| CPC A01G 31/06 (2013.01) | 18 Claims |
|
1. A tower garden for vertical farming, the tower garden comprising:
a vertical column comprising a plurality of growth modules that are stacked over and connected to each other in a vertical direction and configured to grow plants in the vertical direction;
a base in the form of an open top rectangular container having four sides and a bottom positioned below the vertical column and configured to receive and hold a reservoir comprising a liquid agricultural medium, wherein a bottom end of the vertical column rests on the bottom of the base; and
a perforated hose extending from the base to the vertical column in the vertical direction and configured as a conduit for the agricultural medium to flow upward and cascade over roots of the plants, wherein
each growth module comprises a plastic pocket with a hole,
at least one portion of the plastic pocket comprises a membrane permeable to water vapor and impermeable to liquid water,
the membrane consists of an outer layer and an inner layer, wherein the outer layer consists of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and the inner layer consists of collagen sol gel, or silica sol gel, wherein the outer layer faces away from the vertical column and the inner layer faces towards the vertical column, wherein the inner layer is adjacent the outer layer and the inner layer being a continuous layer having a thickness of 50-250 μm,
wherein the outer layer is non-woven and porous,
wherein the outer layer and the inner layer are configured to retain a shape of the membrane, and
wherein the outer layer and the inner layer are configured for a plant root to grow through the inner layer and pores of the outer layer and extend outside the membrane for air exposure.
|