Growing greens in a greenhouse as a business
Growing greens in a greenhouse as a business is quite a profitable business. The most popular plants are dill and parsley. The profitability of their cultivation per 1 ha on average is 3 times higher than that of cereals. But growing greens, like any other occupation, has not only advantages, but also disadvantages.
Advantages and disadvantages of business
The positive aspects of the project for growing greens include:
Growing greens as a business has negative sides. So, drawing up a business plan, you will have to immediately think of the market, because dill and parsley are stored for a very short time. In addition, if you want to make a profit all year round, you need to spend a certain amount of money and time on equipping the greenhouse. These costs will soon pay off if there are no problems with the sale of products.
How to grow greens in winter
Beautiful bunches of dill and parsley are always popular in winter. So that your products can show off on the shelves of shops and supermarkets, you need to make a business plan for growing greens in the greenhouse. At the first stage, you can use a homemade design made of film and wooden frame.
Glazed greenhouses are very popular today, but when using them plants can get burned, as glass does not diffuse light. In addition, on cloudy days in the greenhouse will not be enough light. Therefore, it is better to pay attention to metal constructions with acrylic or polycarbonate coating. Their durability and profitability are really worth the additional cost of production.
To preserve the harvest, it is necessary to provide a system for maintaining a constant temperature, put heaters, organize lighting and regular watering.
Growing greens in a greenhouse as a business is most appropriate in the Stavropol and Krasnodar Territories. Temperatures there are not very low, and light day is one of the longest in Russia. Doing such a business in the northern regions is very difficult, as the cost of electricity and gas may exceed the profit from the products sold. If you can not organize production in a more favorable region, you can make a greenhouse-thermos with a double coating, which allows you to do without additional heating.
It is cheaper to grow green crops in hydroponics in a greenhouse. This method will allow to minimize physical labor and shorten the period of ripening of plants for obtaining greater profits. In addition, for hydroponics it is not necessary to install any boxes with fertile soil. Enough to get plastic cups or tubes with holes.
You will also need to buy a nutrient solution that will be poured into the containers under the plants. The design takes up little space, so it can be placed not only on the greenhouse floor, but also on the walls. Thus, hydroponics does not require significant areas, but the taste qualities of plants grown in this way are significantly inferior to those that eat from the soil. Moreover, such products have almost no taste, although they have an attractive appearance.
For growing greens in the greenhouse can be used and intermediate options, involving the simultaneous use of conventional earth and liquid fertilizer for hydroponics. Such technologies are much more expensive, but allow you to get products with excellent taste.
If you use growing greens as a business, the crop must be properly harvested and stored. This perishable product can extend life with a few simple tricks.
- Before harvesting, pour a bed. So you will spend less time and effort digging the plant and cleaning its roots from the ground.
- When the greens are collected, put it in a waterproof container. If you add water with aspirin and fertilizers, greens can stay fresh for almost a week.
How to grow a good dill (video)
Growing green onions and other crops
If you decide to use the cultivation of green onions in the greenhouse as a business, you first need to choose the right grade. In total there are 3 types of onions:
- acute;
- sweet;
- semi-sharp
A sharp onion ripens very quickly, but has a small mass of feather. According to this indicator, the primacy takes the sweet form of the plant, but it matures extremely long. Thus, the golden mean is a semi-sharp bow. Put it in the boxes should be in February. In March, you can dive and place the plant in the greenhouse. It is necessary to observe the distance between the bulbs in 5 cm. Immediately after planting the first batch, you can begin to prepare the second.
In addition to dill, parsley and onion for sale you can grow lettuce. In winter, greenhouse radishes are extremely popular, but these types of greenery should be grown only after studying the demand for these products. If you include in the business plan the cultivation of unclaimed crops, you can go into the negative.
How to grow fresh greens (video)
Sales of products
It is in the winter that you will receive the maximum profit, since at this time of year the demand for greens increases. You can sell products in bulk or on the market.
To organize wholesale sales, you need to enter into contracts with points of sale: restaurants, shops and supermarkets. The advantage of this option is that you are always sure that the products will be sold.
If you do not have connections yet, you can rent a point of sale in the market and sell products through it.
You will have significant competition, so this option is currently only suitable as a temporary or additional implementation method.
Gallery: greens in the greenhouse as a business (15 photos)