Sandhu & Chouhan

With almost 20 years’ experience growing Lebanese cucumbers, Australian producer Sandhu & Chouhan is familiar with the trial-and-error process of improving greenhouse irrigation systems. Starting in low-tech greenhouses, the company now grows over 32,000 plants and estimates an output of 7-10kg of marketable fruit per plant – a threefold increase in fruit output per plant compared to when they started in 2005.

Company founder, Karmjit Sandhu, accredits much of this to the company’s continued focus on measuring and improving its fertiliser, water, and chemical use.

“In 2014 we turned to Powerplants and Priva. An irrigation system with a sun radiation sensor allowed us to start feeding the correct EC/Ph and decrease water and fertiliser use. 2022 was when we implemented the Priva GroScale system. While this technology wasn't available when we started with Priva, the main reason we decided to move to this system were rising fertiliser costs, with some fertilisers increasing price by 300%."

Since implementing the weight and runoff monitoring features of the GroScale system, Sandhu and Chouhan have seen a 65% increase in marketable fruit and have reduced fertiliser application by 50%. As an added benefit, plant mortality has also dropped 80%, and the healthier crops have also meant weekly spraying has changed to every 2-months.

By keeping an eye on developing technology, Sandhu & Chouhan have continued to make incremental investments in systems that decrease input costs while improving plant health and yield. The process has allowed the company to demonstrate consistent improvements, while also helping them stay up to date on the latest industry knowledge.