At Marck Hydroponics , in a greenhouse measuring approximately 1 hectare , around 2 million shekels and pak choi plant are grown in a hydroponic floating raft organisation every class . Since mid-2019 , Arthur Marck and his blood brother Theo have been cultivating these crop in this growing system . After a lookup with dissimilar growing media , they are currently using Grodan stonewool quid .
Three years ago , Marck from Nieuwerkerk a / d IJssel , the Netherlands , was introduced by an acquaintance to hydroponic wampum cultivation , which appealed to him .
The IT specialist with a horticultural background , who at that time was still employed full - time at Lely in Maassluis , take the plunge and he and his comrade founded the company Marck Hydroponics . They used 1 hectare of their parents ’ garden to go up the company . He now works as a cultivator four days a week and continues to play one day a week as an IT medical specialist at Lely .
Thomas Peters and Arthur Marck
Deep stream techniqueMarck chose a DFT ( Deep Flow Technique ) polish organization from Meteor Systems . In this system , the leafy greens grow in specially designed plastic floating rafts with on a regular basis space holes in which the plants sit , suspended just above the water and from where the roots grow down into the water . “ The DFT scheme suit dead in our 8 - meter Venlo - expressive style greenhouse . "
Marck manages the entire process , from sowing and propagating of the young plants to their subsequent growth in the float lots and harvest .
The different cocoanut and peat ' compost ' mixture that he initially tried were not satisfactory . “ The industrial plant suffered from stress , the tooth root were smothered , and fall weewee and pee aeration did n’t really aid to prevent the root problems . From the very beginning , we had problem with Pythium and Phytophthora , resulting in a failure charge per unit of up to 50 % . ”
Stone wool Grodan plugsThe grower was introduced to Thomas Peters from Grodan by its local distributor , Royal Brinkman . “ I did n’t retrieve rock wool was a sustainable merchandise , but that was a misconception . As it can be reuse topically , it is in reality very sustainable , ” tell Marck .
On 3 February 2025 , Thomas Peters became Grodan ’s Business Development Manager . In this role , he supports growers with newfangled crop that can also be grow on stone wool , as is the case here . “ I looked at how Marck could reach better cultivation result by focussing on ameliorate the uniformity and eliminating crop failure stimulate by the root problems . I propose we try on our straight stone fleece plugs as these would equip nicely into the holes of the floating rafts . Air is all important for good root maturation , and as there is sufficient air in the stone wool plugs , the ancestor are encouraged to enter the H2O . ”
spring up supportSince March 2021 , Peters has been supervise the stone wool , overseeing operations from sow to harvest , the objective being craw optimization . “ Cultivation of both crops is fast and more effective , and the failure rate is now almost zero , ” Peters concludes .
The mental test crop were successful . The cultivator is now simply conduct further exam to perfect the system and he will then decide whether he will continue to grow half pak choi / half lettuce , or whether lucre alone will be grown . “ We will have it away more in six months ’ time . ”
