Soilless
Farming
Lab
TECHNOLOGY | BUSINESS | OPPORTUNITY
working with nature as a partner, an ally, and a source of life, not
A Gathering of the a problem to be managed. This is a foundational belief that unifies
us.
Farmers And SFL provides affirmation. It’s validating to join with others
who share the same orientation to the land, to farming — to join
with more than 49 other farmers who wouldn’t want to farm any
It’s a real treat to be able to invite you today. Today is one of those other way. It’s reassuring to have “a people” with whom we can set
moments I get to be in this space with so many of you whom I ourselves apart and define ourselves – to have a name to call
have never met, but with whom I identify so strongly. So even as ourselves that fits who we are. This sense of belonging transcends
I welcome you I’d like, more importantly, to thank you all for the differences in culture, geography and scale.
being open to read and willingness to help to create this event — We need to pull together to provide a popular and durable
our first National Technology driven lab called “Soilless Farming alternative to corporate food that harms our bodies, an alternative
Lab’. to industrial agriculture that pollutes the land and water. We are a
There’s a wonderful paradox to SFL. On the one hand, it’s part of a larger movement that needs us to be strong and vital; a
impossible for us all to get together. We’re spread across 36 states! movement for good clean food and a healthy planet.
And there’s great diversity among our soilless practitioners. That So what about today? We are going to be gathered for a revival.
diversity is geographic, as SF farms stretch from remote Soro But to revive what? What is our faith, and our message to the
Village in Wasimi Ogun state to urban Lekki and Abuja. There are world?
differences of scale; some of us have one acre plots and sell at
local markets, while others are mega with hundreds of acres. We are going to:
Some of us farm land long in our families, sustaining tradition. Revive the family farm!
Others are new to this work, just learning the challenges and joys Bring back good food, grown the right way!
of farm life. To take back our soil, air, and water!
But despite this diversity, there is among the members of SF And to continue to grow — naturally, sustainably, ecologically, in
community - a sense of unity and shared commitment. There is a community with one another and connected to all those who
great sense of belonging, and even pride and ownership. share our vision.
So how do you explain this? For starters, we stand for something. So take a step and join us in this journey, let’s redefine agriculture
And it’s something specific. for policy makers to understand how the future will be and fortify
ourselves for the work ahead. We will equip ourselves with tools
We believe in food that is produced on farms where there’s a to help feed the future effectively and efficiently and let’s show the
commitment to defined standards and practices, beginning with world who we are – so they know about us, talk about us, join us
no substandard fertilizers or synthetic pesticides, no GMOs, and in our work, and buy food from our farmers!
no growth hormones or routine use of antibiotics.
Please do take your time to go through the pages and see what we
Our community is also defined by a shared understanding that the will cover!
best food possible is produced by
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Introduction • By 2030, end all forms of malnutrition, including achieving, by
2025, the internationally agreed targets on stunting and
wasting in children under 5 years of age, and address the
nutritional needs of adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating
Soilless Farming Lab (SFL) is the first of its kind in Nigeria and women and older persons.
Africa, it is a brain child of Eupepsia Place Nigeria, 1st Financial
Africa, South Africa and Viridian Science South Africa. • By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of
small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous
SFL has a vision to tackle 5 of the SDG goals using technology, peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and fishers, including
the lab is a way to teach others how to use these technologies as through secure and equal access to land, other productive
well as make them. SFL will not only teach participants but also resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets
work with the participants for 6 months as they grow their path, and opportunities for value addition and non-farm
collaborate to bring to fore what solutions they come up with. employment
The SDG core mandates for us are: • By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and
SDG 1 – No poverty implement resilient agricultural practices that increase
productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems,
• By 2030, eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change,
currently measured as people living on less than $1.25 extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and
(N500.00) a day. that progressively improve land and soil quality
• By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, • By 2020, maintain the genetic diversity of seeds, cultivated
women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its plants and farmed and domesticated animals and their related
dimensions according to national definitions. wild species, including through soundly managed and
• By 2030, build the resilience of the poor and those in diversified seed and plant banks at the national, regional and
vulnerable situations and reduce their exposure and international levels, and promote access to and fair and
vulnerability to climate-related extreme events and other equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of
economic, social and environmental shocks and disasters. genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as
internationally agreed
SDG 2 – Zero Hunger
• Adopt measures to ensure the proper functioning of food
• By 2030, end hunger and ensure access by all people, in commodity markets and their derivatives and facilitate timely
particular the poor and people in vulnerable situations, access to market information, including on food reserves, in
including infants, to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year order to help limit extreme food price volatility
round.
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SDG3 – Good Health and Well Being
• By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children • Support and strengthen the participation of local communities
under 5 years of age, with all countries aiming to reduce in improving water and sanitation management.
neonatal mortality to at least as low as 12 per 1,000 live births SDG 13 – Climate Action
and under-5 mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1,000 live
births • Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-
related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
• By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from non-
communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and • Improve education, awareness-raising and human and
promote mental health and well-being.e institutional capacity on climate change mitigation,
adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.
• By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and
illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil
pollution and contamination
• Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular
developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and SFL has 3 focus areas:
management of national and global health risks • Technology: This is the core of our drive, from
SDG6 – Clean Water and Sanitation inception to production and deployment, our
approach is such that it must be healthy for the
• By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and farmer, the consumer and the environment.
affordable drinking water for all
• Business: It is a profit driven endeavor, thus for
• By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation participants and practitioners, there is a need to
and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special ensure profitability for continuity, thus the lab will
attention to the needs of women and girls and those in focus also on teaching business skills from seasoned
vulnerable situations professionals
• By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, • Opportunity: Beyond what we are solving, together
eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous we will brainstorm on opportunities that exist in the
chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated agricultural space and how to step in, we will build
wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse bridges and collaborate to ensure we seize them.
globally.
SFL will be Africa’s engine room for agricultural
• By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all development. Soilless farming isn’t the end game but
sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of rather a spring board to more.
freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce
the number of people suffering from water scarcity.
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Schedule
5.45am - 6.31am - 8am – 10.30am – 10.46am – 11.16am - 2.31pm – 3.01pm – 5pm – 7pm - 8pm -
6.30am 7.59am 10.30am 10.45am 11.15am 2.30pm 3pm 5pm 7pm 8pm 10pm
Sun Arrival & Registration Dinner Welcome
Mon Lecture 1 Lecture 2 Lecture 3 Pitch Pitch
Tue Lecture 1 Lecture 2 Lecture 3 Games SM 4 B
Exercise
Wed Lecture 1 Snacks Story Lecture 2 Lunch Lecture 3 Dinner Roundtable
with
Agric
Thur Breakfast Lecture 1 Lecture 2 Lecture 3 Movie
Pitch
Fri Lecture 1 Lecture 2 MS 4 B Pitch
African
Association African Association
Sat Practical Farm Activities of Vertical of Vertical Farmers
Farmers
Sun Departure
Lecture 1
Day One
Greenhouse Environmental Management:
Participants will be able to understand the principal factors affecting environmental management principles, systems and their
management:
• Outside conditions effects on inside conditions (temperature, wind, radiation, rain).
• Grower’s tools to influence environment (heating, cooling, fans, screens, climate control systems, fogging, etc.)
• Ventilation principles.
• Temperature integration .
• Plant house.
• Design and construction.
Lecture 2
Introduction to soilless technology
• History & concept (Culture)
• Why soilless culture differs from conventional agriculture.
• Methods used in soilless culture.
• Future of soilless technology.
Lecture 3
Plant Structure, Nutrition & Nutrient Management
Participants will be able to assess plant structure, photosynthesis, nutrition, characteristics of different root-zone factors and their
application, and understand the principal factors involving Nutrient Management (including basic formula calculations)
Functions of nutrient elements.
• Nutrient uptake principles.
• Plant disorder symptoms, deficiencies & toxicities.
• Nutrient management.
• Difference between root zone & input solutions.
• Interpretation of root zone nutrient analysis.
• Adjusting input solution based on drain analysis.
Lecture 1
Day Two | Discussion with the Grown.
Biotic factors
The plant physiology
• Plant parts and function, water, its role and nutrients mobilization.
• Root-zone.
• Vegetative and productive stages.
• Pollination (Flower and fruit).
The plant metabolism
• Photosynthesis.
• The chemistry of nutrients.
• Water pH and its implication on plant chemical balance.
• Plant metabolism.
Abiotic factors
Light
• The effect of light on plant development.
• Light effect on plants (seasons, photoperiods)
Nutrients
• Electrical conductivity (EC)
• pH and its relation to nutrients.
• Water quality and water toxicity.
• Understanding nutrients chemistry.
• Nutrients deficiencies- guideline.
Temperature
• Climate and it effect on plants.
• Understanding temperatures values in relations to season and day/night.
Day Two | Discussion with the Grown.
• Climatic conditions in tunnel.
• Correlation between temperature, humidity and other factors.
Oxygen
• Why plants need Oxygen.
• The mechanism of oxygen at plant root zone.
• How to produce artificial oxygen
• Oxygen Enrichment of Greenhouses: Explores the benefits, costs, geometry and equipment required to correctly
enrich a greenhouse with carbon dioxide for maximum crop growth & quality:
• CO2 enrichment principles.
• Influence of light & temperature on CO2 enrichment
• Enrichment: technology options; targets & strategies; and modelling with ‘Tomsim’ (CO2 crop modelling
software)
Carbon dioxide - CO2
• The importance of CO2 availability to plant development.
• The CO2 chemical dynamics in plants photosynthesis.
• How to produce artificial CO2.
Lecture 2
Media Types and their Characteristics
Participants will be able to assess media types, characteristics, and their application, and understand the principal factors affecting
their selection.
• Ideal media properties.
• Void space, porosity, aeration, CEC, pH, etc.
• Commercial hydroponic media types and their characteristics. Growing media
• Properties & Characteristics of growing media
• Water holding capacity (WHC).
• Porosity.
• Sources (Organic vs Non-Organic).
Day Two | Discussion with the Grown.
• Cation exchange capacity. (CEC).
• Working with various growing media.
• Consideration of chosen [Link] the preferred irrigation system due to growing media.
• Preparations of various growing media.
• Maintaining various growing media.
Lecture 3
Crop Registration & Plant Balance, A Professional Approach to Growing
Explores the monitoring, recording & responding approach to good crop balance (includes ‘reading’ a crop and tools to change
balance).
Managing plant balance
• Crop assessment (evaluating a crop)
• Crop steering (changing crop balance)
• Crop reading (what a crop tells a grower)
• Crop data collection and measurements
• Plant vigour and balance chart
Common Greenhouse Pests, Diseases, & IPM
Participants will be able to assess common pests and characteristics of different diseases, and understand the principal factors
involving Integrated Pest Management and how to implement bio-controls to control common greenhouse pests (i.e. spider mites,
whitefly, thrips, fungus gnats, aphid, russet mite, broad mite, caterpillars, etc.
• Integrated pest management program.
• Sources of plant pests & diseases.
• Crop hygiene - insect life cycles.
• Plant fungal, bacterial & virus conditions.
• Common physiological problems and their treatments.
Day Three | Technology
Lecture 1
Soilless growing technology
• Hydroponics growing system
• Trough, bag, gutter & container culture
• Flood and drain
• Passive hydroponics
• Fodder
• Aeroponics
• Aquaponics
Lecture 2
Greenhouse Plant Physiology
Explores the way light, temperature and humidity interacts with horticultural crops and their connection to greenhouse plant
physiology & environmental management.
• Light a plants eye view (UV, PAR, LUX, Global, Radiation Intensity, DLI & Sum) basic plant processes
• Temperature & photosynthesis respiration.
• Plant transpiration principles.
• Mollier diagram (psychometric chart) .
• Relative humidity vs. humidity deficit .
• Plant development .
• Water Quality, EC & pH
• Hydroponic system requirements.
• Types of hydroponic systems.
• Factors influencing water demand.
Day Three | Technology
• Osmosis and other root influences.
• EC & pH change through systems.
• Practical management.
• Raw water treatment systems.
• Water treatment options (RO, UV, UF, Chemical, etc).
Irrigation, Media's Manager: Explores the impact irrigation strategies have on growing media and crop
production (includes EC, pH, Water Content & Drain %)
• Irrigation strategies to match growing media.
• Irrigation strategies to match water uptake and drainage.
• Irrigation strategies to control root-zone Water Content & EC.
• Plant evaporation & transpiration.
• Practical calculations for irrigation capacity, required pump capacity, maximum number of irrigation valves.
Recirculation, how to Convert to a Closed System.
Explores how to convert a media based free-drainage system to a closed recirculation system. Demonstrates how growers can easily
save 40% on water use, 60% on fertilizer use, maintain a balanced root-zone nutrition and become environmentally sound &
responsible.
Design principles for closed systems.
• Savings and costs estimates.
• Calculate annual water and fertilizer savings.
• Pre-EC set-points calculations for various crops.
• Nutrition in closed systems.
• Comparing analysis with standard reference.
• Basis for corrective action.
• Sterilization options costings.
• Sterilization types (heat, UV, slow biological, Ozone and other chemical systems.
Day Three | Technology
Greenhouse Crop Protection Principles
Understand basic principles of crop spraying (calculate volume, speed and pressure) for high volume, low volume and ultra-low
volume systems and a suitable vertical & horizontal spray system for greenhouses crops.
Chemical crop protection options (Dripping, Spraying / Fogging / LVM, Dusting, Sulphur Evaporators, Traps (lamps,
lights, glue pheromones).
• Spray techniques and assessments.
• Calculate walking speed for vertical and horizontal spraying
• Characteristics of a good greenhouse spray system.
Lecture 3
Implement a Hydroponic Maintenance Program
Monitor plant health, monitor the Hydroponic environment, monitor the nutrient solution, perform routine maintenance checks,
maximizing greenhouse efficiency and energy conservation.
• Daily measurement schedule.
• Fertilizer measurement.
• Routine weekly, monthly & annual maintenance tasks.
• Preventative maintenance and frequency plan & log.
• Asset registers.
NFT Systems
Explores best practice model for modern Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) systems.
• Fundamental principles and system types
• Gulley Profiles (length, width, slope, etc.).
• Control & dosing equipment.
• Water, EC, pH, nutrition, oxygen management.
• Disease management & sterilization options.
• NFT system design principles.
Day Four | Business
Lecture 1
Building your farm
• Urban farm case studies from around the world
• What scale makes sense?
• Should you build a vertical farm or greenhouse?
• Designing flexibly from a grower's perspective.
• Designing for biosecurity and hygiene protocols.
• Designing your farm layout for labor optimization.
Lecture 2
Marketing & sales
• Identifying your target customer
• How to effectively market across different channels
• What are the most optimal distribution channels for your farm?
• Packaging, shipping, and delivery logistics
• Market analysis
• Parameters to consider that influence crop selection.
• Choosing cultivar/variety.
• Timing.
• Pricing.
• Transport.
• Packaging.
• Market segment and financial considerations
• Fresh vegetables.
Day Four |Business
• Leafy crops.
• Cut flowers.
• Seedlings production.
• Disruptive strategy.
• Wholesale vs retail markets for your produce.
• Understanding true potential market size.
• Crop choice - what will you grow, and why?
• Locating your farm, and the implications.
Business
• Learning from the industry's mistakes.
• Managing labor.
• Properly segment your labor force.
• Strategies for hiring labor - highly trained vs. low skilled.
• Creating quality and process control.
• How do hiring practices change as you scale your business?
Lecture 3
• Financial model & business plan.
• Effective financial models for urban farming.
• Understanding revenue, and the true yield of your farm.
• Business plan.
Day Five | Opportunity
Lecture 1
Tissue culture
Lecture 2
Applying Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture Sea farms vs Underground farms, Nanotechnology and CRISPR
modifcation, Block chain, data analytics and 3D food printing to ensure food security.
Day Six
Practicals
Setup
Lecture 4
AAVF & Certification
