Cato Corner Farms, CT - New Cheese Collection - We are a small dairy farm that makes fine farmstead cheeses by hand from our Jersey girls' milk.
Hydroponic Farming
Hydroponics (from Latin, “working water”) is a method of growing plants in greenhouses in nutrient rich water, without soil, only their roots submerged in the water. Seeds are planted in a soil-free growing medium like gravel, and after 2 weeks, when the seedlings have developed a root system, they are transferred to beds full of running water, where they grow until ready to be harvested.
BETTER FOR YOU
CLEANER
No dirt, mud or dust.
No insects and worms.
Just clean vegetables that you can eat straight from the pack.
FREE FROM PESTICIDES / HERBICIDES RESIDUES
Cleaner vegetables, with no unwanted chemicals residues. Our produce complies with FDA requirements.
LONGER SHELF LIFE
Hydroponic vegetables will last longer. Not only are they cleaner to begin with, the fact that we do not wash our produce further lengthens shelf life.
HIGHER QUALITY
No weather damage to plants, no dry leaves or defects, means fewer waste for you.
BETTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
SAVING WATER
Hydroponics saves up to 75-90% water compared to traditional agriculture.
The main reasons for water waste in conventional agriculture are completely nonexistent in hydroponics, and are evaporation (especially at high temperatures) and percolation into the ground, too deep for plant roots to reach. In addition, water in a hydroponic greenhouse are recycled, filtered, purified and returned to the system.
SAVING LAND
Hydroponics enables growing more crops on a limited amount of land compared to traditional agriculture, a major advantage in areas where fertile land is scarce.
If more hydroponics-suitable crops were transferred from land to hydroponic greenhouses, the limited available land could be better utilized for crops that are not suitable for hydroponics (like root vegetables and grains).
PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT
Hydroponics provides plants with exact amounts of nutrients, thus preventing any excess from polluting land and groundwater.
Determining exact amounts of nutrients is a challenge in conventional agriculture, because some of the nutrients are present in the soil, and farmers need only to supplement those absent. But levels of nutrients in soil vary and are hard to gauge, causing over- or under-fertilization. Too little fertilization is not a threat to the environment, resulting in fewer crop yield and lower quality vegetables. The main concern is the extensive environmental effects of over-fertilization. The excess chemical cause soil salination, seep into groundwater and disrupt the balance of eco-systems in soil and water sources. Continued over longer periods, soil and water risk being no longer suitable for agriculture.
Most Products Sourced in Connecticut
The Connecticut Grown Program was developed by the state Department of Agriculture in 1986, when the now-familiar green and blue logo was created to identify agricultural products grown in the state.
Over the past three decades, the Connecticut Grown Program has blossomed into a multifaceted initiative targeting diverse local, regional, national and international markets through both direct-to-consumer and wholesale-oriented program components.
