Most people have the opinion that Chinese goods are always consumer goods, not of high quality, and their technology is either far from perfect, or borrowed from someone. Chinese greenhouses completely destroy these stereotypes. Their design is very simple, material investments are minimal, and the results are stunning. With the introduction of these unusual vegetarians into the agro-industrial complex of China, it became possible to provide one and a half billion people of the country with cheap fruits and vegetables all year round. Greenhouses from China, having proved in practice their high profitability, began to conquer the world market. Now they are popular in all temperate countries, including Russia.
Working principle
Chinese greenhouses, although they came to us from China, have a Russian counterpart. Back in the middle of the last century, a simple physics teacher Alexander Ivanov came up with heliovegetaria, that is, such structures that use the energy of the sun. The Chinese modified this model a little, leavingthe same working principle. Their first greenhouse appeared in 1978. It works in the same way as Ivanov's vegetarian, due to the free energy of our luminary. At any point in Russia (except the Far North), the sun shines quite regularly all year round, only in summer its rays fall on the Earth at an angle close to 90 °, and in winter their angle of incidence decreases to 20-40 °. A slight discrepancy in the values depends on the geographical latitude of the area. At a small angle of incidence, the rays seem to glide over the surface, so they do not give it heat. If you make the wall of the greenhouse with a slope that allows you to capture all the energy of the winter sun rays, they will heat this wall in the same way as they heat the earth in summer. This principle is the basis of Chinese vegetarians. Additional heating of such structures is necessary only in severe frosts.
Chinese greenhouses: description
We are accustomed to transparent greenhouses on all sides, because the plants should receive as much light as possible. They are arched or in the form of a house - it does not matter, the main thing is that all their walls let the sun's rays through. The Chinese left only one wall transparent, and the rest are built of brick, cinder block, concrete, clay or earth - anything, as long as they are massive. Their thickness is maintained within 1.5-2 meters, depending on the climate of the area. Where winters are relatively warm, for example, in the Krasnodar Territory, walls up to 1-1.5 meters thick can be erected. Outside, they must be covered with some kind of insulation (foam glass, foamed polymers with a thickness of 150 mm or more, mats with straw). The transparent wall is made with a slope and hassemi-arch view. For its construction, reinforced film or polycarbonate is used. As you can see, Chinese greenhouses have a somewhat unusual and at the same time simple design. The photo captured one of them from the inside.
If the landscape features of the site allow, such a vegetarian can be built into an earthen hill. This option has two significant advantages:
1. The thickness of the earth will protect the greenhouse from the cold very well.
2. Only two side walls will have to be erected, which means that both money and labor costs will be significantly saved.
It is even more economical to attach a greenhouse to the wall of a residential building.
When choosing any option, it is necessary to build an auxiliary pantry near one of the sides. In it, the Chinese store tools, fertilizers, chemicals for processing plants and other necessary things.
Features of internal heating
Chinese greenhouses, which use additional heating, are built in regions with harsh winters. For this purpose, they use an ordinary stove-stove that runs on coal or wood, electric or gas heaters. In regions where it never gets colder than -15°C in winter, you can only get by with solar energy. From dawn to dusk, its rays penetrate the greenhouse, heat the walls and the ground, and at night the accumulated heat is given off to the air and plants. Some designs provide additional heating without the use of a stove.
It is done like this: plasticpipes with a diameter of 110 mm. They are buried in the ground by about 300 mm, but so that two ends stick out of the ground from the side of the transparent wall. Warm air enters them from the room. In the opposite wall, where there are also pipe holes, fans are placed that force air to circulate through the system. These devices partly solve the issue of ventilation. As an option, water tanks painted black are installed near the northern wall. The sun warms them all day, and at night they give off heat to plants.
Features of outdoor heating
In addition to internal heating, Chinese greenhouses are also equipped with external heating. The Chinese install a special system on their vegetarian gardens that works on the principle of sun awnings. Its design includes a roll of rice hull protective film and a manual or automatic swivel mechanism. In the evening, the film is unrolled and covered with a greenhouse, and in the morning it is rolled back into a roll. Reed panels may be used instead of rice husk film. They are made light, because they cover only the transparent wall of greenhouses with them. In addition, the thickness of the reed panels should not prevent them from rolling into a roll and retain heat as much as possible.
The storage closet attached to the end wall also helps to keep warm in the vegetation, because when workers enter it from the street, frosty air penetrates only into this small utility room, without directly reaching the greenhouse.
Interior design
Chinese greenhouses for cultivationstrawberries, tomatoes, any other vegetables must have a drip irrigation system. A humidity and temperature control system is placed inside the vegetarians. The beds are often arranged using agrofibre, which provides additional heating for the roots of plants. In industrial greenhouses, space is allocated for a compost pit, or both plants and animals, such as pigs, are grown at the same time. These features of operation make it possible to obtain organic fertilizers. The Chinese make beds in the south-north direction, and with a slight slope from the back wall. It is believed that with this arrangement, the soil warms up in the best way. For strawberries, racks are built in several rows on the back wall of the greenhouses. They are placed at such a level that each plant has the opportunity to receive the required amount of light. In the rest of the area, they plant low-growing crops.
Best Location
Since Chinese greenhouses use the energy of our luminary, they need to be located on the site so that you can take maximum heat from it. The back wall of the vegetarian should face north. It is made deaf, without a single window and without doors. It is she who can be drowned in an earthen hill or be shared with the house. The transparent wall should face south. Two sides are located respectively in the western and eastern directions. We have the most demanded for greenhouses polycarbonate due to its strength. The Chinese prefer to cover their vegetarian plants with a milky blue super strong film, the service lifewhich is 3 years or more. It is believed that it not only evenly disperses light throughout the room, but also transmits only rays with the wavelengths necessary for plants. It is important to find a place for the greenhouse so that nothing blocks its southern wall, for example, a high fence or other buildings on the site.
How to build a solar plant
Whatever Chinese greenhouses are intended for - for growing cucumbers, tomatoes or cabbage, they are built according to a single technology. The ideal option is when the vegetarian is attached to a residential building. In the Russian market, it is mainly such designs that are sold. Included with the components of the greenhouse comes a detailed diagram and assembly instructions. Separately, you can purchase a protective film, which is sold by the meter. If there is a desire to build a Chinese greenhouse from improvised materials, it is important to make the correct angle of inclination of the transparent wall, which should be the smaller the northerly the area. It is also necessary to provide sufficient ventilation in a home-made vegetarian without violating its tightness. If you follow all the rules and do not violate the technology, a greenhouse created by yourself will be no worse than purchased from Chinese manufacturers.
Reviews
Russian farmers are just starting to test Chinese greenhouses. Reviews about their performance are still few. Featured Values:
- the opportunity to harvest in winter and summer;
- relativelylow construction costs (if possible, attach a greenhouse to the house);
- less fuel is consumed for heating.
Noted weaknesses and difficulties:
- it is difficult to buy the necessary components;
- in the Moscow region and other areas with severe winters, it is necessary to additionally heat the greenhouse, which reduces its profitability and increases maintenance costs;
- without using fuel that emits CO when burned2, you need to look for another source of carbon dioxide that plants need for life;
- a warm blanket (rice husk film) does not hold heat well;
- in regions with a warmer climate, additional ventilation has to be arranged.
