Conventional Greenhouses vs. Smart Greenhouses
Against the backdrop of rapid technological advancement, smart greenhouses are progressively replacing polytunnel plastics, emerging as a significant force driving agricultural modernization. They not only substantially enhance crop yields but also enable precise regulation of the growth environment and efficient utilization of resources, charting a new course for the future of agriculture. This article will delve into the core differences between smart greenhouses and polytunnel plastics from the perspectives of environmental control, resource utilization, pest and disease management, data support, and automation levels, while also looking ahead to their broad application prospects.
The smart greenhouse represents an advanced form of facility agriculture, equipped with an integrated environmental control system capable of directly regulating key growth factors such as temperature, light, water, nutrients, and air. This enables year-round continuous production and precision cultivation, yielding significant economic benefits. With the deepening implementation of the rural revitalization strategy, smart greenhouses are injecting strong momentum into agricultural transformation and upgrading. Their operation typically relies on the collaboration of signal acquisition systems, central computers, and control systems, integrating advanced technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor and automatically adjust internal greenhouse conditions—such as temperature, humidity, light, and CO₂ concentration—in real time. By simulating and maintaining optimal growing conditions for crops, smart greenhouses can implement intelligent management based on different plant growth stages and external climate variations, thereby achieving goals of improved quality, shortened growth cycles, and resource conservation.
I. Environmental Control Capability
Polytunnel plastics have a simple structure, often built with film, earthen walls, and bamboo/wood or steel frames. They feature low cost and low technical barriers, and remain widely used across many regions in China. Their environmental regulation primarily relies on grower experience, manually operating thermal blankets, vents, etc., for temperature and humidity adjustment, resulting in low efficiency and difficulty in achieving precision.
Smart greenhouses, however, are often based on multi-span glass or flexible sunlight greenhouse structures, augmented with sensors, IoT platforms, integrated water-fertilizer systems, soilless cultivation, and biological control systems. This enables continuous monitoring of environmental parameters. Relying on intelligent control, they can automatically open/close shading, regulate ventilation, execute irrigation, and manage heating/cooling, achieving refinement and intelligence in the planting process.
II. Resource Utilization Efficiency
Planting methods in polytunnel plastics are relatively extensive. Irrigation and fertilization often depend on manual experience, lacking scientific management of resources like water and fertilizers, which can easily lead to waste.
Smart greenhouses, through intelligent irrigation systems, provide water precisely according to the actual needs of the crops. They can also comprehensively utilize industrial waste heat, carbon dioxide, and other resources. Combined with intelligent algorithms to optimize energy allocation, they significantly improve the utilization efficiency of resources such as water, fertilizers, and energy.
III. Pest and Disease Management
Pest and disease control in polytunnel plastics heavily relies on chemical pesticides, which can easily lead to environmental pollution and pesticide residues, affecting the quality and safety of agricultural products.
Smart greenhouses primarily employ biological control, physical control, and intelligent early warning systems, enabling early detection and treatment. This significantly reduces the use of chemical agents, ensuring the safety of agricultural products while also improving crop yield and quality.
IV. Data Management and Decision Support
Traditional agriculture has long been dependent on natural conditions ("relying on heaven for food"), lacking systematic means for data recording and analysis. Management is extensive, disaster resistance is weak, and planting risks are high.
Smart greenhouses integrate big data and AI technologies to collect and analyze data throughout the entire crop growth cycle, providing scientific decision-making basis for managers and promoting the transition of agriculture from "experience-based planting" to "precision planting."
V. Automation and Intelligence Level
Polytunnel plastics have a low degree of automation, require high labor intensity, and long-term work can easily lead to occupational diseases such as joint and muscle problems among farmers.
Smart greenhouses achieve a high degree of automation and intelligence, significantly reducing labor input and intensity, and effectively improving production efficiency and working comfort.
VI. Application Prospects
With continuous technological progress and increasing global demand for sustainable agriculture, smart greenhouses demonstrate broad prospects. They are not only suitable for large modern agricultural parks but also offer possibilities for new forms like urban agriculture and home gardening. The development of smart greenhouses is an important marker of agriculture's transformation towards efficiency, environmental friendliness, and intelligence, providing key technical support for advancing agricultural modernization and rural revitalization.
It is foreseeable that as an upgraded form of polytunnel plastics, smart greenhouses, with their precise environmental control, efficient resource utilization, green pest control methods, and high-level automation capabilities, will gradually become the mainstream of facility agriculture. In the near future, they are destined to bring safer, healthier, and higher-quality agricultural products to our tables.
