This article originally appeared in the October 2017 print edition of Cannabis Business Times. To subscribe, click here.
The quality of greenhouse-grown cannabis has everything to do with the climate control technology employed in the greenhouse. A facility properly designed and outfitted with efficient HVAC systems will create a better environment to help you consistently produce a connoisseur-grade product. Here are a few elements greenhouse growers can incorporate to improve their climate control.
1. Evaporative Cooling.
These systems include a cooling pad made of a porous material that has water flowing through it, keeping it saturated, on one end wall of the greenhouse. At the opposite end wall of the greenhouse is a large extraction fan that creates negative pressure within the structure, pulling exterior air through the cooling pad, moving it along the length of the facility and back out the other end. As the warm outside air passes through the cooling pad and evaporates the water within it, the air drops in temperature and cools the climate in the greenhouse.
2. Shade Cloth.
One of the least expensive ways to keep your greenhouse cool is the use of shade cloth. On a sunny day, a 25-percent shade cloth will help keep temperatures down while still allowing more PAR (photosynthetically active radiation) to reach your plants than an artificial light source can produce. Using reflective shade cloth will maximize the cooling effect inside your greenhouse.
To read the full article in Cannabis Business Times' October issue, click here.
Top photo by Jermaine Amado
