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How Peppers are grown at Hedon Salads.

Some background on peppers as a plant.

Sweet Peppers are derived from plants of the genus Capsicum. This genus belongs to the plant family SOLANACEAE - the same as Potatoes, Tomatoes and Tobacco.

DETAILS OF HOW PEPPERS ARE GROWN.

Growing Peppers.

Peppers are planted the first week in January onto special mats. The environment in the Greenhouse is computer controlled, Hedon Salads even have their own weather station which is incorporated into the computer programme which monitors the plants needs.

The plants are fed in the water which goes through pipes to each individual plant.

The heating is provided by a Combine Heat Power Unit (CHP) - more on below, through these pipes.

The plants also receive extra Carbon Dioxide through this plastic tube which has small pin pricks in.

When first planted the young plants are fed and water 2-3 times a day. Once they start cropping in late April the Peppers are fed and watered according to the amount of energy they receive from the sun. The computer monitors this, the peppers receive a fed and water after the accumulation of every 250 Joules of sunlight. On a sunny day this can add up to 9-10 times a the plants can receive as much as 2500 Joules in a day.

Harvesting Peppers

Harvesting of peppers starts in late April.

All peppers start of green and ripen to the mature colour of their particular variety which can be red, yellow or orange. They are picked once they change to this ripe colour.

The harvested peppers are boxed up and then taken to the grading and packing shed.

Grading Peppers.

The peppers are sorted or graded by size. This is done by a very clever machine, with the help of skilled and dedicated workers who do the bits machine cannot manage. When the pepper reaches the correct point for its size it drops through the conveyor belt to go down a shoot and be packed into a box. These boxes are then taken to the packing lines.

Packing Peppers.

The graded peppers are taken to the packing lines. Here they are packed as a Triple Pack, or as a Multi-Pack - ready for you to enjoy as one of your 5-a-day.

Energy Use in growing Peppers.

Successful growing in a greenhouse needs to provide the ideal conditions for what ever type of plants are grown - in this case peppers but equally be : tomatoes, cucumbers, aubergines, flower and many other plants.

Depending on the time of year the plants could need extra heat and light. This is supplied by a Combine Heat and Power Unit (CHP Unit).

A CHP Unit is just a large engine like you would get on a ship. It is gas powered and heats a boiler as well as providing electricity for lighting etc. The 'surplus' electricity is sold back to the national grid.

The heat produced during the day which is not needed in the greenhouse is stored in large insulated tanks and then pumped into the greenhouse when needed such as on a night.

The carbon dioxide produced as a result of the combustion of gas in the engine is also pumped into the greenhouses.This is used by the plants in photosynthesis - in fact carbon dioxide is often the limiting factor to maximum photosynthesis, so the plants grow and yield even better when supplied with this extra carbon dioxide.

The rainwater is also collected on the site and stored in large lagoons. this is then mixed with tap water and used in the greenhouses.

Thanks to the CHP Unit modern horticulture is generally carbon neutral in terms of growing the produce. Selling surplus electricity back to the national grid also means that they can pay for their running costs. However the CHP Unit represents a substantial initial investment as they cost £1.5 million!

 

Thanks to Hedon Salads for allowing us to film in their greenhouses and production

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