How to Start a Commercial Organic Baby Vegetable Greenhouse
Organic greenhouse vegetable production is practiced by organic farmers and market gardeners. However, in order to have your own baby vegetable greenhouse, there are some factors you must consider. It's important to have start-up capital. And you need to have a good base of horticulture knowledge as well. This is how to identify the soil and how to exploit the land. Also, maintaining a good rapport with customers and providers is another useful skill. Starting a greenhouse business is not an easy task. But it can be done with effort and patience.
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Things You'll Need
- Business plan
- Greenhouse equipment (Ventilation system, heating system, water supply)
- Capital
- Organic Farmer Certification
- Seeds
- Hose
Instructions
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Identify your market segment. Decide which vegetables you will grow inside your organic vegetable greenhouse. The most common vegetables are tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers and/or lettuce. However, you can choose other vegetables. This depends on your region and soil.
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Create a business plan according to your market segment. In the business plan, include your business objectives and goals, as well as the actions you will perform to achieve these goals.
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Establish your business in a place where potential customers of organic vegetables might pass by frequently. Moreover, an appropriate location must have a good soil fertility and drainage.
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Gather enough start-up capital to buy the required equipment. A commercial greenhouse with heating system, supply of fresh water and ventilation systems will cost between $10,000 to $30,000 to equip and install. Hire someone with wide knowledge on greenhouse equipment installment to arrange your new equipment for you.
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Buy the appropriate seeds. Depending on the plantation method, plant the seeds 12 inches below ground or put them inside soil-filled bags. Give the seeds enough light exposure for them to grow. Irrigate your plantations with a hose connected to the water supply.
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Become a certified organic farmer. Find an organic certification agency. These are mostly managed by your state's Department of Agriculture, or they can be private entities as well. Send a copy of your business plan with information about your location, the operations you perform and the organic vegetables you grow. Once your application is completed, an organic inspector will be assigned to inspect the areas of your organic vegetable greenhouse. If you pass the inspection, you can be granted the certification.
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Tips & Warnings
Inform people of your business. Allow them to see what you have to offer by displaying part of your harvest outside the greenhouse.
It's recommended to have natural gas as a heating system. The cost per BTU is less than oil and propane. And technical issues will be diminished if you work with natural gas instead of oil.
Always keep good terms with your suppliers. Build a strong relationship between you and the suppliers, as well as a relationship of trust and good communication with your clients.
Don't irrigate your crops with non-processed water. Go to a laboratory and ask them to analyze if your water is suitable for irrigation.
References
- Photo Credit onion greenhouse image by Alex Motrenko from Fotolia.com
