不做专家做菜农

移民农场主刘文开，在加拿大不做专家做菜农

不做专家做菜农——加拿大华裔农场主刘文开的成功故事

新华网渥太华6月20日电

6月初记者应邀去加拿大中部农业大省曼尼托巴省采访时,陪同记者的加拿大贸易和投资局的泰勒先生提醒说,一定要去中国移民刘文开的太阳能温室农场看看。“刘的经历很有意思,更重要的是,他把中国农业的先进技术带到了加拿大。”泰勒说。“他让很多人意识到,中国农业可能整体上相对落后,但有些方面还是很值得我们学习的,中加两国农业交流的空间很大。”

刘文开的农场位于温尼伯市郊埃拉镇,记者去采访当天正赶上一名来自卡尔加里的农民来买他的温室大棚设备。“设备都是从中国进的,我的技术简单实用,只要对买主稍做培训,他们回去便可组装使用了。”皮肤被晒得黝黑的刘文开一边说,一边搓去手指上沾满的黑土。

出身农家的刘文开1980年毕业于中国江西农大,后在江西农科院工作。1993年赴美国北达科他州大学做访问学者,并获遗传学育种硕士学位。1996年他移民加拿大,进入曼尼托巴省农业厅下属的农作物多样化试验推广站,出任中国蔬菜研究项目经理。一年后,他被调往加联邦农业部在曼尼托巴省的研究中心工作。

温尼伯是加拿大第八大城市,也是世界上最冷的大城市之一,冬天平均温度低于零下10摄氏度,夜晚甚至可以降到零下50摄氏度。“但我发现温尼伯全年阳光非常充足,于是就有了把中国温室大棚技术引进来的想法。我深信,去种菜更能发挥我的所学,也有更好的回报。”

1998 年,刘文开辞去工作,投资4万多加元买下15英亩地,成立了“文凯东方蔬菜公司”。刘文开种菜采用中国农民深耕细作的方法,当地农民只种一季,他至少种三季,像萝卜等可以种四五季,大大增加了产量。他还采用中国的地膜覆盖技术,使菜地不长杂草并保持水分,从而省去频繁打药、施肥、浇水等环节。这样不仅节省成本,生产出的蔬菜也是纯正的绿色蔬菜。

然而,由于当地人对中国蔬菜缺乏认识,他第一年种出的菜无人问津,“赔得一塌糊涂”。第二年,刘文开直接跑到卡尔加里一家连锁超市总部做工作,成功说服它接受自己的产品。从此,刘文开的蔬菜知名度越来越大。如今他的菜不仅在温尼伯市7家连锁超市有售,还销到附近省份和美国一些州。在自由市场上,顾客往往排成两个30米长的队伍购买,最忙的时候5个收银员都忙不过来。

记者走进一座太阳能大棚,只见里面西红柿硕果累累。刘文开的大棚设备产自中国辽宁,大棚后墙夹板里储存有15厘米厚的沙子,白天吸收太阳能,晚间散热,大棚顶部到晚间再盖上厚毯子。虽构造简单,保温效果却相当好。去年当地最低气温零下45度,大棚里温度却一直保持在零度以上。“我就靠一台木柴炉,就保证了全年蔬菜茁壮成长。而当地农民的传统大棚使用天然气取暖,光是取暖费就耗去1万加元。”

节能高效的中国大棚技术引起了曼省政府和当地农民的浓厚兴趣。前来购买大棚设备的农民已扩展到艾伯塔省、萨斯喀彻温省以及美国北达科他州。省农业部门官员也已打算在该省北部推广使用这种大棚。刘文开也因此成了当地的新闻人物,包括加拿大广播公司等30多家媒体都对他做了专访。

目前,刘文开雇有3名从中国来的全职工人,夏季忙时另招15个零工帮忙。他打算从中国多招一些工人过来,将大棚从目前的3个增加到20多个,同时增加露天菜地面积,满足更多客户需要。

刘文开还有一个更宏大的计划,他要在温尼伯建一个太阳能生态园,在里面栽种花草树木,并建设商店、餐馆、娱乐中心等,建设成大型商贸娱乐中心,生态园规模在3到4英亩。“一旦动工,一年多就可以建好。”刘文开的眼神里充满了对未来的信心。

http://www.winnipegchinese.com/html/72/n-5972.html

30 Below Yet Able To Grow!

Not too long ago I heard (via the aquaponics list I belong to) about a very intriguing greenhouse design created by a farmer in Manitoba for the purpose of growing Chinese vegetables year round.

Apparently, even with winter temps commonly dropping below -30 C (-22 F), the montly bill for three greenhouses was an average of only $140 CAD!

So what is the secret?

Passive solar heating coupled with a specialized thermal insulation blanket (lowered in the evenings).

Here is some exerpts from a very interesting article describing the greenhouse:

The weather outside may be frightful, but inside the greenhouses of Wenkai Oriental Vegetables in Elie, Man., even on a January afternoon with a brisk wind tearing across the prairie, it’s a balmy 27 C.

With the bright sun coming through the single layer of six-millimetre-thick plastic that covers the structure’s southern exposure and tiny transplanted Chinese cabbage seedlings poking up in neat rows in the damp, rich black soil, it feels more like a beautiful morning in June.

Unlike most greenhouses, which are heavily dependent on expensive supplementary heat, mainly natural gas, Wenkai Liu’s operation runs on pennies a day.

“Even when it’s -30 C, we don’t have to use any heat to keep it warm,” said Liu. “Our design offers energy savings of about 95 percent.”

The three 100 foot by 23 foot greenhouses, which were built using a design that is common in China, store heat from the sun in a 15 centimetre thick, two metre high stud frame wall filled with dry sand, and covered on the inside with aluminum sheeting that has been painted black. The outside has a layer of fiberglass insulation covered with plywood.

—————————-

Liu, who has lived near Elie with his wife and two young children since 1996, built the greenhouses two years ago with the help of a $20,000 research grant from Manitoba’s agriculture ministry, and technical assistance from Shenyang University in northeastern China.

“I brought the technology from China to show people how to operate a greenhouse in winter and save energy,” said Liu, 50, who was born in China.

Before that, he got a master’s degree in agriculture from North Dakota State University and worked in Venezuela for two years as an expert adviser. He also grows Chinese vegetables outdoors on his 10 acre farm during the summer, which he sells at fresh markets and through a contract agreement with Superstore.

Be sure to check out the full article: System heats greenhouse on pennies a day

For those of you who are scientifically-inclined, I also highly recommend you check out this research article (PDF) describing the performance of one of these greenhouses: Winter performance of a solar energy greenhouse in southern Manitoba

In case you are interested, Liu apparently will sell you the parts (and perhaps the plans?) to build you own for $10,000 (CAD $$) or so!

Like Spin Farming, this is very cool indeed, and makes me truly realize what could be possible here in southern Ontario!

http://www.ecosherpa.com/category/green-energy/

Going green all year long

Greenhouse draws broad support

By Sam Thompson Oct. 25, 2007

Two experimental solar-powered greenhouse projects in Elie and St. Francois Xavier are getting a hand with their year-round operations thanks to more than $30,000 in funding as part of a research project.

The funding, part of a larger, $100,000 grant through the Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative (ARDI), was announced in March and will be used to improve heating methods to keep things on the plus side year-round, despite outdoor temperatures hitting -30 C or colder.

It’s one further step to creating ideal growing conditions for Lori-Ann and Rene Regnier of SFX and Wenkai Liu of Elie, who have been working with ARDI, Manitoba Hydro and Dr. Qiang Zhang of the U of M’s Biosystems Engineering department for the past few years. According to Zhang, the results of research have been positive so far...with only a few setbacks.

“In principle, (a solar greenhouse) is commercially feasible,” said Zhang.

“The problems we’ve had are related to the thermal blanket outside having technical difficulties, which is why we’ve tried the new argon idea.”

The SFX greenhouse has experimented with argon gas as well as air-bubble plastics as heating alternatives. During the second phase of the greenhouse project, in 2005-06, a wet spring and freezing temperatures prevented the thermal blanket from unrolling properly, which resulted in plant loss.

Despite the setbacks, however, the greenhouse owners say they’re in it for the long haul.

“When people say ‘how long are you going to do this? You’re starting at the wrong age,’ I always say I’m gonna do it until it works,” said Lori-Ann Regnier.

“I do intend to (grow) year-round. We supply a number of organic food stores, and there are restaurants who will buy our produce in the winter.”

The project’s backers aren’t about to give up, either. ARDI chair David Gislason said he sees the progress that has been made so far – the Regniers are almost ready for full production, and Liu already produces year round – as positive indicators.

“The greenhouse business, especially in this part of the world, is a very seasonal thing, mainly because of the cost of heating,” said Gislason.

“When we saw the first (Elie) greenhouse growing tomatoes in January, we knew this could work.”

Gislason said in addition to being more environmentally friendly due to the use of solar energy, these greenhouses can provide local residents with organic, locally-grown produce 12 months of the year – thus saving the costs, energy consumption and potential problems that come with importing produce from warmer climates.

“We definitely want to see more of these,” he said.

Manitoba Hydro’s involvement with the project stems from an interest in energy preservation, and agricultural engineer Ray Boris said Hydro, which has provided a substantial amount of funding, has been working with Zhang on this project for more than five years.

Members of the public can tour the original site, Liu’s Wenkai Oriental Vegetables in Elie on Saturday, March 31 from 1 to 3 p.m. More information is available by contacting Rhea Yates, ARDI communications, at 896-6926.