crops using these sustainable and eco-friendly practices.