Vertical farming systems bring new considerations for pest and disease management

Vertical farming is an emerging area of food production that aims to provide sustainable intensification of agriculture by maximising the obtainable yield per unit area of land. This approach commonly utilises stacked horizontal levels of crop growth in glasshouse or controlled environment (CE) faci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of applied biology 2020-05, Vol.176 (3), p.226-232
Main Authors: Roberts, Joe M., Bruce, Toby J. A., Monaghan, James M., Pope, Tom W., Leather, Simon R., Beacham, Andrew M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural practices
Beneficial arthropods
Crop growth
Crop yield
Design optimization
disease
Disease control
Farm management
Farming
Farming systems
Food production
Greenhouses
Horticulture
Insects
management
pest
Pest control
Pests
Production methods
Sustainable agriculture
Systems design
urban agriculture
Vertical farming
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Summary:Vertical farming is an emerging area of food production that aims to provide sustainable intensification of agriculture by maximising the obtainable yield per unit area of land. This approach commonly utilises stacked horizontal levels of crop growth in glasshouse or controlled environment (CE) facilities. Vertical farming has, however, received relatively little scientific investigation to date. Consequently, important factors such as economic feasibility, system design and optimisation of production methods are still being evaluated. Vertical farming methods bring additional considerations for the effective management of pests and diseases compared with conventional protected horticulture, such as movement of both pest and beneficial insects between growth levels. This article aims to provide a perspective on the positive and negative issues facing pest and disease control in Vertical farming systems. We highlight important considerations for system optimisation and areas for future investigation.
ISSN:0003-4746
1744-7348
DOI:10.1111/aab.12587