I’ve always wanted to create a low-tech version of this concept.
The problem (for me) is that many crops like lettuce can’t handle full strength summer sunlight. The normal solution is shade cloth, but I always feel like that’s just throwing away energy. I’d rather devise a method where rather than having 50% shade cloth over 1 square meter of plants, I somehow split that same amount of light over 2 square meters of plants.
Thats effectively what agrivoltaics do, with some energy taken up by solar panels, but I’d like to sort out a plant-only version that works on a small scale. You could have 2 grow beds stacked on top of each other, and use a one-way mirror and some other optics, but i don’t think there’s a low tech way to keep the sun tracked.
That is effectively what I do (with “bushes” meaning tall annuals for the most part). The problem there is the salad and bushes are in competition in the soil.
I suppose the smartest method would involve “alley cropping” with the shorter plants in planters.
I’ve always wanted to create a low-tech version of this concept.
The problem (for me) is that many crops like lettuce can’t handle full strength summer sunlight. The normal solution is shade cloth, but I always feel like that’s just throwing away energy. I’d rather devise a method where rather than having 50% shade cloth over 1 square meter of plants, I somehow split that same amount of light over 2 square meters of plants.
Thats effectively what agrivoltaics do, with some energy taken up by solar panels, but I’d like to sort out a plant-only version that works on a small scale. You could have 2 grow beds stacked on top of each other, and use a one-way mirror and some other optics, but i don’t think there’s a low tech way to keep the sun tracked.
Or you grow salad under bushes.
That is effectively what I do (with “bushes” meaning tall annuals for the most part). The problem there is the salad and bushes are in competition in the soil.
I suppose the smartest method would involve “alley cropping” with the shorter plants in planters.