Densely Populated Countries Could Find Food Independence With Vertical Floating Farms (xpost fr. GD)

[KurtNYC]

4. Something that is available now and that I use on-going

is Aerogarden:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sacat=0&_nkw=aerogarden+7&_frs=1

They made it stone simple to grow greens and strawberries hydroponically. It is easier than a fish tank and still kind of fun. Lettuces grow quickly in this and keep producing if you pick leaves only.

I use 2 aerogardens to test seeds and produce some salad greens at home even though I have been farming on rented acreage for 2 years now. Great all winter for salads, sandwiches and burritos. The floating farm idea is in an idea stage but apartment dwellers in a city like Singapore can augment their fresh greens right now.

Farming is almost always done where it is cheapest, which in practice translates into easiest -- ideal conditions for a crop like for example celery are found in Ventura County and no other area in the US can compete on price with the farms in Oxnard. So something like 86% of all the celery in the US comes from Oxnard. Towers like the ones in the artwork would be very expensive to construct, would likely not survive the first good Monsoon, would need access to lots of fresh water and present a variety of other pragmatic and economic challenges.

But the good news is mini hydroponic systems are here now. Zero mile diet.