Sask. farmer growing tropical foods in his passive solar greenhouse
Saskatoon-area farmer Dean Sopher has always looked for ways to be self-reliant.
So when food prices started to soar, he took on the challenge of building a passive solar greenhouse so he could grow food year-round.
“I’m a bit of a nerd when it comes to passive solar technology,” said Sopher. “So my house is near net-zero, I’ve got a little chicken coop that’s passive solar, and I knew this concept would work, but I had to prove it. So I decided to build it myself, it’s been two and a half years since I started.”
Now he’s brought part of the supermarket to his backyard.
“All this stuff, we cannot grow it outside, even in the summertime,” Sopher told CTV News. “We grow passionfruit, lemons, limes, eucalyptus, tropical medicinal herbs for medicines, spices and things, it’s amazing to be able to do out here.”
The difference between passive solar and photovoltaic solar is in the design. It’s about architecture, rather than solar panels.
“Passive simply means there’s no moving parts,” he said. “It’s all essentially in the building science and the design when situated to the sun. So at our location on the planet, this building is specifically designed for our location. In Saskatchewan, we’re very sunny. We have something like 313 sunny days every year, and we can only grow food outside for like, four months.”
Sopher has been documenting his journey on his YouTube channel where he’s got more than 36,000 subscribers and over 1 million video views. His main suggestion: doing things yourself.
“On my YouTube I talk about a bunch of ways you can save money,” he said. “Number one is doing things yourself. I’m an advocate for learning skills on how to build out and grow your own food.”
And while he says it’s a lot of work, it’s worth it.
“Oh, it’s hard growing food indoors,” he said.
“Storing the excess heat from the day for at night, high humidity and even carbon dioxide deficiency because the plants keep making oxygen. But when you get your hands on and do those types of things, you find out all these systems really work together. So the chickens make us manure, the manure makes compost, the compost goes to the gardens and the gardens feed the chickens again. It’s beautiful.”
Now that he’s proved the concept, he’s got viewers from around the country building their own passive solar greenhouses based on Sopher’s design.
Another benefit of the greenhouse is in a new addition, a hot tub. Sopher says it’s actually a practical part of the system.
“It’s not all about production, we wanted to enjoy it a little bit too,” he said. “Instead of out in the elements where it would cost a huge amount of electricity to heat, in the greenhouse any heat loss adds to the humidity and heat, so it works together.”
Sopher says he’ll continue making videos about the inner workings of a passive solar greenhouse sitting at 35 C in the middle of winter, and continue producing fresh raw food for a small group of customers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Second Cup closes Montreal franchise over hateful incident
Second Cup Café has closed one of its franchise locations in Montreal following allegations of hateful remarks and gestures made by the franchisee in a video that was widely circulated online during a pro-Palestinian protest on Thursday.
‘It’s pretty emotional:’ N.B. family escape fire, plan to rebuild home
A family in Riverview, N.B., is making plans for Christmas and the future after escaping a fire in their home on November, 14.
Cargo ship runs aground in St. Lawrence River near Morrisburg, Ont.
A large cargo ship remains stuck in the St. Lawrence River after running aground on Saturday afternoon.
Scurvy resurgence highlights issues of food insecurity in Canada's rural and remote areas
A disease often thought to only affect 18th century sailors is reemerging in Canada.
B.C. man awarded $800K in damages after being injured by defective bear banger
A B.C. man has been awarded nearly $800,000 in damages as compensation for injuries he sustained from a defective bear banger, according to a recent court decision.
A man called 911 for help during a home invasion. Las Vegas police fatally shot him
A Las Vegas man called for police help during a home invasion before an officer fatally shot him, according to authorities and 911 calls.
Cat caught in hunting snare rescued by BC SPCA
Donations are ramping up for a BC SPCA cat with a mangled paw after being caught in a hunting snare, one of a rising number of pets to fall prey to the hunting device.
These royal residences are opening their doors this Christmas
Not so long ago, if you wanted to spend Christmas with the royal family, the only way to get close was to press your nose up to the TV screen during the monarch’s Christmas speech.
'Still working full time on it:' One year later police continue to search for gunman in Caledon double murder linked to ex-Olympian
One year after a couple was shot and killed in their Caledon home in what investigators have described as a case of mistaken identity, Ontario Provincial Police say they are still trying to figure out who pulled the trigger.