Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

looking_for_helpers t1_iudve78 wrote

Because you can't grow outside when it's - 20C

And water conservation

3

Shamino79 t1_iuf6bsv wrote

People have heated greenhouses in northern climates. They still make use if the sun.

1

looking_for_helpers t1_iuf7r6v wrote

There are more variables involved, such as very short days with the sun low on the horizon, the ability to run 24/7, the heat loss costs, security, abundance of cheap clean hydro-electricity, and a hundred other variables. Sunlight is one of them, and we can eliminate that as a production - limiting input.

The Canadian government used to grow weed in an old underground mine.

1

Shamino79 t1_iuf999s wrote

Weed used to get grown underground so no one could see it and was under lock and key. Don’t need that for lettuce and tomato. And I do get that greenhouses can use supplementary lights, insulation and heating to extend a season or control flowering. Taking it into a fully sealed building feels like it’s crossed a tipping point. Seems to me at some point food preservation and transport of canned goods could still be a good alternative.

1

looking_for_helpers t1_iufemoe wrote

There is not a single solution for all use cases, like energy sources, there are many.

1

flash-tractor t1_iug1mn8 wrote

Speaking from experience- it takes more energy to maintain a greenhouse than a well insulated building.

1