‘Grow bag’ project launched in community

Launch of a grow bag project

The Rochdale Bangladeshi Partnership Project, in collaboration with the Rotary Club of Rochdale, has hosted an event to launch the ‘grow bag' project in the community.

The project is an initiative of Rochdale Rotary, led by David Acton, who has been working on the concept for over a 12 month period. He has recently introduced the concept to Kenya.

Mr Acton and fellow Rotarian Mike Tomkinson were at the launch event, as were RBPP Chairman Keith Swift, Dobir Miah and Shefali Begum.

Mr Acton spoke to guests about the project and demonstrated the concept.

The idea is to grow fruits and vegetables in a bag - because bags are free and available worldwide.

The completed grow bag takes just moments to make – place one bag inside another for strength, half fill with suitable growing medium, hang it up, punch 2 holes 1”/2cm up from the bottom of the bag, plant seeds or push in a seedling ‘plug,’ add water and let nature take its course.

When the bag is hung up it creates a plastic ‘cone’ shape, this allows condensation to trickle back down inside the bag into the soil so reducing water loss. The moisture content can be carefully monitored visually and by a light squeeze of the bag, if it feels slightly soft then the soil inside is in perfect condition.

The bag should be checked every morning and evening to see if water is required. If water drips from the two holes – stop watering – the drips can be caught in a pan and returned to the top of the bag.

The bag can be hung in semi-shade where a cool environment exists whilst the plant can reach out and be supported in the warmth of bright sunlight.

The soil/compost can be examined for ground borne bugs – weevils, slugs etc before being hung up. Bags can be hung one above the other to maximise yield in a given space.

Its design maximises the conservation of water.

Mr Acton, said: "The advantage of growing vertically is obvious, where urban land is at a premium it makes sense to grow plants on top of one-another, something similar to high rise apartments in city centres."

As an example, a small vegetable patch measuring 75 x 150cm can support 18 runner bean plants. If a 230cm high 'scaffold' is erected over the same patch, the Rotary Club believes that the use of their invention will help generate five times as many crops.
All the participants at the launch were excited about the idea and were given a pack including seeds to try growing in a bag. 

Mohammed Dobir Miah, Secretary of Rochdale Bangladeshi Partnership Project, said: “This is a great idea and we are really grateful to David Acton for working with us on this project.

“We have given packs to members of the community, and hope more people will take part. We will visit all participants and the best grower wins a special prize!

“So if you are interested, please get in touch and we will send you a pack. Please ring 07764614031 or email rbpp@live.co.uk.

“We are also grateful to BACP for hosting the event. The project will be rolled out to Bangladesh next year, we are currently working with the Rotary Club of Dhaka and a University is carrying out a feasibility study on it.”