Indoor Gardening Easy as Plant, Pick and Plate

OPCOMLink USA announced today its OPCOM Farm indoor gardening systems, which enable anyone to easily grow their favorite vegetables, herbs, sprouts and fruits inside their homes, year-round.

The GrowBox and GrowWall models couple OPCOM’s soil-free, hydroponic growing technology with proprietary color LED lighting tuned for optimal plant growth. These next generation indoor gardens enable 25 percent faster growth cycles, and eliminate the challenges of weeding, pests and weather normally associated with outdoor gardening.

GrowBox, a tabletop system incorporating four multi-wavelength LED lamps, is able to grow up to 50 plants at a time. GrowWall offers a space-saving vertical design with advanced LED tubes that support up to 75 plants displayed on five different levels. Both models use approximately 90 percent less water than traditional outdoor gardening, offering an environmentally friendly way to grow.

“Our gardening systems combine advanced lighting, water management, and horticulture know-how, making it easy and fun to grow produce that is even fresher than farm-to-table; we call it Farm-on-Table,” said Rajeev Mishra, Vice President and General Manager of OPCOMLink USA. “Given the overall concerns around eating safe and healthy fruits and vegetables, OPCOM Farm offers customers convenient and affordable solutions to personally grow clean and fresh food the entire year.”

The GrowBox and GrowWall are priced at $499 and $599 respectively, and are available on http://www.OpcomFarm.com and Amazon, right in time for the holiday season. 

“You don’t have to be a gardener to enjoy our products,” Mishra says. “We are finding a lot of interest among urban dwellers, conscious consumers looking for pesticide free and non-GMO produce, and parents wanting to nurture an interest in their kids for healthy eating. It’s also a great option for seniors and others who would like to garden without the physical toll.”

Given their impressive water conservation and zero carbon footprint, such systems are considered a highly sustainable way to grow. 

“Hydroponics is the future of farming and food production,” Mishra maintains, “and OPCOM is committed to being at the forefront of this revolution.”

For more information and videos about OPCOM Farm indoor gardening products, visit http://www.OPCOMFarm.com.

About OPCOM

OPCOMLink USA Inc., based in Costa Mesa, Calif., is OPCOM’s regional sales and marketing headquarters for the Americas. The company was established in 2014 to introduce advanced imaging and lighting technologies in products that help people achieve smart, healthy, and simple lifestyles.

OPCOM is a global technology pioneer of advanced imaging and lighting solutions, delivering breakthrough technologies and quality products to the world’s top brands for over 20 years.

Floriade 2022 SubZero Pavillion

Dutch studio Doepel Strijkers has unveiled designs for a sunken pavilion with earth walls and a rooftop greenhouse, which will be built in Almere ahead of the Floriade 2022 horticultural expo (+ slideshow).


Construction is due to start this year on the SubZero Pavilion, which will be located on the artificial 45-hectare peninsula that fellow Rotterdam studio MVRDV is building especially for the expo.

The base of the building will be sunken down five metres below sea level, while the roof will function as an elevated winter garden.

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Related story: Zinc-clad chapel by René van Zuuk to be built over Almere's city lake

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Inside, the structure will house an innovation workshop centred around the themes of nutrition, health and wellbeing.

"The high ambition of this sustainable and innovative construction sets the tone for other developments on the Floriade 2022 site," said Doepel Strijkers, whose other projects include a proposal for a huge inhabitable wind turbine in Rotterdam.

During the expo, the building will serve as the pavilion for Flevoland, a Dutch province established in the 1980s on land reclaimed from the Zuiderzee inland sea. The majority of the province sits five metres below sea level, hence the floor level of the pavilion.
Exposed walls below sea level will be clad in mirrors to create the illusion that the upper section is floating.

By contrast, the upper walls and roof will be constructed from earth with visible strata lines. A greenhouse will be located in the centre of the roof, surrounded by a grass garden.

"The design embodies the story of the 'making of' Flevoland," said the design team. "Innovative water management, sustainable energy and food production form part of its DNA."

"The building makes optimum use of the microclimate with natural shading, passive heating and cooling and natural ventilation," it continued.

"The massive earth roof is optimally used to create a comfortable indoor climate all year round. The climate greenhouse with a transparent glass solar chimney on the roof is a winter garden and regulates the natural ventilation."

MVRDV's design for a new peninsula over the Almere lake was pivotal to the city's winning bid to host the next edition of the Floriade garden festival, which is held in the Netherlands every 10 years.

As well as hosting the six-month festival, it will provide a new city quarter containing a university, offices, homes, hotels and leisure facilities.

MVRDV unveiled its Floriade masterplan in July 2012

The peninsula is still under construction, although the SubZero Pavilion could be open for use by students and start-ups by early 2017. The development team expect it to "buzzing with activity" all the way up to the Floriade launch.

"In doing so, it is not only innovative in 2016 but also in 2022," added Doepel Strijkers.
Located on the outskirts of Amsterdam, the city of Almere is just 40 years old and was also built on land reclaimed from the sea. Other recent projects in the city include a wave-shaped viewing platform and a pair of matching homes for a brother and sister.

Exploded axonometric diagram – click for larger image

Section concept – click for larger image