The Garden Building/Green Sky Growers will be the first Certified Green building in the world with commercial scale “Aqua-Dynamic Farming” on the rooftop. 

• The rooftop farm will produce tons of fresh vegetables and fish on an annual basis without the use of harmful pesticides. 
• The use of environmentally friendly growing practices will include the harvesting of rainwater that will be recycled in the Aqua-Dynamic growing systems. 
• All the growing systems continuously recycle 100% of the nutrients and water.
• The majority of food produced will be hand delivered to the local Winter Garden community thus providing healthy, locally grown, & low carbon footprint food.
• Green Sky Growers is looking for local businesses interested in purchasing locally grown & pesticide free lettuces and herbs.

Aqua-Dynamic Farming TM is the production of food crops and fish in a closed growing system, using environmentally friendly practices.

Future Growing, LLC/Green Sky Growers, LLC. relationship. Future Growing was the design and installation firm for Green Sky Growers, LLC. Future Growing, LLC. will also provide the operational management for Green Sky Growers, LLC.

How do we control pests and diseases on the rooftop?

Natural or environmentally friendly forms of pest control will be used in the rooftop greenhouse. IPM or Integrated Pest Management utilizes mechanical, soft chemical, biological, & good management practices for pest control. 

North Greenhouse is the “Vertical Greenhouse” & has 3 main growing systems

System #1 Future Growing Tower Systems

Technology Partner – Future Growing, LLC

• 12 Towers made of USDA approved food grade plastic
• 60 plants per Tower
• 720 plants in 240 square feet of floor space
• We can produce up to 37,000 plants per year in this area
• The Towers contain several varieties of basil, chives, lettuce, micro tomatoes, super sweet peppers, cilantro, parsley
• This system uses 5% - 10% of the water commonly used in conventional farming

System #2 Vine Crop Systems

Technology Partner – Form Flex

• 3 Vine crops – Tomatoes, Asian & European cucumbers, Asian eggplant
• Each vine crop is growing in Coconut Coir which is made from the wasted fiber of the coconut husk
• Each vine crop is an in-determinant variety which means it continues to grow up unlike a bush type plant. The vines will grow 12 feet tall up to the greenhouse trusses.
• Vine crops are trained up a string to get their height
• Liquefied plant minerals are sent to each grow bag through the drip emitters in each grow bag.

System #3 European Conveyor System with Hanging Towers will be integrated with Tilapia tanks providing an Aqua-Dynamic food production system

Technology Partner – Form Flex (for the conveyor system)& Future Growing for the Hanging Towers

Conveyor System

• In this area we are utilizing 2 growing systems in the same footprint
• This conveyor system uses a Future Hanging tower to grow various crops
• Each Hanging Tower can hold up to 8 plants.
• These hanging Towers contain edible flowers such as Nasturtium & Viola, 8 varieties of hot peppers, spearmint, hanging tomatoes, creeping thyme, sage, rosemary, & several other specialty crops.
• We can harvest up to a ton of food off this system on an annual basis
• The Conveyor system can be lowered while in operation for easy harvest and plant inspection.
• Systems like these are used commercially to move plants across great distances with little labor involved. In an Urban environment the system could potentially deliver crops directly to the chefs in the kitchen for easy harvest.

Tilapia Tanks

• Are the key component to Aqua-Dynamic farming
• Each tank will be home to 500 Nile Tilapia.
• By controlling temperature and diet we can produce a 1.5lb – 2lb Tilapia in 5 – 6 Months.
• This system will produce healthy mercury free fish.
• Fish waste is filtered from each tank and then digested into minerals that the plants will use.
• Living biological filters will convert harmful Ammonia to a Nitrate form of Nitrogen which will be absorbed by the food crops above.
• After the fish water has passed through the filters and the digesting equipment, it is then delivered to each hanging tower. The plants absorb the minerals from the water & the excess water drains from the Towers back into the fish tanks. This completes the Aqua-Dynamic loop.

South Greenhouse “Utilizes Horizontal Growing Technology” has 3 main growing systems

System #4 Rolling Flood Bench System

• This is the propagation area where all the plants are started for the greenhouses and the Tower Gardens
• The benches flood and drain watering the young seedlings only in the root zone. This eliminates overhead watering which helps reduce foliar diseases.
• The benches also roll to create pathways demonstrating an efficient use of horizontal space

System #5 Channel System will be integrated with Tilapia tanks providing an Aqua-Dynamic food production system

Technology Partner – Advance Profile Tech out of Australia

Channel System

• In this area we are utilizing 2 growing systems in the same footprint
• The channel bench raises 8 feet up so fish equipment can be serviced and maintained underneath
• 68 Total Channels
• Each channel is 16’ long and holds 22 – 23 plants
• We are currently growing a red and green gourmet lettuce mix in each planting space
• The channels are on a conveyor system that moves them from South to North and automatically spaces the channels as the plants get larger.
• 2.5 channels can be harvested every day
• 19,890 living plants units can be harvested from this system every year

Tilapia Tanks

• Are the key component to Aqua-Dynamic farming
• Each tank will be home to 500 Nile Tilapia.
• By controlling temperature and diet we can produce a 1.5 lb – 2 lb Tilapia in 5 – 6 Months.
• This system will produce healthy mercury free fish.
• Fish waste is filtered from each tank and then digested into minerals that the plants will use.
• Living biological filters will convert harmful Ammonia to a Nitrate form of Nitrogen which will be absorbed by the food crops above.
• After the fish water has passed through the filters and the digesting equipment, it is then delivered to the high end of each gutter via a drip emitter. As the water flows past the roots they absorb the minerals from the water & the excess water drains out the end of the gutters back into the fish tanks. This completes the Aqua-Dynamic loop.

System #6 Floating Raft System

Technology Partner – SEAIR Oxygen Generator System

• Floating Raft Systems are the simplest form of Hydroponic growing
• There are 2 types of Floating Raft Systems
• Floating Raft Culture
• Deep Pool Floating Raft Culture (What we use at Green Sky Growers)
• Tanks are filled with plant based minerals and water
• The tank has an oxygen generator that makes 93% pure oxygen from the air and then injects that oxygen into the circulation system inside the tank
• The highly enriched oxygen water produces healthy roots and vibrant plants
• Lettuce seedlings are placed into polystyrene boards and they float on top of the nutrient solution
• Lettuce seedlings start off in a close spaced board for the first 2 weeks and then get transplanted into a larger spaced board for another 2 weeks.
• We are growing Red and Green Summer Crisp lettuce and grow out time is 28 days
• The viewing windows will be used to observe the roots of the mature plants
• This system can produce 9,360 living plant units on an annual basis

How Does The Patented Tower Garden ™ Work?

The space age Tower Garden ™ technology took 10 years to fully develop into the product we have today.  We started off with the following 3 main goals.  Produce healthy plants.  Produce healthy food for people.  And lastly, produce food in a “green” or sustainable growing system. 

To achieve the first goal, we designed a water based growing system that created its own highly oxygenated environment for the plant roots.  Modern research has shown that increased oxygen to the root system helps to prevent disease and improves plant growth.  Concerned with outside contaminants in today’s food, we chose to build the Tower Garden ™ with a better quality USDA approved food grade plastic. 

To achieve the first and second goal of producing healthy plants and healthy food for people, we also had to develop a water based mineral solution to support the Tower Garden ™ technology.  It took support from leading world experts in plant and human nutrition to develop the proprietary Tower Tonic plant food we use today.  The Tower Tonic contains a wide range of specially formulated ionic minerals and plant nutrients.  The Tower Tonic provides a pH balanced blend of natural plant nutrients that stimulate plant roots, flowers, fruits, and leaves.  The Tower Tonic is the world’s first high performance ionic mineral solution specifically designed for all types of food and flowering crops.  The amazing Tower Tonic can be used to grow everything from gourmet lettuce, to edible flowers, to beautiful vine ripened tomatoes.  Healthy plants packed with nutrition help create healthy people!  The Tower Tonic is loaded with minerals essential to vibrant human health! 

Our third goal to have a “green” or sustainable technology was an integral part of developing the Tower Garden ™ technology.  The majority of food grown for the US market is not produced in a green or sustainable way.  Today’s food travels great distances using gas and electricity.  It is stored in a chilled environment for a period of time using more energy.  It requires layers of packaging to end up in the consumer’s hands.  It is sprayed with fungicides, pesticides, and herbicides, which require more energy and pollutes the planet.  Water practices for organic or conventional agriculture, is extremely wasteful and a huge concern with looming water shortages worldwide.  The modular Tower Garden ™ technology can be utilized anywhere in the world.  This is highly beneficial because the carbon foot print of the food is greatly reduced by virtually eliminating shipping and storage.  The Tower Garden ™ uses a closed system technology to recycle 100% of the nutrients and water.  This means the plants only use 5%–10% of the nutrients and water that is commonly used in conventional and organic farming.  Food is also not wasted because crops can be harvested as needed in each household. Finally, the pH balanced ionic minerals and plant nutrients found in the Tower Tonic used in the Tower Garden ™ , produce strong, healthy plants that can better protect themselves from plant pests and disease.  This reduces the use of organic and conventional pesticides.

Overall operation of the Tower Garden ™

Seeds for the Tower Garden ™ are started in a natural rock fiber seeding cube.  Seeded cubes are placed in a covered bio-dome for 24–48 hours allowing the seeds to germinate quickly and evenly with very little seed loss if any.  The bio-dome is then opened and germinated seeds are placed outside in full sun for a week or two where they can develop into hardy seedlings ready for transplant into the Tower Garden ™ .  The Tower Garden ™ has a 25 gallon reservoir or storage tank at its base.  This reservoir stores the Tower Tonic Ionic Mineral Nutrient Solution.  Inside the reservoir is a small, low wattage submersible pump. The pump moves the nutrient solution up through the center of each pot all the way to the top of the Tower Garden ™ .  From there, the nutrient solution drips through a special device that evenly cascades the nutrient solution over the plant roots.  On the journey down the tower the nutrient solution feeds the plants roots and becomes highly oxygenated as gravity tumbles it back down to the reservoir.  This process is continually repeated providing fresh oxygen, water, and nutrients to the roots on the plants.  Because of the above mentioned process, the food crops in the Tower Garden ™ will grow several times faster than in soil and will have to be harvested on a regular basis!  The Tower Garden ™ is so simple!  No weeding, tilling, kneeling, or getting dirty!  The Tower Garden ™ is truly the World’s first plug and play super garden!

Please enjoy our companion site: futuregrowing.com