This article was updated on March 5th, 2025.
Walking through the hallways on the 1st floor, you may see a bunch of green leaves right next to the window. Those leaves are actually part of a hydroponic garden that Ms. Denyer and her elementary school students, have set up.
Hydroponic gardens are not quite similar to traditional soil-planting. Instead of using a lot of land, water, and sunlight, hydroponic plants are placed in nutrient-rich solutions and require little space and sunlight. They grow faster and healthier than soil-grown plants.
“We set up the hydroponics system to give students hands-on experience with modern farming techniques as an extension to the Urban Farming program we have in elementary school”, Ms. Denyer said, “The SMPA generously gave us funding this year that we put towards the program and materials”. She also mentioned that the students are enjoying the garden and are very engaged in the maintenance of the plants.
Mr. Richard Mayus, the founder of Greentopia and our hydroponic farming consultant, provided some information about this unique way of farming. The main reason hydroponics was introduced to Japan was the rising concern about food safety after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident, which may have poisoned the soil for traditional farming. He explained that hydroponic farming is gaining popularity in Japan due to Japan’s limited farmland and growing demand for clean products. In addition, hydroponics are overall affordable, although it may be quite costly to start. However, there are some downsides to these types of farmlands. Hydroponic farms are extremely dependent on electricity, especially when they are indoors, a power shortage could cause some damage to plants.
